Importance of Sam in a Cloud Based Environment Date:   Wednesday , December 02, 2015 Headquartered in Oslo, Norway, Crayon Software Experts is a global leader in software asset management (SAM), cloud & volume licensing and other associated consulting services and it specializes in optimizing client ROI from complex technology. The key business drivers for the adoption of Software Asset Management (SAM) in organizations have changed over the years. Contrary to common belief that SAM is usually adopted to deal with compliance related issues, most opt for SAM implementation to identify software procurement that could enable cost cutting. Many organizations feel that there is redundancy in management of existing software. They are looking at options to curb unnecessary expenses involved in buying new softwares. The intelligence provided by comprehensive SAM programs is pivotal in managing unnecessary expenditure or revising Support & Maintenance agreements and even negotiating with software publishers for volume licenses. In the recent past, there has been an increasing trend of organizations moving away from on-premise application & storage and shifting towards cloud-based services. The shift in operations to cloud has led to a need for SAM programs that are more flexible and dynamic in nature. The SAM program must get acclimatized to deal with challenges that organizations counter in a cloud environment. The basic fundamentals of SAM principles remain constant There is an essential difference in licensing risks and effective implementation of SAM in a cloud environment in comparison to its implementation in a traditional IT environment. Another prominent trend among SAM communities to draw new customer base has been to offer attractive discounts on cloud licensing. This is an attempt to offer latest platforms and software versions to organizations. Organizations working on cloud and adopting SAM programs must be able to evaluate what kind of SAM model works best for them. This evaluation can be done by analyzing the following information points simultaneously: 1. The expenses incurred on licenses program 2. What are the perks that you are deriving out of it? 3. The utilization of the software in the current scenario 4. The specifics of hardware it requires to operate (Whether it is leased, new or written down for tax purposes) In addition to these, it is also important for the organization to understand the future scope of the software. Will there be a considerable increase or decrease in utilization of the software in a cloud based environment? A good software investment is possible only when organizations have clearly answered such questions. A capable SAM solution can track licenses, software installs, software usage and costs (both for hardware & software) from a single console. This helps create easy management reports that help organization to decide whether moving into cloud will be beneficial or not. In cloud, SAM will be required to manage assets as well as the services of the organization. SAM tends to adapt a more real-time given approach due to the constantly changing dynamics in cloud environments. SAM must be able to keep pace with rapid changes in provisioning, configuration, reconfiguration, and last minute release of services. Due to the convenience and the rate at which cloud allows provisioning of new software, there is high risk of rogue organizational implementations by departments or individuals. SAM in the cloud must be able to tackle these threats that can easily breach procurement and SAM gateways. Deployment of software to cloud can have several hidden service costs and additional software licensing costs. Organizations must be able to identify these new elements in estimating total cost of ownership (TCO). There are many options for organizations who have considered moving their software to cloud. One of the common options would be to consider reselling any unused licenses. Regenerating present software is a common practice in SAM circles. There is a huge potential that can be driven from re-harvesting unused and eligible licenses. An effective SAM implementation is possible when SAM is completely embedded in the cloud management process right from the initial stages. SAM must be installed during the planning and designing of architecture to examining the CSP compliance with Service Level Agreements (SLAs). The rules governing the use of software differ substantially in a cloud environment. SAM functions must access the conventional software license agreement and discuss with software publishers on adapting to the new cloud environment. If the organization is considering cloud as part of its stratagem and long term goal, it would be beneficial to renegotiate certain software license agreements. SAM functions must develop prominence in the organization structure and gauge the present cloud arrangement of the organization in IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS, evaluating the existing agreements assessing the functionality of software assets in the cloud environment. inherent licensing and other risks related to SAM that may exist within the organization. Probably the shift to cloud is pretty unavoidable, but it still doesn\'t eliminate the importance of SAM in an organization. In fact, it has further reaffirmed its significance with organizations looking at options to reduce their expenses in an environment that aggressively encourages over-utilization!