Calculating IBM PVU Licensing in the Public Cloud:
- Determine vCPUs: Count the virtual CPUs (vCPUs) allocated to VMs.
- Apply PVU Rate: Multiply vCPUs by IBM’s flat rate of 70 PVUs/vCPU.
- Provider Differences: Understand how each cloud provider counts vCPUs (e.g., AWS, Azure).
- Use Monitoring Tools: Track PVU usage with the IBM License Metric Tool (ILMT).
IBM PVU Licensing in the Public Cloud
Understanding how to correctly calculate processor value units (PVUs) is essential when using IBM software in the public cloud.
IBM allows customers to bring their software licenses (BYOL) to approved public cloud providers under the Eligible Public Cloud BYOSL policy.
This policy enables organizations to use their existing IBM licenses in the cloud, but it’s crucial to accurately determine the required PVUs to remain compliant and manage costs effectively.
PVU Calculation Basics
For most public cloud environments, IBM applies a flat rate of 70 PVUs per virtual CPU (vCPU) or virtual processor core (VPC). To calculate the necessary PVUs for your deployment:
- Count the vCPUs allocated to the virtual machines (VMs) running IBM software.
- Multiply the total number of vCPUs by 70 to determine the PVU requirement.
For example, if your VM has four vCPUs, the calculation would be:
4 vCPUs × 70 PVUs/vCPU = 280 PVUs
Counting vCPUs Across Different Cloud Providers
Each public cloud provider counts vCPUs slightly differently:
- IBM Cloud: The offering description directly provides the number of vCPUs.
- Microsoft Azure: Each vCPU is treated as one core, with hyperthreading enabled by default. Thus, 1 vCPU equals half of a physical core.
- Amazon Web Services (AWS): vCPU details can be found within the instance type specifications.
- Google Cloud: Similar to Azure, each virtual CPU is considered 1 core, with hyperthreading enabled, meaning 1 vCPU equals half a physical core.
Understanding these distinctions is important for accurately calculating PVUs based on your cloud provider.
Container-Based Licensing
When deploying IBM software in containerized environments, there are two primary licensing options:
- Container Licensing: You license only the cores or vCPUs assigned to the pods running the IBM software. The IBM License Service tracks and measures this.
- Full-Capacity Licensing: This requires licensing the full capacity of all worker nodes within the Kubernetes cluster, regardless of actual usage.
Your organization must sign the IBM Container Licensing Addendum to use the Container Licensing option. If this supplement isn’t signed, the Full-Capacity licensing model must be used by default.
Monitoring and Ensuring Compliance
Maintaining compliance in cloud environments requires using the appropriate license metric tools to monitor PVU consumption:
- IBM License Metric Tool (ILMT): This tool is essential for tracking PVU consumption in traditional VM-based deployments.
- IBM License Service: Specifically designed for container-based deployments, this service helps track and manage the usage of IBM software within containerized environments.
Regularly using these tools helps ensure compliance with your PVU entitlements, especially as your cloud usage scales.
Additionally, conducting internal audits can help identify potential gaps in licensing and address them before they become compliance issues.
