Oracle software licensing in a cloud computing environment works as follows:
- Coverage: For GCP, AWS and Azure.
- vCPU Counting: For AWS, GCP, and Azure, two vCPUs equal one Oracle CPU license if multi-threading is enabled; otherwise, one vCPU equals one Oracle Processor license.
- Cloud Licensing Calculation: Processor Core Factor Table is not used. Licensing is based on instance size.
- Standard Edition Limitations: Oracle DB SE is limited to 16 AWS/Azure/GCP vCPUs. For SE1 and SE2, up to eight Amazon, GCP, or Azure vCPUs are allowed.
- Licensing Oracle Software in the Cloud Computing Environment
- Vendor Coverage
- Counting Maximum Available vCPUs
- Oracle Cloud Licensing Calculation
- Oracle Standard Edition Limitations
- Licensing Oracle Database Enterprise Edition on Azure
- Licensing Oracle Database Standard Edition 2 on Azure
- FAQs
- Contact our Oracle Licensing Consulting Team
Licensing Oracle Software in the Cloud Computing Environment
Licensing Oracle Software in the Cloud Computing Environment
The Oracle cloud licensing policy document is titled “Licensing Oracle Software in the Cloud Computing Environment.”
As more organizations transition to cloud computing, understanding the licensing policies for software, especially Oracle software, is essential.
This article details the policy for licensing Oracle software on Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and now Google Cloud, an authorized cloud vendor.
Vendor Coverage
The policy covers the use of Oracle software in cloud computing environments from the following vendors:
- Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)
- Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
- Microsoft Azure Platform
Counting Maximum Available vCPUs
When licensing Oracle programs in the mentioned cloud environments, including Google Cloud, customers must count the maximum available vCPUs of an instance type as follows:
AWS EC2 and RDS:
- If multi-threading of processor cores is enabled, count two vCPUs as equivalent to one Oracle CPU license.
- If multi-threading of CPU cores is not enabled, count one vCPU as equivalent to one Oracle Processor license.
Microsoft Azure:
- If multi-threading of processor cores is enabled, count two vCPUs as equivalent to one Oracle CPU license.
- If multi-threading of CPU cores is not enabled, count one vCPU as equivalent to one Oracle Processor license.
Google Cloud:
- If multi-threading of processor cores is enabled, count two vCPUs as equivalent to one Oracle CPU license.
- If multi-threading of CPU cores is not enabled, count one vCPU as equivalent to one Oracle Processor license.
Oracle Cloud Licensing Calculation
The Oracle Processor Core Factor Table should not be used when licensing Oracle software in Authorized Cloud Environments.
The pricing for Oracle SE1, SE2, or SE in the product name is based on the size of the instance:
- Instances with four or fewer Amazon vCPUs, Azure vCPUs, or Google Cloud vCPUs should be considered equivalent to one socket (or Oracle processor license).
- Instances with more than four AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud vCPUs require one socket for every four vCPUs used (rounded up to the nearest multiple of four).
Oracle Standard Edition Limitations
Under this cloud computing policy, Oracle DB SE may only be licensed on instances with up to 16 AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud vCPUs.
Oracle DB SE1 and SE2 may only be licensed on instances with up to eight Amazon vCPUs, eight Azure vCPUs, or eight Google Cloud vCPUs. If licensing Database Standard Edition 2 uses the Named User Plus (NUP) metric, a minimum of 10 NUP licenses is required per eight vCPUs.
Licensing Oracle Database Enterprise Edition on Azure
To license Oracle Database Enterprise Edition on a Microsoft Azure instance with 32 vCPUs, you must count the maximum available vCPUs as specified in the policy.
According to the policy, you would count two vCPUs as equivalent to one Oracle CPU license if multi-threading of CPU cores is enabled and one vCPU as equivalent to one Oracle CPU license if multi-threading of CPU cores is not enabled.
In this case, with an instance with 32 vCPUs, you need to count each vCPU as equivalent to one Oracle CPU license.
Therefore, you would need 32 processor licenses to license this instance properly.
Licensing Oracle Database Standard Edition 2 on Azure
To license Oracle Database Standard Edition 2 on a cloud computing instance, you must count the maximum available vCPUs according to the policy.
In this example, with an instance with eight vCPUs, you would count four vCPUs as equivalent to one Oracle CPU license.
Therefore, you would need two processor licenses to license this instance properly.
FAQs
What cloud vendors are covered under Oracle’s cloud licensing policy? The policy covers Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and Microsoft Azure.
How do I count vCPUs for Oracle licensing on AWS, GCP, and Azure? If multi-threading is enabled, count two vCPUs as one Oracle CPU license. If multi-threading is not enabled, count one vCPU as one Oracle Processor license.
Is the Oracle Processor Core Factor Table used in cloud environments? No, it is not used for cloud licensing based on instance size.
What are Oracle DB SE’s limitations in the cloud? Oracle DB SE can only be licensed on instances with up to 16 vCPUs on AWS, Azure, or GCP.
What are the licensing limitations for Oracle DB SE1 and SE2? Oracle DB SE1 and SE2 can only be licensed on instances with up to eight vCPUs on AWS, Azure, or GCP. If using the Named User Plus (NUP) metric, you need at least 10 NUP licenses per eight vCPUs.
How do I license Oracle Database Enterprise Edition on Azure with 32 vCPUs? Count each vCPU according to the policy: if multi-threading is enabled, count two vCPUs as one Oracle CPU license. With 32 vCPUs, you need 32 processor licenses.
How do I license Oracle Database Standard Edition 2 on Azure with eight vCPUs? For SE2 on an instance with eight vCPUs, you count four vCPUs as one Oracle CPU license. Thus, you need two processor licenses.
Are Oracle software licensing policies different for Google Cloud? No, the licensing policies for vCPU counting and limitations are the same for Google Cloud as for AWS and Azure.
Can I use the Oracle Processor Core Factor Table for cloud instances? No, the Processor Core Factor Table is not applicable for cloud licensing. Licensing depends on the instance size.
What is the vCPU licensing policy for AWS EC2 and RDS? For AWS, if multi-threading is enabled, count two vCPUs as one Oracle CPU license. If not enabled, count one vCPU as one Oracle Processor license.
How is vCPU counting handled on Microsoft Azure? For Azure, if multi-threading is enabled, count two vCPUs as one Oracle CPU license. If not enabled, count one vCPU as one Oracle Processor license.
Does Google Cloud have specific vCPU counting rules? For Google Cloud, the rules are the same: if multi-threading is enabled, count two vCPUs as one Oracle CPU license. If not, count one vCPU as one Oracle Processor license.
What happens if my instance has more than four vCPUs? Instances with more than four vCPUs require one socket for every four vCPUs, rounded up to the nearest multiple of four.
How are instances with fewer than four vCPUs licensed? Instances with four or fewer vCPUs are equivalent to one socket (or Oracle processor license).
What is the minimum NUP requirement for SE2 on AWS and Azure? Using the NUP metric, a minimum of 10 NUP licenses per eight vCPUs is required for Database Standard Edition 2.
