The spectre of a software audit
Despite the complexity of the SAP world, performing the required audit is no magic trick. It is crucial to establish clarity about the SAP inventory in advance - especially when SAP systems are distributed worldwide in global companies and administered from independent locations and in separate networks.
Companies should therefore first ensure that they can substantiate each individual user. Users, roles and SAP Computer Centre Management System (CCMS) data should basically be recorded, consolidated and optimized.
On this basis, not only can compliance violations be avoided, but the optimal classification of SAP Named User licenses can also be determined based on actual usage and contract terms.
With such an approach, at the end of the process there are concrete recommendations for the optimal license mix, i.e. the number of licenses actually required of the type Professional, Limited Professional, Employee User, etc. Once all inactive users have been removed and the licenses reclassified, the actual measurement of the entire license inventory can begin.
The majority of SAP customers rely on the license audit tool SAP LAW (License Administration Workbench) for this. And here, too, a transparent inventory of all installed licenses is urgently needed.
This is because LAW has its own rules and, for example, counts user licenses even if the users in question were never logged on or worked with SAP.
In addition, for the SAP surveying tool, all users without a defined license type are automatically considered Professional Users - and therefore among the most expensive SAP licenses.
If companies fail to enter the correct type of user licenses in the user master files, the number of Professional Users skyrockets and it can get very expensive very quickly.
The same applies to expensive developer licenses, which is why it pays to closely examine the licenses of this type that are actually needed. If inactive and locked users are then removed, millions can be saved that were set aside for license adjustment.
The environment for SAP customers is and remains complex. Meanwhile, license management also includes applications and license models resulting from the acquisition of other manufacturers (for example, Business Objects and Ariba).
Cases such as Diageo have also shown how important it is to accurately identify indirect use. With the immense number of different license terms and license clauses, the overview is quickly lost.
Without appropriate software license optimization tools, it is therefore almost impossible to control and manage SAP inventory across multiple systems.
In addition, experience shows that SAP teams are usually so busy with updates and rollouts that they are practically only temporarily available for SAP audits and contract preparations.
Centralized and automated SAP license optimization provides relief here and means that in future, companies only pay for the user licenses they actually need. This prepares them for both SAP system surveys and contract negotiations - not just once a year, but on an ongoing basis.
This brings us to the last important aspect of a successful audit: license management is an ongoing task that does not only arise when an audit is imminent. Companies must ensure compliance with licensing regulations throughout.
It makes sense to integrate distributed locations into a uniform license management system and to control licenses from a central location. All information about the SAP inventory thus comes from a single source and provides the basis for optimal purchasing decisions.
If companies manage to stay permanently informed about existing licenses and user activities in this way, the next audit will finally lose its horror.
