Licensing Q&A: What is IBM Passport Advantage?
IBM Passport Advantage is IBM's program for buying, using and managing IBM software licenses under one agreement, the IBM Passport Advantage Agreement (IPAA). It gives access to new releases and technical support, volume discounts, electronic delivery, and Sub-Capacity licensing, which lets you license a virtualized server for the capacity the software uses rather than the whole machine.
IBM Passport Advantage is a software licensing program offered by IBM. It provides customers with a flexible and convenient way to purchase, use, and manage IBM software licenses. With IBM Passport Advantage, customers have access to the latest IBM software releases, technical support, and online service requests. The program also provides benefits such as electronic software delivery, flexible licensing options, and reduced costs for multi-product purchases. IBM Passport Advantage is designed to help organizations simplify their software procurement process and optimize their technology investments.
Passport Advantage is beneficial from a licensing point of view because it provides a centralized and standardized approach to purchasing, using, and managing IBM software licenses. This helps organizations streamline their software procurement process and ensure compliance with IBM licensing terms and conditions.
The Passport Advantage program provides customers access to a wide range of IBM software products and enables them to take advantage of volume discounts, flexible license options, and other benefits. For example, Sub-Capacity licensing benefits allow customers to license IBM software under the Sub-Capacity licensing model. With Sub-Capacity licensing, customers only pay for the actual capacity they use rather than the system’s total capacity on which the software is installed. This can result in lower costs and more flexible licensing options for organizations.
Passport Advantage provides customers with access to Sub-Capacity licensing benefits by allowing them to license IBM software on a per-core basis. This means that customers only pay for the number of cores that are actively being used rather than for the total capacity of the system. Additionally, Passport Advantage enables customers to take advantage of volume discounts and other benefits, further reducing the cost of licensing IBM software under the Sub-Capacity model.
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Also read
If you want the fuller guide on this topic, start with IBM Passport Advantage Agreement (IPAA) Version 11: What You Need to Know.
Frequently asked questions
What is the IBM Passport Advantage Agreement?
The contract that governs Passport Advantage. Version 11 took effect for existing customers on 1 May 2023 and requires customers to produce a report of deployed programs, the Deployment Data, in IBM's format on 30 days' notice. The changes are set out in IPAA version 11.
What is Sub-Capacity licensing?
A Passport Advantage benefit that lets you license eligible IBM software for the capacity it actually uses on a virtualized server, instead of the full capacity of the physical machine. Under IPAA version 11, keeping Sub-Capacity terms for a product that no longer qualifies takes a migration plan approved by IBM and continued ILMT reports.
Why does Passport Advantage matter for license compliance?
It is where IBM's verification rights sit. A customer must create, keep and hand over Deployment Data on request, and renewing Subscription and Support for fewer uses needs system-generated proof at least 30 days before the renewal date, or every expiring quantity renews.
