1

What is unauthorised software ?

2

What is a software licence ?

3

Why should I buy licence instead of retail full product in some occasions ?

4

What is Certificate of Authenticity (COA) ?

5

Is it legal to transfer software ?

6

If I've upgraded my software, do I still need to keep the licence of the previous version of the software as part of my legally licensed product ?

7

If my organisation has 20 workstations (all networked) and we have purchased 10 copies of a product which allows workstation setup, can I do workstation setup on all 20 workstations ?

8

May I use a prior version of a purchased software ?

Q1

What is unauthorised software ?

A1

Unauthorised software means software which is not licensed for use (unlicensed software), or licensed software the use of which has not been authorised by the management of the organisation.

Q2

What is a software licence ?

A2

When you 'purchase' a software, it does not mean that you have or own the software. Instead, you are just granted a licence to use the software. Actually, a software licence grants you the legal right to use a piece of software. However, how to use the software product legitimately is governed by the terms stated in the licence agreement as well as copyright law.

Q3

Why should I buy licence instead of retail full product in some occasions ?

A3

Licence is a good choice for those who need many installed copies of a software package but do not need disk media and manuals for each user. A licence, without the cost of shipping, disk media and manuals, is usually cheaper than a retail full product.

Q4

What is Certificate of Authenticity (COA) ?

A4

COA is a security certificate that accompanies with most Microsoft products. Like the watermark found in money bills, it helps consumers to recognise that it is genuine. COA can be found on the front cover of the user's manual, licence certificate, disk media and/or outside box of a retail product.

Q5

Is it legal to transfer software ?

A5

If your licence agreement contains the terms of transfer, it should be legal to transfer the software as long as the recipient abides by the terms of the licence agreement. The transfer should include the software, original licence card, original licence agreement and the Certificate of Authenticity where applicable. For upgraded products, any transfer must include the most recent product upgrades as well as the prior versions of the software. You must remove all copies of the product from your machine before the transfer.

Q6

What if I've upgraded the software? Do I still need to keep the licence of the previous version of the software as part of my legally licensed product ?

A6

Yes, all copies of licences of previous versions together are treated as a complete product of the upgraded version

Q7

If my organisation has 20 workstations (all networked) and we have purchased 10 copies of a product which allows workstation setup, can I do workstation setup on all 20 workstations ?

A7

For products that allow "concurrent use", the answer to the question is "yes" and the product can be installed in the file server for shared use. You can perform workstation setup on all 20 workstations provided that the maximum number of concurrent users at any time does not exceed the number of licences you have (i.e., 10 in your example). Software metering tools can be used to control the number of concurrent users using the software.

For products that do not allow "concurrent use", the answer to the question is "no". A customer needs one licence per workstation. Workstation setup can only be done on 10 of the workstations

You can refer to individual vendors to find out if their products allow concurrent use.

Q8

May I use a prior version of the software ?

A8

You should check the licence agreement whether using prior version of the software is allowed. If the licence agreement does not mention this term, you should write to the vendor for permission.