[j-nsp] Flex licensing on MPC10

[Richard McGovern]

Yes Flex Licensing allows the license to move from one device, to another.  You purchase a Flex license which last for a period of time, and includes support - no extra Support SKU is needed.  The license is NOT tie to any hardware!  This is different than older original Perpetual License model.  There you purchased License (upfront cost) tie to a specific piece of HW, and then paid Support on top of this.  if you did not renew Support for the P License SKU, you lost ability to use those features, for basically like forever.

At this time many Juniper Licensed features are "honor based" and Juniper uses EULA sort of like do not copy on DVDs __  A Flex License can only be used on one applicable product, at any moment in time.  If you want multiple products to be allowed to run any licensed feature, multiple license would need to be purchased.  Now in the future if features (some features are already there) are actually restricted without a license, if you move a Flex License from one system to another, the feature support moves with in. One major advantage for Flex vs Permanent Licenses, if you only want to use a feature for say 1 or 3 years, you purchase license with that length of time, and at the end you just do not renewal the license.  Now 1 or 2 years down the road you determine you want that feature back, you just repurchase the license.  With Permanent you could stop renewing support after 1 or 3 years, but without continued Support Juniper is not required to allow a renewal when years are skipped.  Juniper may charge extra for years you skipped support for a P License, or make you purchased new License to get support.  The upfront Cost for Permanent plus Support is greater than the equivalent for Flex, but then the yearly cost of Flex (which includes Support) is greater than P License Renewal cost.  I believe based upon some calculations, that on average Permanent is more cost effective after like 7/8 years of use, vs Flex.  In todays every changing market dynamics, 7/8 years is like a very LONG time.

Hopefully this helps.

Just FYI, Rich


Richard McGovern
Sr Sales Engineer, Juniper Networks 
978-618-3342
 
I’d rather be lucky than good, as I know I am not good
I don’t make the news, I just report it
 

On 3/25/20, 3:32 PM, "Chris Wopat" <me at falz.net> wrote:

    Hey folks,
    
    Anyone have MPC10's in production yet? Or perhaps any other shiny new Junos
    thing that is coming with only "Flex" licensing out of the gate (so not
    mx204, mx10k3).
    
    We traditionally keep a warm spare device in the lab + purchase NBD
    support, then spare from our lab whiile RMA'ing the faulty hardware. With
    flex licensed items, there's the hw cost, support cost, and additional
    license.
    
    https://www.juniper.net/documentation/en_US/junos/topics/concept/juniper-flex-program-support-for-hardware-platforms.html#MPC10E
    
    Allegedly one can move the license around, but we're not quite sure how. Is
    there a self serve portal for this? Does one have to go through JTAC?
    
    How does the card act when unlicensed? IE we have it slotted in a lab MX
    blowing air, but that MX has CoS and other things configured. According to
    the link above, it looks like most things won't function without a license.
    Does it just throw a red alarm (for now)? Would it be unusable to lab test
    on various configs without a license?
    
    Cheers
    --Chris