IBM stopped accepting exceptions to its approved-tool rule on 1 May 2023. Will your ILMT evidence stand up?
Sub-capacity licensing lets you pay only for the cores your IBM software can use, as long as the IBM License Metric Tool (ILMT) proves it. We check your ILMT evidence against IBM’s rules and fix the gaps before an auditor finds them.
$132,000instead of $56,000 for the same IBM MQ deployment, when ILMT has no VM manager connection (IBM’s own example)
| ILMT setup | License cost |
|---|---|
| VM manager connected | $56,000 |
| VM manager missing | $132,000 |
| Full capacity | $56,000 |
IBM’s sample values: 70 PVUs per core (120 when the VM manager is missing) and $50 per PVU.
If IBM’s conditions are not met, the programs affected are licensed at full capacity: every core of every physical host. These are the gaps that get them there:
Machines without a scannerEvery machine with IBM software you want counted needs a scanner, non-production included. Gaps show up when the ILMT computer list is compared with the hypervisor inventory or CMDB.
VM managers not connectedWithout the connection ILMT counts each VM’s cores at 120 PVUs and cannot cap the count at the host. IBM accepts a report calculated that way.
Scans gone staleILMT flags a computer as Missing Scan when its last software scan is more than 40 days old, by default in ILMT 9.2.
Software never classifiedAutomatic mapping has to be reviewed: entitled part numbers imported, bundled and supporting programs assigned, Cloud Pak components mapped, every exclusion explained.
Snapshots missingIBM wants a signed audit snapshot at least every quarter, kept for two years and supplied in full. Many are kept only on the ILMT server.
Installed too lateNew sub-capacity customers must have ILMT running within 90 days of the first eligible deployment.
| Condition | What IBM requires |
|---|---|
| Approved tool | ILMT, HCL BigFix Inventory, or IBM’s pre-approved Flexera One products where they support your virtualization. No exceptions since 1 May 2023 |
| When | Within 90 days of the first eligible deployment |
| Reports | At least quarterly, kept for two years, provided to IBM or its auditors on request |
| Tool updates | ILMT is updated quarterly, and IBM says you must keep it current |
| Counting | The high-water mark: no averaging and no grace period |
| Containers | IBM License Service only, with quarterly snapshots kept for two years. Mixed estates need both tools |
| Public cloud | Machines flagged as cloud are counted at 70 PVUs per vCPU; unflagged, at 120 |
| If a condition is missed | The programs affected are licensed at full capacity |
General information, not legal advice: your IPAA or IPAEA and the product License Information documents govern your terms. The rules and IBM’s example are explained step by step in our article IBM sub-capacity licensing and ILMT.
IBM’s own scenario: a 16-core host runs two VMs of 12 and 10 virtual cores, both with IBM MQ, at $50 per PVU. Together the VMs have 22 virtual cores, more than the host has.
| ILMT setup | How it counts | PVUs | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| VM manager connected | The processor’s real rating, capped at the host’s 16 cores: 16 × 70 | 1,120 | $56,000 |
| VM manager missing | All 22 virtual cores at the highest rating for the processor: 22 × 120 | 2,640 | $132,000 |
| Full capacity | Every core of the physical host: 16 × 70 | 1,120 | $56,000 |
IBM’s sample values for a two-socket Xeon 3400 server. Your rating depends on your processor model. IBM’s documentation says you license the lower of the sub-capacity and full-capacity values.
Coverage gap listMachines with IBM software and no scanner, by environment.
Tool health reportVM manager status, scan health and ILMT version against IBM’s rules.
License positionPVU consumption at sub-capacity and at full capacity, against what you own.
Evidence checkWhich quarters of the last two years you can prove, and which you cannot.
An operating rhythmWeekly checks, monthly snapshots and quarterly sign-off, with one named owner. IBM lets you delegate the work, not the responsibility.
Check the snapshots and the archive against IBM’s rules before any data goes to the auditor, so you know your position before they do. Talk to us first.
IndependentWe do not resell any publisher’s licenses or earn income from publishers. Our focus is our customers.
Evidence firstWe check the records a publisher would ask for before anyone else sees them, so you know your position first.
Every publisher in the estateIBM, Red Hat, Oracle, Microsoft and VMware licensing often sit on the same servers. We look at what a change in one does to the others.
The IBM License Metric Tool. It measures the processor capacity your IBM software can use, and IBM accepts its reports, kept to IBM’s rules, as the evidence for sub-capacity licensing.
For sub-capacity licensing, yes, or HCL BigFix Inventory, or IBM’s pre-approved Flexera One products where they support your virtualization. IBM stopped accepting exceptions on 1 May 2023.
The programs affected are licensed at full capacity, on every core of every physical host they run on. In an audit the burden of proof is on you.
Two years. IBM wants a signed snapshot at least every quarter, supplied in full on request. Keep the archive somewhere other than the ILMT server.
Without it ILMT cannot see the host. It counts every VM’s virtual cores at the highest rating for the processor and cannot cap the count at the host’s physical cores. In IBM’s example the bill rises from $56,000 to $132,000.
With IBM License Service, the only tool IBM accepts for containers, with quarterly snapshots kept for two years. An estate with both virtual machines and containers needs ILMT and License Service.
Flag the machines as cloud so ILMT applies 70 PVUs per vCPU. Without the flag it applies 120.
No. Rythium is independent and does not resell publisher licenses or earn income from publishers.
We charge a fixed fee for the assessment, a success-based fee or a hybrid, case by case, depending on the scope and the deliverables you need. Contact us for a scoped quote and tell us your preference.
Tell us about your IBM estate and any audit dates. We will show you where your evidence is complete, where it is not, and what that is worth.
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