Licence Tracker keeps software under control

Update to PrefixNE lets firms monitor PCs for licensing compliance

Prefix IT will this week unveil an extension to its management suite for medium-sized firms to support real-time tracking of application licensing, to help IT staff ensure compliance with licensing terms.

Licence Tracker will be available as part of the PrefixNE 2.2 suite from this week. It enables administrators to track the number of installations of specific applications. The system can generate a warning if licensing restrictions are being breached and allows remedial action to be taken from the PrefixNE console.

"PrefixNE has always had asset management, but Licence Tracker now rides on top of the software asset tracking and lets firms define which ones to track from a licensing perspective," said Prefix managing director Darren Rockman.

Unlike an audit, Licence Tracker keeps tabs of specified applications in real time, Rockman said. It allows an administrator to see at a glance which users have which applications, and lets them remove any copies that may have been installed without authorisation or simply left in situ after an employee changes roles. "You can go a step further and build a script that stops specific applications being installed in specific groups of PCs," Rockman said.

PrefixNE is designed as an integrated management system for firms that may not have many permanent IT staff. Version 2.2 was released in October, but so many customers have asked for compliance support that Prefix has issued an update. Existing customers will be able to get a free upgrade

PrefixNE licences cost between £50 and £70 per seat, depending on volume, with one year's free maintenance and upgrades.