Pay for the licences and infrastructure you'll actually use
Independent advice on SAP Business One licensing and the server infrastructure underneath it — sized to your user base, not to a vendor's quarterly target.
Licensing and infrastructure decisions made at the start of an SAP Business One project tend to get revisited for years afterwards — either because too many full-user licences were bought up front, or because server infrastructure was sized for a go-live, not for three years of transaction growth.
We size both independently of any single license bundle: matching Professional, Limited and Starter user types to how each person actually works in the system, and right-sizing server, database and backup infrastructure — whether on-premise or in the cloud — against your real transaction volume.
Advisory and execution, not just a licence quote
License sizing & advisory
User-type analysis matching Professional, Limited and Starter licences to actual usage.
On-prem vs cloud planning
Infrastructure recommendations based on cost, control and compliance needs.
Server & database sizing
SQL or HANA sizing matched to current and projected transaction volume.
License renewal & compliance
Ongoing tracking so renewals happen on time and usage stays within licensed terms.
Infrastructure monitoring
Server, database and backup health monitored against defined thresholds.
Disaster recovery setup
Backup and recovery planning sized to your actual tolerance for downtime.
What changes for your business
Right-sized spend
Pay for the license tier each user actually needs, not a one-size default.
No shelfware
Licences and infrastructure match real usage, reviewed annually as the business changes.
Infrastructure that scales
Sizing accounts for growth, so you're not re-architecting in eighteen months.
Compliance handled
Renewals and usage tracking happen on schedule, without a last-minute scramble.
How a wholesale trading company cut SAP B1 license spend by reviewing actual usage
What a license and infrastructure review actually finds once someone looks.
Background
The company had grown through two acquisitions, inheriting a license mix that hadn't been reviewed in over three years. New hires were given Professional licenses by default, regardless of what they actually needed to do in the system, and nobody had a clear picture of which named users were still active.
The challenge
- Over half of Professional license holders only used basic order-entry functions that a Limited license would have covered.
- Several named user licenses were still assigned to staff who had left the company more than a year earlier.
- The annual renewal invoice had grown steadily without anyone reviewing whether the license mix still matched actual usage.
- The server had been sized for the original 15-user go-live and was now straining under more than 40 concurrent users, with noticeably slower response times during peak hours.
The solution
A usage audit mapped what each named user actually did in the system against their assigned license tier, surfacing the mismatch between Professional licenses and Limited-level usage. Inactive named users were identified and removed from the license count entirely. Server and database infrastructure was resized against current transaction volume, with a documented disaster recovery plan added as part of the same review.
The results
— Finance Director, wholesale trading company
This case study is illustrative, based on a typical licensing and infrastructure review. Replace with your own client's figures and quote before publishing.
SAP Business One licensing & infrastructure: frequently asked questions
The questions that come up before a renewal or an infrastructure refresh.
What's the difference between Professional, Limited and Starter user licenses?
Each tier grants access to a different scope of functionality — Professional covers full system access, while Limited and Starter tiers cover narrower, role-specific use such as order entry or basic reporting, at a lower cost per user.
How do we know if we're over-licensed or under-licensed?
A usage audit compares what each named user actually does in the system against their assigned license tier, which is usually the fastest way to surface mismatches that have built up over time.
Can server and database infrastructure be sized independently of the license decision?
Yes — infrastructure sizing is based on transaction volume and concurrent usage, which is a separate calculation from license tier, though both are usually reviewed together.
Should we host SAP B1 on-premise or in the cloud?
It depends on cost, control and compliance requirements specific to your business — there's no universally correct answer, which is why this is usually assessed case by case rather than assumed.
How often should license usage be reviewed?
An annual review is usually enough to catch named users who've left, role changes that no longer match their license tier, and renewal terms before they auto-renew unchanged.
Does a licensing review include a disaster recovery plan?
Infrastructure reviews typically include backup and recovery planning sized to your actual tolerance for downtime, rather than assuming a generic backup schedule is sufficient.
Not sure what you're actually licensed for?
Send us your current user list and license type — we'll tell you if you're over-licensed, under-licensed, or about right.