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In today’s hybrid IT environments — with virtualization, SaaS subscriptions, BYOD policies, and ever-growing cloud infrastructure — software licensing has become more complex than ever.
Even a single data error can result in over-licensing, compliance penalties, or unnecessary spending.
According to Flexera State of ITAM Report 2024, 46% of organizations worldwide have paid over $1 million in audit-related costs in the past three years.
At Synta (Kazakhstan), we implement enterprise-class ITAM and SAM solutions such as Flexera One, Snow License Manager, and Device42, and we regularly see the same critical mistakes across large organizations in Central Asia and the CIS.
Here are the Top 5 most common licensing and asset management errors — and practical advice on how to avoid them.
Software inventories are often maintained in Excel files, CMDBs, or local databases — but never synchronized.
As a result, IT teams lack visibility into what is installed, what is purchased, and who is using it.
How to fix it:
Modern ITAM platforms like Flexera One and Snow License Manager automatically collect and normalize software data across the entire infrastructure, turning chaos into a manageable model.
This enables:
Automated data collection through agents eliminates manual errors and keeps information current, saving specialists valuable time.
Even when the math seems right, companies lose money by misinterpreting licensing metrics and rights.
For example, in Microsoft Windows Server Datacenter, one license covers all VMs on the host,
but in the Standard edition, each active VM or core must be counted.
Failing to apply such nuances leads to unnecessary spending or compliance risk.
How to fix it:
Automate license calculations using a SAM solution that analyzes your server infrastructure and selects the most cost-effective licensing model based on virtualization and Software Assurance rights.
This reduces over-licensing and ensures continuous compliance.
SaaS services appear faster than they can be tracked.
Employees purchase tools on corporate cards, and no one notices until invoices pile up.
In large organizations, up to 40% of paid subscriptions remain unused.
How to fix it:
Companies that take control of SaaS spending typically cut costs by 25–35%.
Without visibility into actual usage, budgets are spent simply because “that’s how we’ve always done it.”
This results in dozens of idle licenses generating cost but no value.
How to fix it:
Introduce a license reclamation process to identify and return unused entitlements to the license pool.
Automated monitoring of user activity helps detect dormant licenses early — well before the next procurement cycle.
Organizations that adopt SAM practices typically achieve 30%+ cost savings on software licenses.
When Microsoft, Oracle, or Autodesk announce an audit, it’s already too late to fix your data.
Outdated records, inactive users, and data inconsistencies inevitably surface at the worst moment.
How to fix it:
A proactive audit-readiness approach allows you to eliminate risks before an external audit begins.
If even one of these issues sounds familiar, part of your IT budget may already be leaking away.
The solution is clear:
transparent data → correct entitlement interpretation → ITAM automation.
Solutions like Flexera One, Snow License Manager, and Device42, which we implement at Synta,
help organizations across Kazakhstan and the CIS cut costs, ensure compliance, and build mature IT Asset Management practices that make licenses work for the business — not against it.
