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Upgrade Licences

xAssets IT Asset Management User Guide
Software Licencing

Upgrade Licences

When you purchase an upgrade to a software product (e.g., upgrading from Microsoft Office 2019 to Microsoft Office 2021), the licence records in xAssets must be updated to reflect the change. This page explains the correct process for recording upgrades so that licensing reports remain accurate.

How Upgrades Work in xAssets

An upgrade involves three actions:

  1. Create a new licence record for the upgraded product
  2. Split the original licence if only some seats are being upgraded
  3. Mark the upgraded portion as "Upgraded and Out of Service" so it no longer counts toward entitlement

This ensures that:

  • The old licence seats are not double-counted
  • The new licence is properly tracked
  • The audit trail is preserved

Example: Upgrading 10 of 35 Microsoft Office Licences

In this scenario, you have "Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2010 -- 35 Seats" and are purchasing 10 "Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2016" upgrade licences.

Step 1: Create the New Upgrade Licence

  1. Navigate to the Software Licence Asset Register from the License menu

TODO Screenshot: ClickMenu "Software Licences" | PrintScreen "itam-software-licencing-upgrade-licences"

  1. Create a new software licence record for "Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2016 -- 10 Seats"
  2. Enter the purchase details, seats, and software product

TODO Screenshot: ClickMenu "Software Licences" | PrintScreen "itam-software-licencing-upgrade-licences-2"

Step 2: Clone and Split the Original Licence

Since only 10 of the 35 original seats are being upgraded, you need to split the original licence into two records:

  1. Open the original "Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2010 -- 35 Seats" asset
  2. Click the Clone... button (or use the Actions for this Asset link)
  3. When prompted, choose Clone as a new Asset

TODO Screenshot: ClickMenu "Software Licences" | PrintScreen "itam-software-licencing-upgrade-licences-3"

Step 3: Mark the Upgraded Clone

  1. Edit the cloned record:
    • Change the Description to indicate it was upgraded (e.g., "Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2010 -- 10 Seats (Upgraded to 2016)")
    • Set the Quantity/Seats to 10
    • Set the Status to "Upgraded and Out of Service"

TODO Screenshot: ClickMenu "Software Licences" | PrintScreen "itam-software-licencing-upgrade-licences-4"

  1. Save the record

TODO Screenshot: ClickMenu "Software Licences" | PrintScreen "itam-software-licencing-upgrade-licences-5"

Step 4: Adjust the Original Licence

  1. Edit the original licence record
  2. Change the seats from 35 to 25 (the remaining non-upgraded seats)
  3. Save the record

TODO Screenshot: ClickMenu "Software Licences" | PrintScreen "itam-software-licencing-upgrade-licences-6"

Step 5: Recalculate

After saving, you will receive a prompt with an option to recalculate the Licensing Position. It is recommended that you recalculate after changing licences to keep compliance data current.

After the Upgrade

You should now have three licence records:

Record Seats Status Purpose
Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2010 -- 25 Seats 25 In Service Remaining original licences
Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2010 -- 10 Seats (Upgraded) 10 Upgraded and Out of Service Audit trail for the upgraded seats
Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2016 -- 10 Seats 10 In Service New upgrade licences

Tips

  • Always clone and split rather than simply reducing the seat count on the original -- this preserves the full history
  • If any computers were assigned to the old licence, reassign them to the new licence after the upgrade
  • The "Upgraded and Out of Service" status ensures the old seats do not count toward entitlement in compliance reports
  • For full upgrades (all seats), you do not need to clone -- just change the original licence status to "Upgraded and Out of Service" and create the new licence