Sub-capacity licensing defense.

Sub-capacity licensing lets eligible customers license for the virtual capacity allocated to IBM software rather than the full physical capacity of the host. The savings are real, but so are the conditions. Eligibility generally requires the IBM License Metric Tool (ILMT) to be installed and configured, with reports generated and retained.

The common requirement is to generate ILMT reports at least quarterly and retain them for at least two years. When ILMT is missing, misconfigured, or its history is incomplete, IBM may apply full capacity licensing to the full physical core count of the environment. On a virtualized estate, that single shift can multiply a Processor Value Unit position several times over.

Most organizations do not see this exposure until an audit letter arrives. By then the reporting window that would have proven eligibility has often already closed.

• An independent sub-capacity license position you can defend, built from your deployment data rather than the auditor's worksheet.
• A review of ILMT coverage, configuration, and report retention against the conditions for sub-capacity eligibility.
• A finding by finding challenge of any full capacity assertion, tied to entitlements and the applicable PVU table.
• Negotiation support through to commercial close, with no divided loyalty to the vendor.