A short while ago pricing details were released for Visual Studio 2010 and Team Foundation Server 2010. We just got an update for Visual Studio Lab Management 2010 regarding shipping plans and pricing. Here are the details:
What is Visual Studio Lab Management 2010?
Visual Studio Lab Management 2010 is a new offering in the Visual Studio 2010 release wave. Lab Management 2010 enables teams to configure and manage a virtual lab environment. Lab Management works with System Center Virtual Machine Manager for enabling teams to create environment templates, provision ring-fenced environments, and checkpoint those environments. Using Lab Management, you can accelerate setup, tear down and restoration of complex virtual environments to a known state for test execution and build automation. It extends build automation by automating virtual machine provisioning, build deployment and build verification in an integrated manner. It also enables testers to file rich bugs with links to environment checkpoints that developers can use to recreate complex environments, effectively reducing wasted time and resources in your development and test life cycle. Those checkpoints can be attached to bugs filed using the Microsoft Test Manager enabling the person fixing the bug to open the environment right to the appropriate point in the application flow.
Q: How will Visual Studio Lab Management 2010 Beta 2 or RC be supported going forward?
A: We will continue to support customers that have already gone live with Lab Management 2010 pre-release go-live licenses.
Q. What are the pricing details of Visual Studio Lab Management 2010?
A: Suggested FPP retail price for Visual Studio Lab Management 2010 is US$1,599. Of course, the majority of customers are likely to qualify for a lower price point based on volume licensing discounts. Feel free to share this data with your customers to help them budget for Lab Management. Lab Management 2010 will be priced as per physical processor (each processor of each lab server must be licensed for Visual Studio Lab Management 2010). Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate or Visual Studio Test Professional 2010 is required to manage lab environments.
Q: Have we changed our shipping plans for the general availability of Visual Studio Lab Management 2010?
A: Quality has always been and remains a top priority for Visual Studio. Being definitive about RTM dates is always very difficult and doubly so for brand new v1 products. For this reason, until we are very close, we generally only forecast release timeframes rather than specific dates. While it’s true, early on, we had hoped to release the new Lab Management product at the same time as the rest of Visual Studio 2010. It became clear through the Beta cycle that it was taking a bit longer to get sufficient, detailed feedback. Excitement has been very high but there’s also a huge amount of new value in the 2010 wave; we made the decision that it was better for Lab Management to ship a little later in the 2010 wave if that means we can incorporate additional feedback to ensure it’s the terrific product everyone wants it to be.
Keep in mind, Visual Studio 2010 Lab Management can be deployed today with a Go Live license.
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