Answer
GFI MailEssentials Subscription Licensing
GFI MailEssentials 2014 R2 (build 20140627) has changed its licensing model to a subscription based. Versions of the product prior to this release used the SMA model (Software Maintenance Agreement).
The reason for this change
GFI Software wants to stress the value and importance of product updates for GFI MailEssentials as being integral to the product. Using a perpetual license with an expired SMA allowed the product to seemingly function, but stopped the product from receiving updates, and thus made using the product an actual security vulnerability! This approach works against the spirit of the product:
GFI Software wants to stress the value and importance of product updates for GFI MailEssentials as being integral to the product. Using a perpetual license with an expired SMA allowed the product to seemingly function, but stopped the product from receiving updates, and thus made using the product an actual security vulnerability! This approach works against the spirit of the product:
- GFI MailEssentials is not only a software application, but a service that has to be continuously updated in order to provide protection.
- In previous versions, the product continued to work after SMA expiry (although the product updates were disabled at this stage) thus offering a false sense of security.
- First year subscription pricing remains the same amount as previous main price.
- Subsequent year's subscription price remains the same amount as previous SMA price.
All updates (Anti-spam and Anti-virus engines) will no longer update and product usage will stop once the SMA becomes invalid. If the licensed user limit is exceeded, you will have a thirty days grace period to correct the license count.
How does this affect the upgrade process?
If you currently use a valid license for GFI MailEssentials with a valid SMA, GFI MailEssentials 2014 R2 (build 20140627) and later will continue working for the remaining period of the SMA contract, but you will need to generate a new license key, as described in the following article: How-to-upgrade-to-GFI-MailEssentials-2014.
IMPORTANT
If you currently use a license for GFI MailEssentials with an expired SMA, you will need to ensure that you renew your subscription before upgrading to GFI MailEssentials 2014 R2 (build 20140627)