on premis report server licence

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PBRS licensing (Server+CAL vs Per-Core) and implementation advice for an on-prem deployment
Hi all, My organization is planning a Power BI implementation for a department of around 40 people. Because we work with highly confidential data, we're not comfortable hosting anything in the cloud, so the standard Power BI + cloud setup is off the table. We're therefore looking at Power BI Report Server (PBIRS) as our on-premises option, and I have a few questions I'm hoping the community can weigh in on. 1. Licensing route and edition My understanding is that with SQL Server 2025, PBIRS rights are now included with any paid edition (Standard or Enterprise) and no longer require Software Assurance — a change from older versions, which needed Enterprise + SA. If that's correct, Standard edition looks like the most budget-friendly route for us versus the Fabric F64+ path. Can anyone confirm this is accurate, and flag any practical limitations of running PBIRS on Standard rather than Enterprise (e.g. virtualization or failover rights) that we should factor in? 2. Server + CAL vs. Per-Core This is the main thing I'd like to hear real-world experience on. For those of you running PBIRS: Which licensing model did you choose, and why? If you went with Per-Core, what core count did you settle on? The minimum is 4 cores per OSE — in practice, is 4 cores enough for a department of our size, or does it tend to underperform? For roughly 40 users, did Server + CAL end up cheaper, or did Per-Core make more sense? 3. Implementation and hidden costs Finally, I'd appreciate any general advice on implementing PBIRS — gotchas a new user should know going in, and especially any additional or unexpected costs to budget for. One thing I've seen mentioned is that a Power BI Pro license is still required to publish reports to the server regardless of the SQL licensing route — I'd love confirmation on how that works in practice and whether every report author needs one. Thanks in advance for sharing your experience!
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DemurTsertsva
2 months ago Place Report Server
1.1KViews
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How to get the SQL Server Enterprise Licence to install the Power Bi Report Server?
Hi all, Following the instructions for installing Power Bi Report Server, I have tried to obtain a product key from the Volume Licensing Service Center as there is a "SQL Server Enterprise SA agreement". However, on the Microsoft site, a product key cannot be downloaded in the SQL Server section. There is only a note that no key is required for this product. Does anyone have any idea where my error is? Best Alexander
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Anonymous
3 years ago Place Report Server
3.7KViews
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How to update version power bi on premise on server ?
Dear Power BI team, I would like to ask you how to update Power BI on premise. Currently my version Power BI on premise is Jan-2019, so I want last updated of Power BI on premise. Thank
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virakprom
6 years ago Place Report Server
4.3KViews
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Power Bi Report server licence when you have Power Bi Premium
By using Power Bi Premium licence (P1) can I install Power Bi Report server On Premise in the Server (capacity - CPU same as P1) which reside locally (within our organisation) without any additional cost? Or with the Power Bi Premium licence (P1), do I need to install Power Bi Report server On Premise in Azure server only?
nvbi
7 years ago Place Report Server
898Views
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On Premis Report Server Licence
Help, if we have SQL Server Enterprise with active Software Assurance (SA). Does this include use of on-prem Power BI Report Server without requiring a Power BI Premium subscription? I explained this to our local Microsoft guy in South Africa, but they still say we require to buy a Premium subscription at a reduce cost of $34 000 yearly? We do not have any cloud need, just the on prem Power BI Report Server, output reports to be seen by 3 Managers for now. e.g. I design a report publish to on premis, they view the report. The data is not allowed to be in the cloud.
Yves
9 years ago Place Report Server
6.9KViews
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12Comments