GravityZone MSP monthly licensing is Bitdefender’s usage-based licensing model for managed service providers (MSPs). The licence passes down a hierarchy. A Partner company buys the licence from a Distributor and shares it with other companies, and Distributors sell only to Partners. The Partner enables seats and technologies for each Customer company and provides installation, configuration, management and monitoring services.[1] Bitdefender describes the model as monthly consumption and billing through a global network of distributors and RMM partners, with no minimum commitments. Usage is aggregated across all of an MSP’s customers for volume pricing.[8] MSPs install the security agents without a traditional licence key.[8] For the prepaid model, see Bitdefender GravityZone yearly licensing and add-ons. For the general model, see subscription and consumption licensing.
Product types, protection models and add-ons
When a Partner enables a licence for a Customer company, it chooses three things.[1]
- Product type. Endpoint Security, Bitdefender EDR or Bitdefender PHASR. Endpoint Security is the full security solution. Bitdefender EDR is a lightweight detection and response agent for Windows that can run alongside third-party protection, and PHASR is a standalone attack-surface reduction option.[2]
- Protection model. A la carte, Secure Essentials, Secure, Secure Plus or Secure Extra. These are versions of the Endpoint Security bundle.[1] On the comparison page, Secure is the EDR package, Secure Plus adds Bitdefender’s MDR service, and Secure Extra adds XDR identity and productivity sensors.[11]
- Add-ons and services. Individual add-ons, each unlocking one or more features, and services such as MDR Foundations.[1]
Customer companies on a monthly subscription receive whatever products and services their Partner assigns, and they cannot activate products separately.[3] An MSP that holds yearly keys switches to monthly licensing by creating a new Partner company, with a different user email address, whose licence type is Monthly Subscription.[12] Catalog row: GravityZone Cloud Security for MSP monthly subscription.
How monthly usage is counted
Bitdefender recommends generating the Monthly License Usage report at the start of each month for the previous month. The report records the product type, protection model, add-ons and services each company used.[4] Its Licensed endpoints column counts the endpoints licensed during the month, meaning physical or virtual servers and workstations and container hosts.[4] Catalog row: Monthly licensed endpoint (MSP).
Any licensed endpoint counts. An endpoint that receives a licence is billed even if it was installed only briefly. Its slot counts as used for the whole month even after it is uninstalled.[2] Reinstalling the agent on the same endpoint is detected and is not billed twice.[2] Usage resets on the first day of each month at 00:00 UTC in the US, Europe and Asia-Pacific cloud regions.[2] Catalog proof: MSP usage counts every endpoint licensed in the month.
Core protection versus add-ons. Core protection usage is based on the Antimalware module. Advanced Threat Control, Firewall, Content Control, Device Control, Network Attack Defense and the Relay role add no billable usage.[4] Add-ons are counted separately, each as the number of endpoints on which it was deployed during the month. This applies to Full Disk Encryption, Patch Management, Advanced Threat Security (HyperDetect or Sandbox Analyzer), EDR and its 90-day, 180-day or 1-year retention options, Integrity Monitoring and PHASR.[4] Endpoints with a Security Container package are counted under Container Protection. Virtual endpoints using Central Scan through a Security Server are counted under SVE and not under Endpoint Usage.[4] Catalog row: SVE VDI uptime hour.
Protection model changes. If a company used several protection models in one month, only one is counted: the highest in the order Secure Extra, Secure Plus, Secure, Secure Essentials, A la carte.[4] Add-ons already included in the protection model show zero usage.[4] Catalog proof: Only the highest protection model used in a month is counted.
XDR sensors. Each XDR category (Identity Providers, Productivity, Network and Cloud Workloads) is counted separately. A category’s usage depends on whether it is enabled, on the total endpoints licensed during the month, and on at least one sensor of that category having been deployed. A category with no deployed sensor counts zero.[4] For example, a company with 70 licensed endpoints that enables the Productivity category and deploys the Microsoft Office 365 sensor records 70 Productivity units for the month. Disabling a category or reducing licensed endpoints takes effect in the following month.[4] Buying the XDR for MSP add-on also activates and invoices the Threat Intelligence Services and EDR add-ons it requires.[7] Catalog row: XDR sensor category usage; proof: XDR sensor categories are billed at the licensed endpoint count.
Security for Mobile. Each deployment on a mobile device counts toward monthly usage. A device whose agent was uninstalled still counts for any month in which it was online at least once, and redeploying without an MDM can add new devices to the count.[2] Catalog proof: Reinstalling Security for Mobile without MDM counts a new device.
Partner changes. If a company moves to a new partner mid-month, endpoints licensed before the move are billed to the original partner and endpoints licensed after it to the new one. From the next month, all endpoints are billed to the new partner.[2]
Seats, reservations and minimum usage
Reserved and shared seats. A Partner can reserve a set number of seats for a company. With X seats reserved, X endpoints are licensed and billed, and extra endpoints run in trial and then expire unless the reservation is raised.[2] The FAQ gives the trial as 30 days, while the Licensing page says the trial lasts until the end of the next month.[2][3] Without a reservation, the agent takes a seat from a pool shared with other companies. The pool belongs to the first Partner above the company that uses reservation, or to Bitdefender.[3] A monthly subscription can also be used without reserving any seats, in which case the company is billed for the endpoints licensed during the month.[2] Catalog proof: Endpoints beyond reserved seats run on a trial that then expires.
Minimum usage, end date and auto-renewal. A Partner can set a minimum usage for a company. That minimum is billed each month regardless of monthly variation, unless actual usage is higher, in which case actual usage is billed. The minimum consumes seats and cannot exceed the reserved seats.[3] An optional subscription end date suspends the company when reached, and its agents expire. Auto-renewal extends the subscription by a configurable number of months.[3] Partners see each company’s minimum commitment, reserved, available and used units on the company licensing page.[10] Catalog proof: A minimum usage setting becomes the monthly billing floor.
Suspension. Suspending a company expires its endpoints immediately. The agent stays installed, and the endpoints re-register when the company is reactivated.[2] Under the agreement, a monthly subscription continues only while monthly fees are paid, and non-payment suspends the account.[7] Catalog proof: Suspending a managed company expires its endpoints immediately.
Trials and commitments
The Trial, Monthly License Trial (for Partners only) and Monthly Subscription Trial options each cover 25 endpoints and include all GravityZone features and add-ons. A trial is valid for 45 days. When it expires, the agents expire unless the company has been converted to an active monthly subscription.[2] Some product trials are set up to convert automatically. If a Customer’s Contractor such as an MSP activates one, it becomes a paid subscription unless stopped in the console before expiry, and the contractor is responsible for stopping it.[7] Activating the Compliance Manager add-on for a managed customer starts a commitment of three full calendar months, which is billed even if the add-on is deactivated earlier.[7] Catalog proof: MSP-activated trials convert to paid subscriptions unless stopped; Compliance Manager for MSPs carries a three-month usage commitment.
Hybrid licensing
Hybrid licensing applies when a company on a monthly subscription adds at least one yearly add-on licence. The company’s payment plan then changes from Monthly to Hybrid.[2] The yearly add-ons that can be combined with a monthly subscription are Security Data Lake, Support for Windows Legacy Systems (Windows 7, 8 and 8.1) and CSPM+. Adding one does not change monthly billing, and the add-on is billed separately each year.[2] Hybrid licensing is available only to companies under a partner with a Cloud Security for MSP licence. The root company that owns the MSP key cannot enable yearly add-ons for itself.[2] Yearly add-ons use a separate licence key, shown in a Yearly add-on usage section.[6] Catalog row: Hybrid licensing; proof: Hybrid licensing is limited to companies under an MSP licence.
Usage types
Some MSP Customer companies can qualify for special monthly usage types based on fixed and seasonal requirements. Regular subscriptions are classified as Standard. Distributors enrol through their sales representative, and eligibility may depend on the managing Partner as well as the Customer.[5] The Simplified Monthly License Usage report and the getMonthlyUsage API split usage by type.[5] Catalog row: MSP monthly subscription usage types.
Partner Advantage Network
The MSP Partner Program has four levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum.[9] One of its financial benefits is consumption-based monthly billing, with pricing calculated from aggregated volumes across all of a partner’s customers, offered through authorized distributors.[9] Partners can also obtain NFR licence keys. These are non-transferable, may not be resold, shared or given to customers, run for 12 months, and are revoked if the partner loses its status.[9] Catalog rows: Partner Advantage Network MSP Partner Program, NFR License Keys Program; proof: MSP customers are billed monthly on aggregated volume without minimum commitment; NFR licences are for internal use and may not be resold.
MSP obligations under the agreement
An MSP acting for a customer must inform the customer of the Master Service Agreement and obtain its acceptance.[7] The customer authorizes Bitdefender to give the MSP the rights it needs to serve the customer. The customer should not give the MSP access to intelligence reports in the Bitdefender products.[7] Catalog proof: An MSP must obtain the customer's acceptance of the agreement. The MDR Cybersecurity Warranty does not apply to MSPs or their customers. See Bitdefender business agreement, audit and MDR terms.