HCL Domino and Sametime licensing covers HCLSoftware’s collaboration products, which came from IBM’s Lotus family: Domino server, the Notes client, Verse, Traveler, Nomad and Sametime. The current offering is HCL Domino Complete Collaboration, which is provided in two models with separate entitlement requirements. The first is the Business Edition (“CCB”). The second is the External Users add-on (“CCX”).[1] CCB 14.5.1 is published with separate License Information Documents (LIs) for term and perpetual licences. The perpetual LI states an effective date of 2026-08-25.[2] Both operate under the HCLSoftware Master License Agreement.[8]
Editions
| Offering | Metric | Licence types |
|---|---|---|
| Complete Collaboration Business Edition (CCB) 14.5.1 | Authorized User; Known Guest and Guest User included[1] | Term or perpetual |
| Complete Collaboration External Users (CCX) 14.5.1 | CCX User[1] | Term only, also alongside perpetual CCB[2] |
| Domino Messaging Express 14.5 | Authorized User[3] | Term or perpetual |
| Domino Enterprise 14.0 | Client Access per Authorized User; Server per PVU; Collaboration Express per Authorized User[4] | As per Order |
| Sametime Premium 12.0.4 | Authorized User; Guest User for meetings[6] | Standalone, or for CCB on term or perpetual licences |
What CCB includes. The CCB LI authorises HCL Domino, Domino Designer, Domino IQ, the Domino License Analysis Utility, Domino REST APIs, Nomad for mobile and web, Notes, Traveler (including for Microsoft Outlook) and Verse, among other components. Its Supporting Programs are Domino Enterprise Client Access, Domino Leap, SafeLinx and Sametime with limited chat capabilities, “not including meetings”.[1] The perpetual LI limits Domino Leap to “up to five (5) applications to be running in the entire production environment at any given time”.[2] Sametime meetings require Sametime Premium. Catalog proof: Perpetual CCB includes at most five running Domino Leap applications.
Metrics
Authorized User (Domino). “An Authorized User is a unique person or designated identity having credentials for authenticated access to the Program.” The identity is defined “by the Domino Directory and any other authentication source used by Licensee”. Every employee, temporary agency staff member, contractor, consultant or service provider who needs access must be an A/U.[1]
Known Guest and Guest User. A Known Guest is “a non-employee provided with authenticated access with a restricted maximum level of Domino application access (ACL) as reader and permission to write public documents”. A Guest User has anonymous access. Both are included in the CCB entitlement.[1]
CCX User. A non-employee with authenticated access at up to editor level, and with no personal mailbox.[1]
The older Domino Enterprise LI uses IBM’s classic Authorized User, “a unique person who is given access to the Program”, together with the Processor Value Unit for servers.[4]
Counting / floors
One entitlement per credential. Under CCB, the customer “must obtain separate, dedicated A/U entitlements for each credential permitting authenticated access”. Credentials assigned to a non-employee, a job title or role, a task or an individual process also count as A/Us. Where several people share such an ID, “all unique users or designated identities using that ID must also be designated as an A/U”. An A/U entitlement cannot be shared, and can be reassigned only on permanent transfer.[1] As commentary, service accounts, mail-in databases with their own credentials and role IDs therefore all need entitlements. Cleaning up the Domino Directory before a count is worthwhile. Catalog proof: Domino A/U: one entitlement per credential, including roles and processes.
External users. “None of Licensee’s employees are permitted as Known Guest or CCX User.” A CCX entitlement “may be reassigned to another same class user after 30 (thirty) days of inactivity” and is provided on a term basis.[1] Catalog proof: CCX users: non-employee editors, no mailbox, term only.
No server count. “The Program may be installed on any number of computers or servers and each A/U may have simultaneous access to any number of instances of the Program at one time.” CCB servers may route mail, serve LDAP lookups and replicate with any Domino server. They may be accessed only by CCB Authorized Users and Messaging Express Authorized Users, or as the LI otherwise defines.[1] Messaging Express servers may be accessed only by Messaging Express A/Us.[3] Catalog proof: CCB may be installed on any number of servers.
Domino Enterprise (CAL plus server). Under the older model, “Any means of Authenticated Access require a CAL entitlement”. Any Domino server supporting the CALs requires Domino Enterprise Server, Utility Server or Messaging Server PVUs. Anonymous web browser access to the server is permitted. Collaboration Express is limited to 1,000 entitlements per Domino Domain, which means servers sharing one Domino Directory, and to clustering of two servers.[4] Catalog proof: Domino Enterprise needs both CAL and server PVU entitlements; Domino Collaboration Express: at most 1,000 entitlements per Domino Domain.
Support for overlapping entitlements. If the customer buys Support for CCB, or for other programs that share its components or Supporting Programs, it “must subscribe to Support for the full volume of all entitlements for said Programs”.[1] This prevents a customer from keeping Support on only part of its Domino entitlements. Catalog proof: Support must cover the full volume of overlapping Domino entitlements.
Virtualization & partitioning
CCB is licensed by user, so processor counting does not apply to it. The Domino Enterprise Server is licensed by PVU under HCLSoftware’s PVU policy. Configurations able to use SW or HW acceleration methods, such as VMware ESXi, are rated at a minimum of 70 PVU per core for Domino.[7] For Domino from version 11, the policy’s reporting table lists the HCL PVU Calculator as the accepted reporting tool, and marks BigFix and ILMT as “n/a”. For Domino through version 10, it lists all three.[7] Domino deployed to supported Kubernetes or OpenShift platforms must be licensed under the Complete Collaboration model.[7] Catalog proof: Domino on Kubernetes or OpenShift must use the CCB model. See HCLSoftware PVU and sub-capacity licensing.
Cloud / BYOL
Under the PVU model, a Domino server on a public cloud counts 70 PVUs per vCPU.[7] Under CCB, the location of the servers does not affect the count, because only Authorized Users are counted.[1] Domino IQ can connect to third-party AI services. That use is “subject exclusively to the terms and conditions of the respective third party provider”.[1]
Programs
Domino License Analysis Utility report. “At HCLSoftware’s request, Licensee must present a Domino License Analysis Utility (“DLAU”) report to substantiate needed licensed capacity” before HCLSoftware accepts an Order or a Support renewal. DLAU counts A/Us and includes Known Guests and CCX users in its report.[1] The tool has its own licence. It is provided “to assist a Licensee in keeping a record of its HCL Domino deployment”, and HCLSoftware uses the report “as guidance to validate licensing capacity”.[5] As commentary, a DLAU report acts as a vendor-defined count. Running it internally before renewal shows the figure HCLSoftware will see. Catalog proof: DLAU report may be required before an Order or Support renewal.
Sametime Premium. Sametime Premium 12.0.4 is sold standalone, and as Sametime Premium for Domino Complete Collaboration on term and perpetual licences.[6] Its Authorized User definition matches CCB’s, except that identities come from an LDAP server. “Guest Users are permitted access to meetings … initiated and managed by the A/U.”[6] Catalog proof: Sametime Guest Users may join meetings run by an Authorized User.
Audits and compliance
The MLA audit clause applies: one audit per 12 months, 15 days’ notice, a review of software logs, and shortfalls priced at list.[8] For Domino, the DLAU report request at renewal adds a second, routine check. See software license audit.
Out of scope
- HCL Connections, Domino Leap beyond the CCB entitlement, and standalone SafeLinx and Nomad offerings.
- Earlier Domino 10, 11 and 12 LIs (Utility Server, Messaging Server, Collaboration Express 11.0) still published for older releases.
- IBM-era Notes and Domino licences before the transfer to HCLSoftware.