Microsoft Fabric Licensing: A Comprehensive Guide

 Microsoft Fabric Licensing: A Comprehensive Guide


Microsoft Fabric is a comprehensive software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution for data analytics, developed by Microsoft. It encompasses a wide range of workloads including Data Integration, Warehousing, Engineering, Business Intelligence, Data Science, and Real-time Analytics. 
A common concern among users is understanding the pricing and how much they should budget for this platform. This guide will delve into the licensing details to address all your queries.



What is Microsoft Fabric?

Microsoft Fabric is an all-encompassing Data Analytics platform offered as a SaaS by Microsoft. It integrates multiple workloads to provide services related to data analytics, such as data integration, storage, data warehousing, data engineering, business intelligence, and data science.

To know more in detail checkout this blog: Microsoft Fabric



Understanding Fabric's Capacity Structure

To grasp the licensing model for Microsoft Fabric, it's essential to understand its capacity structure. Fabric's content organization is divided into three primary sections: Tenant, Capacity, and Workspace.

Tenant: This is the fundamental unit of structure in Fabric. A domain can have one or multiple tenants.

Capacity: Within a tenant, there can be one or more capacities. Each capacity serves as a pool of resources available for Microsoft Fabric services, categorized by different SKUs which determine the level of resources provided.

Workspace: These are sharing units within capacities, utilized by developers and users. Workspaces allow the creation and sharing of resources like Lakehouses, Data Pipelines, and Dataflows among development teams. Each workspace is assigned to a capacity, although it can be linked to multiple capacities.

What is a Capacity?

A capacity in Microsoft Fabric is a pool of dedicated resources, measurable by Capacity Units (CU), which include CPU, memory, and more, provided on the Microsoft Azure environment. These resources offer the computational power required to operate Fabric services.

SKUs and Pricing

Microsoft Fabric's resources are categorized into different SKUs, each with distinct capacity units (CU) and pricing. Here's a breakdown:


The computing power of each SKU is indicated by its CU, with higher numbers signifying greater power. For instance, an F4 capacity has twice the power of an F2 and half the power of an F8. The prices are in USD and do not include any yearly contracts, allowing users to turn services on or off as needed. Yearly licenses with lower pricing due to minimum terms are expected soon.

Storage

Microsoft Fabric uses OneLake for storage, which is not included in the capacity licensing and must be paid for separately. OneLake's costs are similar to Azure Data Lake Storage (ADLS) pricing, such as $0.023 per GB monthly in the US West 2 region. Data transfer between regions might incur additional charges.

User-Based Licensing

User-based licensing remains in use, especially in Microsoft Power BI, with Free, Pro, and PPU (Premium Per User) accounts. For Microsoft Fabric, capacity is the key factor determining usability. Shared capacities do not support Microsoft Fabric services; only dedicated capacities (Fs) do. However, user accounts can still be free, requiring Pro or PPU accounts for Power BI sharing only with SKUs below F64.

Practical Implications

Understanding licensing in theory is one thing, but what does it mean in practice? Here are some scenarios to clarify:

  • Experiencing F2: Start with an F2 capacity to test with your data. For example, a three-hour test would cost about $1, demonstrating the performance capabilities.
  • Starting with Fabric: Use the Azure Portal to create a Fabric capacity and select your desired SKU. Note that F2 does not support Power BI sharing; a minimum of F64 is needed for free organization-wide sharing.
  • Power BI Licensing: Fabric's introduction hasn't changed Power BI licensing. Free, Pro, and PPU user-based licenses remain the same.
  • Small Business Strategy: Combine a low F SKU with Power BI Pro accounts for cost-effective usage. For instance, 50 users with an F2 capacity and Power BI Pro accounts would cost about $763 per month, less than 50 PPU accounts.
  • Power BI Premium Benefits: Higher SKUs like F64 also enable Power BI Premium capacities, allowing the creation and sharing of Power BI content along with Microsoft Fabric services without extra costs.
  • Flexible SKUs: F SKUs are flexible, with no minimum contracts, and can be paused and restarted as needed. Upcoming yearly RI SKUs will offer cheaper options.

Summary

Microsoft Fabric licensing can seem complex, especially when integrated with Power BI, but it offers flexibility and scalability to fit various needs. By understanding the structure and pricing, you can optimize your usage and budget effectively.

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