Autodesk audit – what’s coming up for me?

The manufacturer Autodesk refers to the license agreement when requesting an Autodesk audit. When the product is installed, these terms of use must be agreed to. In particular, "paragraph 9.7 Audit" is the relevant section in the license agreement. Here Autodesk reserves the right to audit. If non-compliance is discovered, the customer is obligated, from Autodesk’s perspective, to promptly procure licenses (at list price) and pay the “reasonable” cost of the Autodesk audit. To make this process as simple as possible, auditors want to check the customer’s systems with a the ScanWin tool and often use the service provider NewCMI here.

"Customers are not defenseless against the often aggressive behavior of software vendors in the audit," says Christian Grave, a specialist in software audits from ProLicense International. In many cases, assertions are made that are not further verified by the customer, such as the general obligation to run tools on the servers.

"The first thing to determine in an Autodesk audit is the legal basis on which a license audit should be performed," Grave adds. Autodesk states that the respective license agreement can be lookd up in the settings menu of the programs. However, experience shows that this is not always the case, especially with older products, and the customer is directed via links to sometimes non-functioning Internet pages. License agreements can therefore not always be clearly viewed. This is a key point for a software audit. "How is compliance with license rules to be audited if it is not clear what the license rules agreed upon were at the time?" asks audit specialist Grave. 

There are just as many ambiguities in Autodesk audits in the area of data and secrecy protection. "Companies should make sure that their data is protected appropriately and that all regulations in this regard are agreed upon in accordance with local law," advises Christian Grave, who has already gone through many software audits with his clients. Autodesk stores customer data on US servers and NewCMI, the often-used technical partner for European markets, is a British company. Here, too, company data will at least leave the European legal area after Brexit has taken place. This must be avoided.

In the case of an Autodesk audit, software license managers report time and again that with just a few queries about legality or supplementary regulations, the Autodesk audit escalates and customers quickly have to deal with the legal department or even external lawyers. "You shouldn’t be intimidated by this and insist on your rights," Grave explains. In the event of an Autodesk audit, ProLicense’s software audit specialists are here to help customers secure their rights. The audit experts act completely independently, as ProLicense has no connections nor partnerships with software manufacturers. "In any case, it is advisable to seek independent advice, as we experience again and again that it is not in the customers` interest if consultants also incentivized to sell software at the same time as they engage in an advisory role.

Companies can contact Autodesk’s independent audit consultants via the ProLicense website (www.prolicense.com) for a first free-of-charge call to determine the next steps: https://www.prolicense.com/en/contact/

Here you can find an interesting YouTube playlist about autodesk audit:

Autodesk audit – Autodesk license audit – Autodesk compliance

Single video:

1. Autodesk audit – what’s coming up for me?
2. Autodesk Audit – Top3-Tips for companies!
3. Autodesk audit – what do experts advice?
4. Autodesk Audit – Beware of Autodesk Partners! 
5. Autodesk Audit – Be cautious with ScanWin!