MSDN Academic Alliance
Encyclopedia
MSDN
Academic Alliance (MSDNAA) is a Microsoft
program available to academic organizations
, mainly college
s and universities
, although there is also a high school
version. The participating schools pay an annual fee for the MSDNAA service, in exchange for which, applicable departments (computer science
, computer engineering
, information technology
, and related fields of that organization) as well as students and faculty can acquire licensed copies of Microsoft software such as Microsoft Windows
, Visual Studio and other products. The list of software each college and university gets is dependent on the agreements made by that particular organization.
The software can be used in coursework
and personal non-commercial projects. Students may continue to use these products for non-commercial purposes, even after they graduate. Even after graduation students may receive all free updates to the software, such as security updates and service packs, that are available to everyone through the Microsoft Downloads Center.
MSDNAA software is accessed through a dedicated website run either by e-academy or by the university/high school itself. The service run by e-academy is called e-academy License Management System or ELMS. Access is determined by the MSDNAA agreement, but is usually given to students who meet certain requirements (must be currently enrolled in or teaching course(s) in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics).
Despite its name, an MSDNAA account is not a true MSDN
Subscription-account and cannot be used to access the subscriber's section of the MSDN website or its downloads.
The list actually contains almost all Microsoft software, and majority of products is available in all existing editions and languages. Notable exceptions are:
Microsoft Developer Network
The Microsoft Developer Network is the portion of Microsoft responsible for managing the firm's relationship with developers and testers: hardware developers interested in the operating system , developers standing on the various OS platforms, developers using the API and scripting languages of...
Academic Alliance (MSDNAA) is a Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
program available to academic organizations
Academic institution
Academic institution is an educational institution dedicated to education and research, which grants academic degrees. See also academy and university.- Types of academic institutions include :...
, mainly college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
s and universities
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
, although there is also a high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
version. The participating schools pay an annual fee for the MSDNAA service, in exchange for which, applicable departments (computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
, computer engineering
Computer engineering
Computer engineering, also called computer systems engineering, is a discipline that integrates several fields of electrical engineering and computer science required to develop computer systems. Computer engineers usually have training in electronic engineering, software design, and...
, information technology
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
, and related fields of that organization) as well as students and faculty can acquire licensed copies of Microsoft software such as Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, Visual Studio and other products. The list of software each college and university gets is dependent on the agreements made by that particular organization.
The software can be used in coursework
Coursework
Coursework is the name for work carried out by students at university or middle/high school that contributes towards their overall grade, but which is assessed separately from their final exams. Coursework can, for example, take the form of experimental work, or may involve research in the...
and personal non-commercial projects. Students may continue to use these products for non-commercial purposes, even after they graduate. Even after graduation students may receive all free updates to the software, such as security updates and service packs, that are available to everyone through the Microsoft Downloads Center.
MSDNAA software is accessed through a dedicated website run either by e-academy or by the university/high school itself. The service run by e-academy is called e-academy License Management System or ELMS. Access is determined by the MSDNAA agreement, but is usually given to students who meet certain requirements (must be currently enrolled in or teaching course(s) in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics).
Despite its name, an MSDNAA account is not a true MSDN
Microsoft Developer Network
The Microsoft Developer Network is the portion of Microsoft responsible for managing the firm's relationship with developers and testers: hardware developers interested in the operating system , developers standing on the various OS platforms, developers using the API and scripting languages of...
Subscription-account and cannot be used to access the subscriber's section of the MSDN website or its downloads.
Software Available
Among others, the list of available software contains:- Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 (all editions)
- Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 (all editions)
- Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 (all editions)
- Windows ServerWindows ServerWindows Server is a brand name for a group of server operating systems released by Microsoft Corporation. All are part of Microsoft Servers.- Members :This brand includes the following software:* Windows 2000 Server* Windows Server 2003...
(2003, 2008, 2008 R2 - Standard, Enterprise) - Windows 7 (Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate)
- Windows VistaWindows VistaWindows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
(Business and Enterprise) - Windows XPWindows XPWindows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
(Professional) - MS-DOSMS-DOSMS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
(6.0 and 6.22) - Microsoft Exchange ServerMicrosoft Exchange ServerMicrosoft Exchange Server is the server side of a client–server, collaborative application product developed by Microsoft. It is part of the Microsoft Servers line of server products and is used by enterprises using Microsoft infrastructure products...
(2007, 2010) - Microsoft Expression StudioMicrosoft Expression StudioMicrosoft Expression Studio is a suite of tools for designing and building web and Windows client applications and rich digital media contents.- Overview :...
(1, 2, 3, 4) - Microsoft SQL ServerMicrosoft SQL ServerMicrosoft SQL Server is a relational database server, developed by Microsoft: It is a software product whose primary function is to store and retrieve data as requested by other software applications, be it those on the same computer or those running on another computer across a network...
(2005, 2008, 2008 R2 - all editions) - Microsoft AccessMicrosoft AccessMicrosoft Office Access, previously known as Microsoft Access, is a relational database management system from Microsoft that combines the relational Microsoft Jet Database Engine with a graphical user interface and software-development tools. It is a member of the Microsoft Office suite of...
(2003, 2007, 2010) - Microsoft OneNote (2007, 2010)
- Microsoft ProjectMicrosoft ProjectMicrosoft Project is a project management software program, developed and sold by Microsoft, which is designed to assist a project manager in developing a plan, assigning resources to tasks, tracking progress, managing the budget, and analyzing workloads.The application creates critical path...
(2007, 2010) - Microsoft VisioMicrosoft VisioMicrosoft Visio , formerly known as Microsoft Office Visio, is a commercial diagramming program for Microsoft Windows that uses vector graphics to create diagrams.- Features :...
(2007, 2010) - Hyper-VHyper-VMicrosoft Hyper-V, codenamed Viridian and formerly known as Windows Server Virtualization, is a hypervisor-based virtualization system for x86-64 systems. A beta version of Hyper-V was shipped with certain x86-64 editions of Windows Server 2008, and the finalized version was released on June 26,...
The list actually contains almost all Microsoft software, and majority of products is available in all existing editions and languages. Notable exceptions are:
- Desktop Windows (non-server) are not available in all editions (e.g. Ultimate edition is usually not available in MSDNAA).
- From Office suite are only Access, Visio, Project, OneNote and Groove available, while Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook aren't.
See also
- Microsoft Developer NetworkMicrosoft Developer NetworkThe Microsoft Developer Network is the portion of Microsoft responsible for managing the firm's relationship with developers and testers: hardware developers interested in the operating system , developers standing on the various OS platforms, developers using the API and scripting languages of...
(MSDN) - DreamSparkDreamSparkDreamSpark is a program set up by Microsoft to provide students with software design and development tools at no charge. The program was originally available for university/college students in Belarus, Belgium, China, Finland, France, Germany, India, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, the U.K....
- Open Source University MeetupOpen Source University MeetupThe Open Source University Meet-Up is a student developer organization sponsored by Sun Microsystems that educates its members about open-source technologies through technical demonstrations, access to web courses, and discounts on Sun Certification.-History:...
- Secure Download CabinetSecure Download CabinetSecure Download Cabinet is a Microsoft type of file used to distribute software packages for its MSDNAA program.The product executable that is downloaded from ELMS decrypts and extracts the product.- Criticisms :...