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I'm working as a consultant and would like to keep each client in a completely separate windows 10 VM (will use linux for some clients, but due to requirements in some of the clients toolchains / service structure I will need X amount of windows VMs)

I can't seem to find any good information on how many licenses per VM I'd need. Will I need 1 license per VM or could multiple VMs be on a single license?

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    I don't have a source to point to, but I'm pretty sure each VM will need its own license if you want to use them in production.
    – Eric Renouf
    Commented Oct 4, 2017 at 11:44
  • See this answer: superuser.com/a/1228938/726810
    – Biswapriyo
    Commented Oct 5, 2017 at 3:55
  • @Biswa that doesn't answer my question
    – Unkan
    Commented Oct 5, 2017 at 5:55
  • There is an exact answer to your question on that thread.
    – fixer1234
    Commented Oct 5, 2017 at 19:03
  • The MSDN Operating Systems subscription, which costs ~$699 a year, includes access to the latest versions of Windows and Windows Server, "for development and testing purposes." These downloads are must be installed manually (on physical hardware or in a new virtual machine), but unlike evaluation editions they have no expiration date. You're expected to stop using any software acquired through this subscription if the term ends and you don't renew, but there's no time bomb in the software itself.
    – VoteCoffee
    Commented Jan 24, 2019 at 13:52

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If you're working for a company, you can consider volume licensing for multiple virtual machines with same Windows version (depending on applied scenario, see "Licensing Windows desktop operating system for use with virtual machines" part).

Based from reference above, one of the scenario which I think likely fit to your issue probably like this:

Scenario: Local Windows Virtual Machines

Description:

An organization has a group of developers who need to test an application across multiple Windows images running in local virtual machine on PCs running Windows 10 Pro.

Licensing Solution:

The PC or the primary user of the PC needs active Windows Software Assurance, which permits running up to four virtual machines concurrently.

Normally with retail version a standalone VM treated as single machine and requires separate retail license, but in case of volume licensing for companies you can use WSA/VDA subscription to permit access with installed Windows in virtual machines.

NB: If you're not sure that how virtual machines treated in volume licensing mechanism, read Product Keys FAQ for details.

Similar issues (written for previous Windows versions, but may still apply for nowadays):

How does Windows 7 licensing work for running the OS as Virtual Machines?

Windows Activation FAQ: How do language, version, 64-bit or 32-bit, and source affect ability to install and transfer Windows licenses? (see Multiple Installations part)

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