Rate Factor
Rate factor is the multiplication factor to be used along with the base rate to calculate the charge for a unit of
chargeable computing resource used or allocated for a specified duration. Rate factors are useful when you
want to charge the entities in a hierarchy differently.
The rate factors enable you to apply a cost that is a multiple or a fraction of the base rate. The rate factor value
can be between 0 and 999.99. The precision is up to two decimal places.
Table 6-2
lists sample base rates and rate factors.
Table 6-2.
Sample Base Rates and Rate Factors
Chargeable Resource
Base Rate ($)
Rate Factor
Total Charge ($)
CPU
0.0399
1.1
0.0439
Memory
0.0048
1.1
0.0053
Network Received and Transmitted
0.0008
1
0.0008
Storage
0.0013
1
0.0013
Disk Read and Write
0.0008
0.75
0.0006
vCPU
0.04
1
0.04
Fixed Cost
A fixed cost is a definite cost that can be charged on an entity. Fixed costs can be recurring costs or non-recurring
or one-time costs.
Recurring costs that are charged periodically for specific resources or services can be defined as fixed costs in
the application. For example, the annual maintenance cost for the network or for each server. Costs that are
applicable to almost all the entities and hierarchies can be defined as fixed costs. This lets you update such
costs periodically and manage them centrally. It also ensures that all the entities and hierarchies are uniformly
charged for common services and resources.
In addition, you can also define fixed costs that are specific to an entity, a group of entities, or an entire hierarchy.
For example, the real estate cost for physical storage of the servers. This cost differs based on the actual
geographic location.
Chapter 6 Managing and Configuring vCenter Chargeback Cost Elements
VMware, Inc.
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