Microsoft Extends Windows Server 2008 Support to 2015

Microsoft won't terminate support for Windows Server 2008 until 2015 thanks to the upcoming launch of Windows Server 2012.

Sonya Fagerness, Director of Microsoft Support Lifecycle at Microsoft Services, reports that support for Windows Server 2008 has been extended to reflect the release of Windows Server 2012.

According to Fagerness, Windows Server 2008 will transition from Mainstream Support to Extended Support on January 15, 2015. The OS was originally scheduled to transition to Extended Support on July 9, 2013, but the modifications to the expiration dates are due to the launch of Windows Server 2012, granting customers an additional 2 years to plan their migration to the newer Server release.

"Organizations that are currently running ... Windows Server 2008 should note the new dates when Mainstream Support and Extended Support end. Customers who are interested in migrating to Windows Server 2012 can contact a Sales Account Manager or a Technical Account Manager," Fagerness said in the September issue of Microsoft's Support Lifestyle Quarterly Lifeline.

This update follows the Microsoft Support Lifecycle policy for Business and Developer products. Microsoft's policy provides a minimum of five years of Mainstream Support or two years of Mainstream Support after the successor product ships, whichever is longer. The goal of the Microsoft Support Lifecycle is to provide predictable and consistent product support timelines for all Microsoft products and customers, worldwide.

However moving Server 2008 into Extended Support in 2015 means that Microsoft will withdraw three useful services including non-security hotfix support (unless the business pays for it), no-charge incident report and warranty claims. Fagerness also points out numerous other products that will reach the end of their life support in the near future including:

October 9, 2012

• BizTalk Accelerator for RosettaNet 2.0 Enterprise Edition
• BizTalk Accelerator for RosettaNet 2.0 Standard Edition
• Class Server 2.0 Standard Edition
• FRx Financial Reporter 6.5
• Project 2002 Professional Edition
• Project 2002 Standard Edition
• Project Server 2002
• Windows Services for UNIX 3.0 Standard Edition

January 8, 2013

• SQL Server 2000 Windows CE Edition 2.0
• SQL Server Notification Services 2.0 Enterprise Edition
• SQL Server Notification Services 2.0 Standard Edition

On the consumer side, Fagerness also talks about the end of Windows XP support taking place on April 8, 2014 (just in case you're still using the fossil OS).

"We recommend that customers running computers with Windows XP take action and update or upgrade their PCs before the end-of-support date," Fagerness said. "If Windows XP is still being run in your environment and you feel that migration will not be complete by April 8, 2014, or you haven't begun migration yet, Microsoft is eager to help. The impact it will have on your environment, the resources that are available to help you get your migration effort under way, and legacy support options should be discussed with your Technical Account Manager or Microsoft Account Representative."

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Kevin Parrish is a contributing editor and writer for Tom's Hardware,Tom's Games and Tom's Guide. He's also a graphic artist, CAD operator and network administrator.

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