Microsoft routinely ends support for products which it deems at “end of life”. As we head into 2020, the support for Windows Server 2008 R2 is the next on the chopping block.
Windows Server 2008 is a Microsoft operating system, which was released to the general public in October of 2009. It featured new virtualization and management features, new functionality for Active Directory, and functional support for up to 256 logical processors.
It was the first 64-bit–only operating system released from Microsoft, and was available in seven editions.
Windows Home Server 2011 was also released , which was succeeded by Windows Server 2012.
What You Need to Know
- End-of-life mainstream support was stopped on January 13, 2015, but Microsoft will be ending support for all editions completely on January 14, 2020. Now is the time to prepare and prepare for the change, as updating IT infrastructure can take several months to accomplish.
- Microsoft generally continues to assist customers after mainstream support has ended, but on January 14, 2020, the company will no longer provide any level of support for the operating system. All editions will be affected.
- While you can continue to run the operating system, you will be exposed to outside threats, as security gaps will no longer be addressed and solved with software updates. Support will also be ending for non-security updates, free support options, and online technical content updates. Clients who choose not to upgrade will no longer have any assistance options from Microsoft should their be concerns, problems, bugs or glitches.
- According to the Microsoft website, customers who use affected products and services should migrate as soon as possible to Microsoft Azure. They will be offered 3 additional years of important critical security updates at no additional charge. For environments other than Azure, customers should upgrade to the latest version before the deadline.
- In some cases, customers who cannot meet the end-of-support deadline may purchase Extended Security Updates to keep server workloads protected. However, restrictions apply and customers should speak with Microsoft regarding details and versions/editions which are applicable.
- The complete list of products with support ending on January 14, 2020 are Windows Server 2008 Datacenter,
Windows Server 2008 Datacenter without Hyper-V, Windows Server 2008 Enterprise, Windows Server 2008 Enterprise without Hyper-V, Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-Based Systems, Windows Server 2008 Foundation, Windows Server 2008 R2 Datacenter, Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise, Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium-Based Systems, Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard, Windows Server 2008 Standard, Windows Server 2008 Standard without Hyper-V.
Did You Know? There are features on the new updated Windows Server 2012 and R2 operating systems which may convince you to upgrade your infrastructure, most notably the new virtualization features.
If you would like to learn of more reasons to upgrade your operating system rater than to stay on an orphaned system, give Alliance IT a call.
How a Managed Services Team Can Help
Making a major transition like this not only requires an upgrade of operating system, but also often involves replacing equipment.
An experienced managed services team can help you to determine which equipment you can keep, which should be replaced, and even help you to liquidate an IT assets which are no longer needed.
Because of the possible complexity and the looming end date, technology planning should start as soon as possible. A professional IT firm can help you to strategize, troubleshoot, budget and manage the entire process.
An organization’s IT personnel are generally at capacity every day with their day-to-day responsibilities, so bringing in a team of experts is a great way to make sure that the project is finished on time, without critically affecting your regular operations.
Want to know more about the impending transition from Windows Server 2008 and Service 2008 R2? We’d love to help.
