End Of The Line: After Today Windows Server 2003 Is Unsupported

After Tuesday, Microsoft is ending its support of Windows Server 2003.

The Redmond, Wash., company will no longer issue patches or upgrades to fix bugs, glitches and, most importantly, security weaknesses found on the operating system.

In the past, when Microsoft discovered an issue it quickly released a patch for Server 2003 users to use as a quick fix before it became a serious problem. As recently as 2013, Microsoft had issued 37 critical patches for Server 2003, averaging more than three patch releases a month. But going forward, whenever an issue occurs or is discovered on Server 2003, users will be on their own.

[Related: Deadline Day: Microsoft Partners Brace For Windows Server 2003 Security Fiasco]

id
unit-1659132512259
type
Sponsored post

Douglas Grosfield, president and CEO of Xylotek Solutions, an Ontario, Canada-based solution provider and Microsoft partner, said the security implications may not be apparent immediately after support ends, but will become apparent throughout the coming year. End users who have put off migrating off Server 2003 will soon realize they have to start an often lengthy process, he said.

"It's human nature to postpone things and not do things until you're forced to," he said. "We do see that quite regularly. Then [customers] realize it is going to happen. There isn’t going to be a further delay and we're not going to have the patches and security upgrades we need. It's no longer a matter of just a software migration. ... It becomes a much larger project for folks that push it to the very end."

Many end users will find their applications that ran on 32-bit architecture supported by Server 2003 will not run on 64-bit architecture on Server 2012 or even Server 2008. This means many business applications that companies use will need to be replaced for them to migrate, according to Grosfield. Another cost can come from the hardware side, as many business that still use Server 2003 are also using old servers that can't support Server 2012 or Server 2008. This means companies that have yet to migrate could be in for a full upgrade of hardware and applications in addition to their operating system.

"It certainly does [take time]. You have to plan it out," Grosfield said. "You have to see how it will work with their environment and make the determination if their network can handle the increased load in regards to bandwidth. It's not something you just jump into. It requires planning. Smaller businesses that have one or two servers, you could do it in a tighter time frame. We'll see a flurry of upgrades over the next couple quarters. ... We'll see professional service sales and hardware sales get an uptick. Maybe their line-of-business applications will need a makeover."

PUBLISHED JULY 14, 2015