UPDATE 12/19

Windows 2008 and Windows 2008 R2 End of Service is fast approaching as Microsoft will end support on January 14, 2020. If you have servers at risk of losing support, you still have time to take action. Microsoft is offering three years of free Extended Security updates for no charge, if you migrate workloads into Azure. If you prefer to stay on-prem, upgrading to Windows 2019 Server is another option, or you take a hybrid cloud approach.

Regardless of your choice, GreenPages team of experts is here to help you navigate the best solution for your needs and environment. We can right size your Azure environment if you move to the cloud or assist in understanding what’s needed for licensing and support for on-prem. We’re here to help you make that decision and ensure you're covered for the future.

Regardless of what investment you decide to make, GreenPages can help right-size you for the future and ensure your data continues to be protected. To have further conversations about Windows 2008 and 2008 R2 and SQL 2008 and 2008 R2, please connect with your Account Executive or reach out to us! 

ORIGINAL POST 7/19 

Back in 2008 I still had a faceplate for my car radio, Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis was crushing the pop charts, and organic bean sprouted bread was something you’d find in the pet food aisle. It’s also the year Microsoft released Windows 2008 and SQL 2008, leaving a lasting impression like a tune you can’t get out of your head. For Windows Server 2008, it was the first Windows edition that allowed you to license for virtualization. If you recall, there used to be an Enterprise Edition of Windows 2008 that allowed for 4 VMs and if you needed 12 VMs you had to purchase 3 licenses. Datacenter provided unlimited VMs, and Standard edition both covered standalone and virtual machines. 

At the time Microsoft was really making us work to understand the minutia of their licensing rules. Thank goodness Microsoft’s licensing has gotten a lot easier to understand (insert sarcasm.) Windows 2008 and 2008 R2 and SQL 2008 and 2008 R2 had a good run, and like all good things, including Leona Lewis’s career, it will be coming to an end. SQL 2008 and 2008 R2 End of Support (EOS) is July 9, 2019. Windows 2008 and 2008 R2 EOS is January 14, 2020. 

Once Microsoft products go EOS, Microsoft offers ZERO support for the product, meaning they’ll no longer provide updates and patching. With no support, it would leave the product vulnerable to security threats because no fixes will be available to prevent infiltration. Security updates are mission critical. In 2016, 4.2 Billion records were stolen by hackers. Twenty percent of organizations lose customers during an attack and 30% of organizations lose revenue during an attach. Not fun!  It would be like if John Rambo retired and stopped drawing blood, which is a bad analogy because Rambo: Last Blood is being released in September. This begs that question, is this really the Last Blood? Probably not, however you can be certain the Microsoft’s “Last Blood” is actually happening.

So what to do when your support goes away? Well you’ll need to think about modernizing and in this case adopting cloud. It’s a good time to seize EOS as an opportunity to transform with Microsoft’s latest technologies. A jump to Azure will allow you to migrate your Windows 2008 and 2008 R2 workloads to Azure VM or Azure SQL Database. Customers who move 2008 and 2008 R2 workloads to Azure Virtual Machines (IaaS) “as-is” will have access to Extended Security Updates for both SQL Server and Windows Server 2008 and 2008 R2 for three years after the End of Support dates for free. Those that decide to move to Azure SQL Database Managed Instance (PaaS) will have access to continuous security updates, as this is a fully managed solution.

Or you could stay with on-premises licensing and upgrade to Windows 2019 or SQL Server 2017 by leveraging your Software Assurance benefits to modernize on-premises or on Azure (i.e. Azure Hybrid Benefit), to help reduce security risks and continue to get regular security updates.

By Rob O'Shaughnessy