Migrating from Windows Server 2003 and 2003 R2

Running Windows Server 2003 and 2003 R2 will be increasingly risky and costly after Extended support ends on July 14, 2015, and Microsoft advises customers to migrate all systems off those OS versions by that date. Organizations should already be planning to mitigate risks in the near term and eventually migrate. Plans will depend heavily on what role each system plays in the organization, but prioritizing systems, selecting the right target OS version and hardware, and considering licensing and administrative requirements can help with any migration.

Some Migration Required

The risks and costs of running Windows Server 2003 and 2003 R2 will rise with the end of Extended support. Organizations can respond by locking down some systems and replacing others with cloud services, but most will still have systems that need to be migrated to a new OS on-premises.

End of Support Raises Risks and Costs

Once a software version has exited Extended support, Microsoft will not publicly release patches for security vulnerabilities or other bugs in the version. This means that systems running the version will become increasingly vulnerable to attack. Windows Server 2003 and 2003 R2 have continued to receive security patches over the last year, so there are likely vulnerabilities yet to be discovered and exploited by attackers if left unpatched. Unpatched systems could also exhibit new bugs and compatibility problems as an organization updates configurations and applications.