Updated: July 9, 2020 (June 12, 2006)
Charts & IllustrationsProduct Life-Cycle Phases and Options
Support for development software is retired in a series of phases. The phases described below apply to all of the products discussed in this report.
| Life-Cycle Phases and Options | Normal Duration | Product Support Options | Software Updates |
| Mainstream Support Phase | Five years from the date of general availability, or two years after the release of a successor version, whichever is greater. | Free incident support (per warranty).
Online support information. Fee-based support options (Professional Support, Essential Support, Premier Support, Microsoft Services Partner Advantage, Software Assurance). |
Security updates and hotfixes (free).
Nonsecurity updates and hotfixes (free). Service packs or update rollups (free). |
| Extended Support Phase | Five years from the end of the Mainstream phase or until two years after the second successor version (e.g., Windows 2000 Extended support ends two years after Windows Vista’s release). | Fee-based support options |
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