2023: The mass migration to Azure

This is a one year heads up.

Server 2012’s GUI

On October 10, 2023, Windows Server 2012 will officially hit end of extended support. This means no more security updates and existing operating systems become insecure. As far as desktops, I am obliged to mention Windows 8 will suffer the same fate, but we all know no one is using that.

But if your department finds itself tethered to 2012 or 2012R2 and unable to make the leap onto Windows Server 2016 or later, there is one option for. Microsoft calls Extended Security Updates. This is a program your IT team will love but your CFO will hate. This is expensive, and I mean expensive. For year one you have to pay 75% of your original face value of the license purchase. Year two, 100%. Year three? It’s a whopping 125% Yeah, it ain’t pretty financially, but it will allow organizations to keep operating and keep the auditors happy until Oct 2026.

What if I told you you there was a way to get these Extended Security Updates for free? Sound too good to be true? It sorta is, but it’s a great option for your IT department to consider.

If you run the server in Azure, you can get these Extended Security Updates at no charge. Yes, this will introduce new recurring infrastructure costs, but if you’ve got aging infrastructure, which undoubtedly anything running 2012R2 isn’t fresh off the Dell assembly line, this could be a great strategy to sustain your operations in a responsible way a few more years.

I have a suspicion we’re going to see a lot of migrations into Azure over the next 12 months. I’m also starting to get flashbacks to the early 2000s Microsoft, but that’s a topic for the attorneys to debate while us CIOs keep the digital world running.