As a Microsoft partner, staying ahead of the curve on product lifecycles is crucial for maintaining the security and compliance of your customers’ IT environments. It’s imperative to understand key dates and the necessary steps to ensure your clients’ mission-critical systems remain protected.
July 9, 2024, marks the End of Support (EOS) for SQL Server 2014. This approaching deadline presents a significant opportunity for you to engage with your customers, assess their current business needs, and guide them toward necessary IT infrastructure upgrades.
Extended Security Updates: Providing Flexibility and Security
To help your customers navigate this transition, Microsoft offers Extended Security Updates (ESUs) for SQL Server 2014. ESUs provide a safety net, offering up to three years of critical security updates, allowing customers to maintain security posture while strategically planning their future upgrades. Importantly, ESUs also ensure continued access to technical support through existing support agreements. Since October 1, 2023, these ESUs have been available for purchase through the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program and Enterprise Agreements (EA).
Charting the Best Path Forward for Your Customers
Now is the ideal time to initiate discussions with your customers about their options regarding Sql Server 2014 End Of Life. Collaboratively, you can evaluate the optimal strategy for securing their workloads that are reaching the end of support.
The Microsoft Datacenter Optimization (DCO) team is available to provide expert guidance in making the most informed decisions for both your customers and your business. Should you have any inquiries or require assistance, do not hesitate to reach out to the DCO team.
| Option | ESUs Included? | Best Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| Azure Arc | Purchased through Azure Arc | Seamlessly purchase and deploy ESUs in on-premises or multicloud environments. |
| Azure Stack HCI | Included for free | Deploy and manage VMs and containers at the edge with cloud-native HCI. |
| Azure VMware Solution (AVS) | Included for free | Natively run VMware workloads on Azure infrastructure. |
| Azure Virtual Machines | Included for free | Migrate customer servers directly to Azure Virtual Machines (VMs). |
It’s critical to ensure your customers are current with the latest security updates to mitigate potential risks:
| Service | Latest Security Update | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2012 | February 13, 2024 | KB5034830 |
| SQL Server 2012 | February 14, 2023 | KB5021123 |
| SQL Server 2014 | October 10, 2023 | KB5029184 |
Further Reading
For more information on related end-of-support topics, refer to:
Windows Server 2012 and SQL Server 2012 end of support: Keep your customers secure
Join the Community Conversation
To engage in discussions about this topic and other relevant subjects with Microsoft and fellow US partners, we encourage you to join the Microsoft Americas Partner Community on LinkedIn.
