LSeven Solutions Blog

Flash Player—the familiar Adobe web application that first premiered in 1996—is finally going into retirement at the end of the year. This is quite a big deal, as Flash Player was (at least initially) instrumental to many of the platforms that so many rely on these days. However, what will this mean for your business?

You don’t need us to tell you that Microsoft has an extensive library of software products aimed at all kinds of businesses. But, of course, nothing good can last forever, and old solutions eventually give way to more versatile or efficient versions. When this happens, Microsoft stops supporting older software in order to provide better features and experiences to users of more recent versions.

After it reaches a certain age, Microsoft software gradually moves from a mainstream support period to an extended support period. The main difference is that Microsoft continues to provide security patches and updates, but no longer takes requests for new features or non-security fixes. Once a software reaches its end of life, however, Microsoft ceases to provide security patches and updates, putting anyone still using this software at risk. Therefore, as a business owner, it’s your responsibility to know when your software expires, and how to upgrade it to a more recent version.

The following Microsoft products reached their end of support date on April 12th, 2016. Be sure to check with your IT department or the friendly technicians at L7 Solutions to see if you’re putting your infrastructure at risk through their continued use.

From Mainstream Support to Extended Support

• Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization 2.0
• Microsoft Fable III for PC
• Microsoft Lync 2010
• Microsoft Lync 2010 Attendant
• Microsoft Lync 2010 Attendee
• Microsoft Lync 2010 Group Chat
• Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Enterprise Edition
• Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Group Chat Software Development Kit
• Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Software Development Kit
• Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Standard Edition
• Microsoft Math 4.0

From Extended Support to End of Life

• Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0
• Microsoft Customer Care Framework
• Microsoft Customer Care Framework 2005
• Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Compact Edition
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Developer Edition
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Enterprise Edition
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express Edition with Advanced Services
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 for Embedded Systems
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition for Itanium-based Systems
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Standard X64 Edition
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Workgroup Edition
• Microsoft System Center Data Protection Manager 2006
• Microsoft Visual Basic 2005 Express Edition
• Microsoft Visual C# 2005 Express Edition
• Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Express Edition
• Microsoft Visual J# 2005 Express Edition
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Professional Edition
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Standard Edition
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Standard Edition academic license
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team Edition for Software Architects
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team Edition for Software Developers
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team Edition for Software Testers
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team Suite
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team Test Load Agent
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Tools for the Microsoft Office System
• Microsoft Visual Web Developer 2005 Express Edition
• Windows Embedded for Point of Service
• Service Pack 3 for Windows Embedded for Point of Service

Your organization can’t afford to let unsupported software run on your workstations. If a hacker were to exploit a known (or unknown) vulnerability in any of these programs, your troubles could just be starting. If you suspect that any of your mission-critical software solutions are approaching their end of life, or have already expired, don’t waste any more time. To learn more, contact L7 Solutions at (954) 573-1300.

By design, Microsoft’s operating systems aren’t built to last forever. Due to the fact that technology is always changing, new operating systems with better security and improved capabilities are routinely needed. Microsoft gets users to transition from an older OS to a newer one by ending support for the older one. This begs the question, how long until Microsoft pulls the plug on your OS?