Microsoft End of Support Update 2025 – Which Products are Up Next and How to Prepare

In 2025, approximately 120 Microsoft offerings will reach end of support or servicing, transition to Extended Support, or be retired – including certain Azure functionalities. For enterprise customers, this means critical decisions must be made: upgrade to supported versions or continue using unsupported products at their own risk. In this bulletin, we outline the products slated for sunset in 2025 and key considerations for Microsoft customers as they prepare for these changes.

The scope of these retirements is significant, with around 50% of the affected offerings tied to Azure. Once these products reach end of support, Microsoft will no longer provide security updates, non-security updates, free or paid assisted support, or online technical content updates – potentially leaving organizations exposed to operational and security risks.

Below is the current list of Microsoft offerings scheduled for retirement or end of servicing/support in 2025:

Microsoft is also moving several products from Mainstream to Extended Support in 2025. Per Microsoft, Extended Support includes security updates at no cost, and paid non-security updates and support. Once a product is in Extended Support phase, Microsoft does not accept requests for design changes or new features.

Preparing for End of Support

Microsoft customers have limited options when a product reaches end of support – upgrade to the latest cloud or on-premise version of that product, remain on the existing version and absorb the business risk, or (if eligible) enroll in Microsoft’s Extended Security Update Program.

As customers navigate this decision, they should ask the following questions:

• What is the cost to upgrade? Does an upgrade align with the organization’s internal IT roadmap? Remember, Microsoft is highly motivated to move customers to the newest versions of their offerings. In many cases, the deal window is open for customers that decide to make the move. But customer readiness is key and there are technical environment factors that add cost, complexity, and risk to the equation.

• Can the organization tolerate the risk of using unsupported Microsoft technology? If an application or business process stops working (because, for example, changes to the underlying operating system cause an unsupported Microsoft technology to fail), what is the impact on the business? Do the unsupported technologies have information security implications? Customers that choose to remain on unsupported offerings could find themselves vulnerable to security flaws that are no longer Microsoft’s responsibility to identify and fix.

• If available, what is the cost of extended support? Extended support is available for a select handful of offerings on this year’s list – but at a price. Often the dollars spent towards extended support could make a sizeable dent in the cost to migrate to a newer version.

• If applicable, why does the organization want to remain on an unsupported version?
  It’s a rudimentary question, but an important one as it uncovers bigger issues related to the alignment between the customer’s IT roadmap and Microsoft’s. When faced with this question many companies find that they don’t have a clear answer, and it is the catalyst for a broader analysis of technical strategy. 

It’s important to understand the fine print governing end of support for Microsoft products. Like most things Microsoft, cost-optimized navigation of the changes requires expert clarification of contractual terms, well-planned alignment of the customer’s IT roadmap with Microsoft’s roadmap, and insight into Microsoft’s motivations and business objectives. 

Microsoft license and cost optimization is an NPI center of excellence. Contact us if you’d like to learn about our services – NPI is not a reseller, we are unbiased licensing experts.