By Stefani Laszko
A little over a year after Microsoft said goodbye to Windows XP they will be doing the same with Windows Server 2003. Server 2003 is still a widely used platform and the extended support offerings will be terminated on July 14, 2015. Even with the associated risks, there are many Windows XP machines still in use but keeping an unsupported server in your business environment is a recipe for disaster. Worst case scenarios like viruses and data loss become common issues when you are running old and unsupported technology.
If you’re thinking that the Windows Server 2003 in your environment is no big deal because it’s “just” a file server, etc. it doesn’t matter. Regardless of its role, installation of any Windows software in your environment plays a crucial role within your organization and having it compromised from the outside can cause significant headaches for you, your employees and most crucially of all, your clients.
Without current support from Microsoft, after the end date there will be no more patches or security updates, leaving the server susceptible to viruses and malicious attacks. You can continue to run your business if a single computer goes down with a virus; if it occurs on your server you are hard down and losing money by the minute. Consider a server which shipped with Server 2003 installed, this would likely have been almost ten years ago. By now, not only has the operating system reached end of life, but the architecture it’s running on has as well. That makes hard drives more difficult to replace, failed memory almost impossible to get, and replacements of custom components like non-standard power supplies or chassis fans barely worth mentioning. You could easily be down for days even if you have a good backup.
Compliance is the 900 pound gorilla in the room. If you are in healthcare or handle credit card information you have no choice, you must upgrade immediately. Anyone who is in a regulated industry or handles regulated data is opening themselves up to fines and losing business partners who will no longer work with you based on your aged environment. Compliance issues are a nightmare for your reputation and are a threat to your current client base and prospective clients.
Servers are expensive and if it’s not in your budget you have options. Hosted virtualization turns your CAPEX into an OPEX and gives you the flexibility to run your business with your industry technology demands and benefits that only large corporations used to get. Regardless of which way you choose to go, you need to do something. Start the conversation now with a trusted IT advisor so that you have a plan in place before the end date, alleviating you from the risk of a potential disaster.
Mythos Technology is an IT consulting and management firm that provides Managed Services including hosted cloud solutions. For more information, please visit www.mythostech.com or call (951) 813-2672.