Exchange Server 2003 entra em Suporte Estendido

O Exchange Server 2003 entrou em Suporte Estendido no passado dia 14 de Abril de 2009. Todos os detalhes da política de suporte da Microsoft e do ciclo de vida dos produtos podem ser consultados em Support.com.

Para quem ainda está a utilizar esta versão de Exchange, talvez seja uma boa altura para migrar para Exchange Server 2007… Ou até começar a planear o recentemente anunciado Exchange Server 2010..

What does this mean for customers?
The major differences between the Mainstream Support phase and the Extended Support phase are the following:

• No-charge Problem Resolution Support is not available
• Microsoft no longer accept product design change requests (CDCRs) or provide new feature functionality
• Microsoft no longer provide new non-security hotfixes without enrollment in Extended Hotfix Support

Customers have 90 days after 4/14/2009 to purchase an Extended Hotfix Support Agreement. One exception - customers who have Software Assurance can opt in for the Extended Hotfix Support Agreement at any time.

One of the important things to note is that Extended Support is still a publicly supported phase and no separate agreement is needed to obtain support.  As long as customers are opening paid incidents, they will still be able to receive support. In fact, many Premier and Pro customers who already open paid cases with Microsoft will notice little difference in the support that is provided in this phase. They will continue to be able to open paid cases, receive security updates, obtain support assistance from their TAM, etc.