Microsoft’s Windows Server 2003 operating system goes "end of life" on July 14. What does this dramatic-sounding statement really mean? Is it really dead, a viable product or somewhere in-between?

First off, let’s define what end of life, or EOL really means. For Microsoft and just about every software vendor out there, EOL means that public technical support will no longer be available for the products in question.

Big deal, you say, I never call tech support, and there’s still a wealth of information on the Web — including Microsoft’s own knowledge base — which I can rely upon if I ever have a problem.

Well, that’s partially true. But the most pertinent piece of "no tech support" is that software updates, patches and hot-fixes will no longer be available. This is especially crucial in these days when multiple new security breaches crop up every day.

EOL has a ripple effect, especially when operating systems such as Server 2003 are involved. While the operating system itself may be functioning properly, you might have difficulty adding new applications. Application software vendors are loath to support EOL operating systems because even they can’t get technical support.

"But … but," you say, "we’ve been running Windows XP for more than a year since it went EOL and had no problems." Well, there’s a huge difference between a server operating system, such as the aptly named Server 2003, and a desktop operating system such as Windows XP. Servers typically provide more complex functions and support more users than desktops. If a server is compromised or rendered useless, all of your users could be affected. If a desktop experiences the same fate, only one, or at most a handful of users would be disrupted.

What if something should go wrong? Your organization could be crippled for days, if not weeks, trying to recover. Sure, Microsoft might offer you a custom solution to fix the issue, but when past products have gone EOL, they’ve done this only for large organizations and at a relatively high cost.

So, what to do? Let’s face it, if you are still on Server 2003, you are running software that is 12 years old. Few things in this disposable age last that long. It’s time to make a change. Do you need to do it by July 14? No, but you need to have a plan in place and a sense of urgency.

Remember, the factors that led to your decision to implement Server 2003 are much different in 2015. There are many more technical options, whether open-source, other vendors or even cloud-based. More important, your business requirements surely have changed over time. Organizations could realize a gain in efficiency by upgrading their technology to better support their business needs.

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John Agsalud is an IT expert with more than 25 years of information technology experience in Hawaii and around the world. Reach him at johnagsalud@yahoo.com.