For five Microsoft applications, Exchange Server 2007, Office 2007, Project 2007, SharePoint Server 2007, and Visio 2007, the year 2017 marks the conclusion of their service lifecycles. Microsoft will no longer provide support to each of these applications after their respective dates, listed below:

1. Exchange Server 2007 — August 11, 2017
2. Office 2007 — October 10, 2017
3. Project 2007 — October 10, 2017
4. SharePoint Server 2007 — April 11, 2017
5. Visio 2007 — October 10, 2017

The Changes Afterwards

Even after these five applications pass their end-of-support dates, they can still be utilized as they had been before. Nevertheless, fully understanding the critical changes involved is important for your business.

By far in terms of importance, Microsoft will cease providing updates for these programs. There will no longer be updates that address security issues and bugs. New functionality will also stop being added.

In addition, Microsoft’s free or paid support for these applications will no longer be accessible. Although free content already posted such as knowledge-based articles and webcasts will remain available online, Microsoft will stop updating the information.

Business Impact

The use of programs that are no longer supported may result in undesired negative consequences. Perhaps the most serious is that a business will be increasingly defenseless from cyber attacks because patches for security vulnerabilities will stop being provided. In order to gain access to computer systems, these vulnerabilities are exploited by hackers. They even monitor the dates when software vendors cease their support of their applications. Their cyber attacks are scheduled for launch afterwards.

Utilizing software that is unsupported will make it all but impossible to comply with the protection standards and regulations imposed for sensitive data. Moreover, noncompliance can be sanctioned through costly penalties. Finally, a loss of revenue and opportunities will result when current and potential partners decide to take their businesses to firms that are compliant instead.

Before these end-of-support dates arrive, consult with a reputable and experienced IT support expert. They will make upgrading your applications as efficient as possible in terms of time and costs, keeping your company up to date and protected.

Alpha Engineering Business Support

Choosing an expert computer technology-support provider is an important decision for your business. Alpha Engineering Associates has been a trusted partner of many companies in the Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis areas since 1990 and offer:

• 24/7 Managed Services for Business Computing Systems
• Network and Mobile Computing Support
• Disaster Recovery Planning
• Software Development

For affordable client-focused network consulting services and solutions, please call Alpha Engineering Associates today at 410-295-9500.