Microsoft announces 16 years of support for Windows, SQL Servers

#Microsoft 's announced a new “ #PremiumAssurance ” plan for #WindowsServer and #SQLServer. Redmond currently offers five years of Mainstream Support on the aforementioned products, during which new features are added and updates are made for reasons of security or just to fix things up. Next comes five years of extended support, during which the security fixes and functionality tweaks keep flowing. The new support offering will see bugs rated “critical” or “important” patched for the six-year duration of the Premium Assurance plan. The outcome of the new plan is that operating systems like Windows Server 2008 R2 will now be supported until the year 2026. SQL Server 2008 can now be supported until 2025. Microsoft's billing Premium Assurance as a comfort to those running applications that may not be easy to evaporate into a cloud. By offering extended support, Redmond reckons, you can just keep them running without worrying about migration. Premium Assurance goes on sale early in 2017 and Pricing suggests Microsoft wants you to buy this product sooner rather than later: if you sign between March and June 2017, it will cost you five per cent of your current licence costs. Delay until July 2019 and that figure rises to 12 per cent. A datasheet (PDF) explains the costs in detail. One last thing: the post announcing Premium Assurance includes the following nuggetoid of information: “The next version of Windows Server is currently in planning, and will further advance the Windows Server 2016 capabilities around hybrid cloud, multi-layered security, containers, Nano Server, and software-defined datacenter technology. Whether that's a reference to a second edition for Windows Server 2016 or a full release isn't explained. Either way, news Microsoft has more on-premises innovation on the way will hearten those who worry that operating system innovation may have stalled in the age of the cloud. ®

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/12/12/microsoft_announces_16_years_of_support_for_windows_sql_servers/

Microsoft to move Windows Server engineering team into Windows and Devices Group

#Microsoft is moving the engineering team responsible for #WindowsServer to the Windows and Devices Group, resulting in all versions of Windows at the company now being part of the same unit.

Executive Vice President @ScottGuthrie will continue to head up the remaining Cloud and Enterprise unit, and Executive Vice President Terry Myerson will now continue to run the expanded Windows and Devices Group.

Both the Windows Server engineering and the Remote Desktop Services engineering teams will be part of Myerson's organization, my sources are saying. But Mike Neil, who currently oversees Windows Server engineering, and Brad Anderson, who is responsible for Remote Desktop Services, are staying with the Cloud and Enterprise team, I am hearing, and will continue to head up the other teams they currently lead.

I asked Microsoft about the moves, which I was tipped to by sources, and a spokesperson confirmed with the following statement:

http://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-to-move-windows-server-engineering-team-into-windows-and-devices-group/

Microsoft to launch Windows Server 2016 and System Center 2016 at the Ignite conference

#Microsoft today announced that they will be officially launching #WindowsServer2016 and #SystemCenter 2016 at the Ignite Conference this Fall. Windows Server 2016 is the cloud-ready operating system that features new innovations like Windows Server and #HyperV containers, #NanoServer, and new security features to give you a platform to build and run your cloud-native apps and your mission critical apps. Windows Server 2016 Features: Extended security – Windows Server 2016 introduces new layers of security to harden the platform to address emerging threats, control privileged access and protect virtual machines. Resilient compute – simplified virtualization upgrades, new installment options, and increased resilience, helping you ensure the stability of the infrastructure without limiting agility. Reduced-cost storage – expanded capabilities in software-defined storage with an emphasis on resilience, reduced cost, and increased control. Simplified networking – the new networking stack brings the core set of networking capabilities and SDN architecture directly from Azure to your datacenter. Application efficiency and agility – Windows Server 2016 delivers new ways to package, configure, deploy, run, test and secure your applications – running on-premises or in the cloud – using new capabilities such as Windows containers and the new Nano Server lightweight OS deployment option. Windows Server 2016 editions include: Datacenter: This edition continues to deliver significant value for organizations that need unlimited virtualization along with powerful new features including Shielded Virtual Machines, software-defined storage and software-defined networking. Standard: This edition is ideal for organizations that need limited virtualization but require a robust, general purpose server operating system. Essentials: This edition is designed for smaller organizations with less than 50 users.

http://mspoweruser.com/microsoft-to-officially-launch-windows-server-2016-and-system-center-2016-at-the-ignite-conference/