20 percent of Microsoft SQL servers are running despite End of Life
A fifth of SQL Server instances are running outdated versions. From next month, this could even rise to a third with SQL Server 2014.
Not all applications on your own servers are still supported by the provider.
(Image: vchal/Shutterstock.com)
Almost 20 percent of running Microsoft SQL Servers have passed their end-of-life (EoL) date - from next month it could even be 32 percent. The visibility provider Lansweeper has scanned over one million server instances and warns of the end of warranty services, bug fixes and security patches from Microsoft. In July 2024, SQL Server 2014 will be ready, which in turn accounts for 12 percent of instances.
(Image:Â Lansweeper)
According to the study, 19.8 percent of scanned systems will no longer be supported. The pioneer is SQL Server 2012, whose EoL was 2022. However, security patches are still available until 2025 via the Extended Security Updates subscription. The situation is different for SQL Server 2008, which is still in use in just under eight percent of cases. Here, the extension expired in 2022. The situation is different for SQL Server 2005, which is still running on around 2.5 percent of scanned instances. Here, updates were already discontinued in 2016 and an extension was not possible.
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If it's not broken ...
Once a running application has been built on a functional, relational database, there is often no reason for companies to touch the basic structure again. Especially if the application has been running stably for a long time and does not require any of the new features of the subsequent versions. Even if developers would like to upgrade, the money and resources for the change must first be available. However, it is all the more critical if these applications break away. If the application has reached EoL, the Microsoft customer himself is to blame for his failure.
But even with Microsoft updates, not everything always runs smoothly. For example, security updates for the latest Microsoft products recently had undesirable effects. Software providers are generally not liable for zero-day vulnerabilities that may lead to critical security gaps - a situation that the current Minister of the Interior, Nancy Faeser, does not want to change, even though such gaps have been exploited for attacks on the SPD, for example.
(pst)
