Exchange Server Roadmap Update

DavidYorkshire, again it is only the RTM release that does not include any new features (or other substantive changes).  That does not mean that Exchange Server SE won't get any new features; in fact, it will get new features, and we will share details on those new features at the appropriate time.

The approach we're taking is specifically to help customers make a quick and smooth transition to Exchange Server SE, as starting October 15, 2025, it will be the only supported version of Exchange Server.  The path we've taken means (1) no more major upgrade every few years, which almost all Exchange admins agree are difficult; (2) you can quickly upgrade in-place from Exchange 2019 to Exchange Server SE, which means for many customers, especially those on Windows Server 2019, that the support lifecycle for their server now gets extended from October 14, 2025 (EOL for Ex2019) to Jan 9, 2029 (EOL for Windows Server 2019); (3) maintaining Exchange just got a whole lot easier (for customers and Microsoft); (4) because Exchange Server SE RTM starts out nearly identical to Exchange 2019 CU15, that means there won't be any delays or initial problems because the code will have existed (and will be run in production environments) for more than a year before SE RTM is available.

I can tell unequivocally that no one at Microsoft is treating anyone like an idiot.  I'm sorry that you feel that way, but I am personally confident that the plan we have in place for Exchange Server customers is in their best interests.

There are many reasons customers don't jump to the latest major upgrade.  One of the reasons for that is the complexity of upgrades, especially when there are architectural changes in the product, and updated and changing system requirements.  Our plan is an attempt to address that by removing these big parts of customer pain, and servicing Exchange in an evergreen model that avoids the need for this pain.

It is precisely because of the limited overlap of supported versions that we took the approach of making the RTM release code equivalent to CU15.  This gets you a lot of time to move to CU15, and once there, you can quickly move to SE RTM.

What are the issues with Exchange being in extended support?  We still release SUs as needed, and Exchange 2019 still has one more CU to ship.  So, I'm no clear on why being out of mainstream support is a big deal.

Lastly, if you want even earlier access to CU15 or Exchange SE RTM, I'd invite you to join the Exchange Server 2019 TAP.  See Open Enrollment for Exchange Server 2019 TAP - Microsoft Community Hub for details.