MicrosoftOffice Online Server provides key functionality to many Internet-disconnected networks of large Microsoft customer organizations. It greatly enhances the usability of both Microsoft Office and SharePoint Server, resulting in substantial productivity improvement. Its essential use-cases, including search result previews, quick online file viewing, and real-time coauthoring, are invaluable and not available through the Office LTSC client applications for Internet-disconnected networks.
It seems unconscionable for Microsoft to carelessly remove this core functionality from their on-premises customers. And just because the "modern support policy" that Microsoft authored states that only one year's notice is required when retiring a product, does not mean that is a good practice for gaining and retaining large customer organizations, who have a strong distaste for surprises of this nature.
As Office Online Server is core functionality that is licensed with Office LTSC, I would expect the removal of this functionality to reduce the licensing price of Office LTSC, by at least 25%. And because it eliminates the SharePoint search result previews, its removal should also reduce the CAL price of SharePoint Server by at least 5%. (Comparable discounts should be provided to those organizations licensing SharePoint Server and Office LTSC via the Microsoft 365 licensing mechanisms.) TimDavenport -- will our organization's MSEA license charges be reduced accordingly, effective January 1, 2027?
