This month marks the beginning of the 24-month countdown before SharePoint Server 2010 reaches end of extended support.  It’s not too late to start planning an upgrade or migration to the latest version of SharePoint whether your plans are on-premises, in the cloud, or somewhere in between. 

 

It’s hard to believe it’s been over 9 years since we announced SharePoint Server 2010 at our first SharePoint Conference outside of Seattle, SharePoint Conference 2009 held in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 20th, 2009 at the Mandalay Bay with the keynote delivered by Steve Ballmer. 

 

SharePoint Server 2010 ushered in a new era of capabilities delivering a platform for composite applications and flexible information management through the newly introduced Access Services and sandboxed solutions to support rapid application development.  SharePoint Server 2010 helped workers find information and connect with subject-matter experts, regardless of their location and with the versions of SharePoint to follow, to include our latest 2019 version, we’ve continued that mission – to connect the content and people that matter most. 

 

As revolutionary as SharePoint Server 2010 was at the time, our latest versions of SharePoint both on-premises and in the cloud through Office 365 have even more to offer.  For customers who want to upgrade to the latest version of SharePoint on-premises, you will first need to upgrade to 2013, 2016, and finally 2019.  Through advancements in both on-premises and hybrid cloud capabilities, SharePoint Server 2019 provides the benefits of years of cloud innovation, providing best in class IT and Developer experiences, along with new user experiences that work the way users work.  Customers can also choose to migrate their data directly from SharePoint Server 2010 to 2013 or to SharePoint Online. 

 

Customers wanting to maximize their on-premises server investment should strongly consider migrating to SharePoint Server 2019 as SharePoint Server 2013 is already well into its own 10-year lifecycle. 

If you’re planning an upgrade or migration to SharePoint Server 2019 or SharePoint Online, a list of useful resources is available in the resources section at the end of this post.

 

Mainstream support for SharePoint Server 2010 ends in October 2020.  SharePoint Server 2010 has been on extended support since then, which means only security updates are released.  On October 13, 2020, Microsoft will completely end support for SharePoint Server 2010.  Here's what end of support means for you:

 

• No critical updates were released in 2017 for SharePoint Server 2010 under extended support. 
• No security updates will be developed or released after end of support. 
• More importantly the operating systems supporting SharePoint Server 2010 are reaching or have reached end of support.

Lack of compliance with various standards and regulations can be devastating.  This may include regulatory and industry standards for which compliance can no longer be achieved.  For example, lack of compliance with Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards might mean companies such as Visa and MasterCard will no longer do business with you.  Or, the new cost of doing business will include paying catastrophic penalties and astronomically high transaction fees.  In the worst case, lack of compliance can even result in lost business.

 

Servers running SharePoint Server 2010 are affected.  Both virtualized and physical instances of SharePoint Server 2010 are vulnerable and would not pass a compliance audit.  Many applications will also cease to be supported once the operating system they are running on is unsupported.  This includes all Microsoft applications, including Groove Server servers.

 

Staying put will cost more in the end.  Maintenance costs for aging hardware will also increase, and you will face added costs for intrusion detection systems, more advanced firewalls, network segmentation, and other security measures-all simply to isolate legacy server operating systems and SharePoint Server 2010.

 

Not migrating is more costly in the end.

 

Two important considerations are the costs and the risks of not migrating. Costs will include adding or dramatically improving an intrusion detection system, more advanced firewalls, network segmentation, and so on simply to isolate servers. There will also be costs for maintaining aging hardware and potentially the cost of a Microsoft CSA. Without the CSA, there are risks. End of support means no fixes, and that means your SharePoint Server 2010 instances are vulnerable to any new security issues. And vulnerable servers are a target for security breaches of various types.

 

Migration options

 

 

 

 

 

Migrate to SharePoint Server 2016 or SharePoint Server 2019

 

If your unique business characteristics and requirements will result in remaining on-premises for the foreseeable future, SharePoint Server 2016 and SharePoint Server 2019 are great opportunities to modernize your infrastructure and take advantage of the latest in content collaboration and portal technologies.  Upgrading to the latest versions of SharePoint on-premises is a multi-phased approach meaning you will need to first upgrade to SharePoint Server 2013 before you can upgrade to SharePoint Server 2016 – and for SharePoint Server 2019, upgrading to SharePoint Server 2013, then SharePoint Server 2016, before upgrading to SharePoint Server 2019.  Below are helpful resources for navigating the upgrade process.

 

• Overview of the upgrade process from SharePoint 2010 to SharePoint 2013 [https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepoint/upgrade-and-update/overview-of-the-upgrade-process-from-sharepoint-2010-to-sharepoint-2013]
• Upgrade to SharePoint Server 2016 [https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/SharePoint/upgrade-and-update/upgrade-to-sharepoint-server-2016]
• High level overview to upgrade from SharePoint 2013 to SharePoint Server 2019 [https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/SharePoint/upgrade-and-update/upgrade-from-sharepoint2013-to-sharepointserver-2019]

 

Migrate to Office 365

Office 365 is a cloud-based subscription service that brings together the best tools for the way people work today. By combining best-in-class apps with powerful cloud services, Office 365 lets anyone create and collaborate anywhere on any device.

 

Collaboration

Every group is unique, with its own needs and workstyle. Office 365 provides an integrated solution so everyone can collaborate more effectively with team chat, online meetings, co-authoring and sharing files securely, group email and a social network for work.

 

Security and Compliance

With Office 365, Microsoft takes security and compliance to the next level. Now you have even more control with built-in privacy, transparency, and refined user controls. It's easy to see why this is the most secure Office. 

 

Intelligence & analytics

Easy-to-use live data monitoring and in-depth personal and organizational analysis tools let you discover new stories in your data with even more interactive reports, simpler dashboards, and compelling data visualizations.

 

Mobility

Office 365 empowers your teams to stay connected and productive anywhere. View and edit documents on the go with Office 365 mobile apps. Securely view, co-author, and share files in the cloud. Access content, conversations, tasks, and schedules from any device.

 

Microsoft FastTrack

FastTrack for Microsoft 365 offers deployment and adoption self-serve resources, tools, guidance and engineering assistance for all things Microsoft 365 - collaboration, voice, devices, and security across Windows 10, Office 365, and EMS.

 

By tapping into the expertise of Microsoft engineers you can confidently migrate email, content, and light up Microsoft 365 services; deploy and securely manage devices; enable your business and drive end-user adoption. FastTrack will also work with you partner or help find one for additional services, ensuring a single plan to help you move to the cloud with confidence.

 

Learn more on how FastTrack can accelerate your journey to Office 365 at https://fasttrack.microsoft.com/.