On April 8th 2008 Microsoft will cease mainstream support for all editions of SQL Server 2000 as the product moves into an extended support phase. After April 8th Microsoft will no longer allow customers to raise a support case for SQL Server 2000, unless the customer has a Custom Support Agreement (CSA) in place. The support and QFE organisations within Microsoft doesn’t like CSAs since it means they have to maintain an old code base, and support multiple versions of the same product – as such they’re priced to discourage all but the most risk-averse customers! Support details can be found on the Microsoft product lifecycle page for SQL Server 2000.
Extended support means Microsoft won’t provide customers with assistance in break/ fix cases and will no longer provide hotfixes or Service Packs. SQL Server 2000 will receive security only updates for the duration of the extended support period (until April 2013). Customers must upgrade to a supported version (SQL Server 2005 SP1 or higher) in order to continue to receive support.Upgrading a database platform can be a non-trivial exercise, here are some options:
A) Do nothingYou could elect to run on an un-supported platform, providing your business is willing to sign-off on the risks. This could be viable, providing no changes are made to the application or environment – which can be difficult to ensure (or even quantify) in most modern businesses.
B) Upgrade to SQL Server 2005, running in compatibility modeThis method requires least effort and will enable you to continue to operate in an environment fully supported by Microsoft. Compatibility mode is a setting in SQL Server that allows the database engine to emulate a previous version of SQL Server – usually meaning none or minimal application changes are required and minimal risk. Unfortunately, many of the new SQL Server 2005 features will be unavailable when running in this mode.
C) Upgrade to SQL Server 2005
Bite the bullet and upgrade. Migrate your DTS packages to SSIS and take advantage of all the SQL Server 2005 features! Use this opportunity to consider 64-bit, virtualisation and consolidation. Take full advantage of online index rebuilds, two node clusters in standard edition and more efficient query optimisation.
D) Upgrade to SQL Server 2008
The latest and greatest version of SQL Server will ship in Q3 2008, with many new features and enhancements. Upgrading from SQL Server 2000 directly to SQL Server 2008 will be supported when the product ships.
At Coeo we’ve already helped a number of customers upgrade and take advantage of new features, and we’re anticipating further demand as more customers see the benefits of staying supported and migrate to SQL Server 2005.
Justin Langford
Principal Consultant
Coeo - The SQL Server Experts