Microsoft Ends Support of SQL Server 2005.

Which version of SQL Server are you running?

On April 12, 2016, Microsoft will cease support for its outdated SQL Server 2005. With over a decade in use, Microsoft SQL Server 2005 will be finally reaching the end of its life cycle, with a much more robust SQL Server 2014 to take its place. Continuing to operate the outdated SQL Server 2005 without security updates and patch fixes from Microsoft could put organizations at risk for attacks and exploits, causing costly business disruptions and damage to your business reputation.

Cloud alternatives are quickly gaining a foothold over traditional server systems, and SQL Server 2014 is the next viable option for businesses who have yet to migrate to the cloud. Microsoft suggests upgrading to SQL Server 2014 for its up-to-date performance and security features.

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According to Microsoft a direct upgrade to SQL Server 2014 results will return:

• Benchmarked 13x faster performance when compared to SQL Server 2005.
• In-memory across workloads for up to 30x transactional performance gains over 100x faster queries.
• AlwaysOn, a high availability service with two-way communication to the cloud.
• More tools to manage data across the enterprise, data quality services, and more integration services.
• Security changes such as PCI-DSS for credit card transactions, HIPAA for medical, and financial institutions that require GBLA.

The current trend suggests that Microsoft will continue pursuing cloud-based SaaS (Sofware-as-a-service) and PaaS (Platform-as-a-service) packages such as Microsoft Office 365, and the upgrade to Windows 10 solidifies that objective. Cloud-based Microsoft Azure SQL Database is gaining traction in the enterprise market, which indicates that more and more businesses are ready to migrate to the cloud.

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