In the language of LIS systems, “sunsetting” is when a software product is no longer supported. Naturally, this makes adding capacity via that software extremely challenging. Whenever growth is desired, upgrades or workarounds become necessary.
Examples of sunsetted software include Microsoft products that many LIS systems require, including Windows Server or SQL Server. For example, some existing LIS systems run on SQL 2008, which lost mainstream support in 2014 and will lose extended support in July 2019.
Other sunsetted or soon-to-be-sunsetted software include Windows Server 2003, which lost all support in 2015, and Windows Server 2008, which will lose extended support in January of 2020. Similarly, Windows 7, which is still used broadly, will lose extended support in 2020, having lost mainstream support 3 years ago. Since system upgrades require lead time and planning, it’s important to be fully aware of what the future holds for your software environment.
If you want to ensure that you are optimized to grow your capacity as needed, be sure to learn whether your software tools will remain viable. We see customers using workaround 3rdparty products to mitigate their expired products. However, these can involve their own maintenance and version management headaches.
You can get a handle on this through an audit of your system versions. In some cases, C4 already knows your systems and can let you know your status right away. Otherwise, we’d be happy to quickly review your systems and provide recommendations or upgrade paths.
