Microsoft grants users of Exchange Server 2016 and 2019 and Skype for Business six additional months to complete migration.
Support for Exchange Server 2016/2019 and Skype for Business was originally set to end on October 14, 2025, just like Windows 10. With two separate posts, Microsoft announces that it is postponing that deadline by six months to April 14, 2026. Companies can subscribe to extended security updates.
The Extended Security Updates program, which Microsoft also offers for Windows, allows you to continue using software for a while after support ends. Microsoft continues to provide regular security updates, but nothing more than that. During extended support, no new features are rolled out and Microsoft no longer offers technical support.
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For a Fee
Nothing is free in life, and extended updates aren’t either. Subscribing to the ESU program comes with costs. Microsoft doesn’t clarify these in the announcements: customers are asked to contact their local Microsoft team. Usually it involves a price per device or user for which support needs to be extended.
Exchange 2019 already reached its end in early 2024. Microsoft already extended support for a fee until October 14, 2025. A year and a half later, many companies still haven’t completed the migration. Microsoft wants to get all Exchange customers on a cloud subscription eventually. Further postponement therefore seems unlikely after April 2026.
Skype was only definitively retired earlier this year. Teams is definitively taking over. The transition is much less straightforward for on-premises customers than for cloud customers, so Microsoft is also granting them some extra time.