Updated 4:13 pm E.S.T. We just finished another lively discussion with quite a few channel partners in the mix to share their opinions on the migration. A special thanks to our guest experts who contributed to the chat. Has your organization started the migration yet? If not, you might want to scroll down and read on why these channel leaders believe you should start now! Tune in to our next Twitter chat on Apr. 30, 12-1 pm E.S.T.!
This summer, Windows Server 2003 is facing its end of extended support date and will no longer be updated or patched by Microsoft. With 40 per cent of Canada’s server install base running on the aged operating system, there’s a huge turnover about to take place as businesses rush to meet compliance standards and avoid security gaps that could put them at risk. Canada’s channel community will play a key role in facilitating the migration to an updated infrastructure and we’re talking about how to capitalize on it.Join us on Mar. 26, 12-1 PM EST on Twitter, at the hashtag #ITWCchats. This chat is part of the exciting build-up to CDN’s Top 100 event on April 15. This chat will be hosted by our @CompDealerNews account.
We’ve got an all star line up of guest experts to give us a channel perspective on migration:
 Anthony Bartolo | Anthony Bartolo, a Technical Evangelist for Microsoft, is responsible for educating and assisting the IT professional community in creating efficiencies and understanding best practices. Anthony accomplishes this through knowledge transfers addressing the enablement of Microsoft offered services within said IT Professionals respected organizations. Anthony regularly conducts conversations on Twitter (@wirelesslife) and frequently submits posts to CANITPRO.NET. |
 John Weigelt | John Weigelt leads Microsoft Canada’s strategic policy and technology efforts. John helps business and governments innovate with technology while avoiding the unintended consequences that might arise. He leads Canadian outreach for economic development, privacy, security, critical infrastructure protection, government 3.0, accessibility, environmental sustainability and interoperability. A strategic thinker with almost 25 years’ experience in cyber assurance, John has contributed to the development of international standards and guidelines, government policies, national strategies, provincial and federal legislation. John will be tweeting from his account @Thumbtackhead. |
 Denis Morozenco | Denis Morozenco is an HP Server & Storage Specialist at Insight Canada. Denis will be tweeting from his account @InsightTSG. |
 Don Bauer | Don Bauer, co-founder of Itergy, is an IT Professional with over fourteen years of experience in the large enterprise IT industry. He currently manages the Solutions Group, and he is acting as a strategic advisor on Identity & Access Management with large corporations and Microsoft. On behalf of some of the largest IT firms in the world, Don has been providing architecture and design consulting services for the last ten years to global enterprise customers. Don will be taking part from his Twitter account @bauerdon. |
Join us on Mar. 26, 12-1 PM EST on Twitter, at the hashtag #ITWCchats. If this is your first time participating, check out this video on how to take part in a Twitter chat. The questions are listed below so you can start thinking about what you might want to tweet about. Hope to see you there and happy tweeting!
Q1 Many businesses in Canada still haven’t migrated. What’s keeping them? #ITWCchats
A1. I think “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” might be the attitude. Even if they know it’s going to be broken come July 1. #ITWCchats
— Brian Jackson (@brianjjackson) March 26, 2015
Q1 Upgrade in enterprise context far different than one in consumer market. To make the investment they need to see clear value #itwcchats
— Jeff Jedras (@JeffJedrasITW) March 26, 2015
A1: For businesses using WS03, the impact of Jul.14 goes beyond the server room & can impact every part of the business #ITWCchats
— John Weigelt (@Thumbtackhead) March 26, 2015
Even if everything works fine and there is no obvious reasons to migrate, the security risk is too big for any business size #ITWCchats
— Deonis Morozenco (@InsightTSG) March 26, 2015
A1 – cost of an upgrade, legacy software, and cost of moving software to a new #server (time, money and downtime) #ITWCchats
— Mat Pancha (@mpancha) March 26, 2015
Q2 The migration will provide a significant sales opportunity for channel partners. How can they capitalize on that? #ITWCchats
To get help with migration, you can always contact your MS partner who will be able to help to develop a healthy upgrade plan #ITWCchats
— Deonis Morozenco (@InsightTSG) March 26, 2015
App modernization presents a great opportunity for partners to build relationships with business application owners vs IT #ITWCchats
— Navantis Inc (@Navantisinc) March 26, 2015
@Navantisinc Indeed. A tremendous opportunity to reimagine your IT (and your business) as you migrate from Windows Server 2003 #ITWCchats
— John Weigelt (@Thumbtackhead) March 26, 2015
A2 The opportunity plays on properly assessing your customers goals/needs. Simply migrating to new ver of server is not enough #itwcchats
— Anthony Bartolo (@WirelessLife) March 26, 2015
A2 – biggest value the channel can provide is education on the end of life and education on cloud options #ITWCchats
— Mat Pancha (@mpancha) March 26, 2015
A2:Innovative ways to migrate with sticky scenarios. Offer ongoing services and planned upgrades to vNext. Provide value #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
Q3 What are the biggest challenges that channel partners face with customers and migration? What can they do to prepare? #ITWCchats
On Q3, support from Microsoft, and most importantly convincing customers who didn’t start yet to get started. #ITWCchats
— Tamer Marzouk (@tamer_marzouk) March 26, 2015
Set expectations around app modernization. Take into effect AD, Fileshares, desktop & browser integration, database impacts,etc #ITWCchats
— Navantis Inc (@Navantisinc) March 26, 2015
Education. Staying always up to date with the latest technologies that affect your business helps with the transition #ITWCchats
— Deonis Morozenco (@InsightTSG) March 26, 2015
I can’t say enough about emphasizing and helping companies realize business benefits of a conversion or any other IT initiative. #ITWCChats
— Jim Love (@CIOJimLove) March 26, 2015
A3 Good time to look at cloud based apps to remove dependency on local resources #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
A3. Data loss and/or compatibility issues with older software versions. #ITWCchats
— Wolston Lobo (@WolstonL) March 26, 2015
Even after u migrate it who will continue to care & feed it long term. Will u be back in the same spot in a few yrs? Buy vs Move? #ITWCchats
— Navantis Inc (@Navantisinc) March 26, 2015
A3 Good time to look at cloud based apps to remove dependency on local resources #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
Q4 What advice would you give to channel partners on tackling the large increase in volume of customers and service demands? #ITWCchats
A4 don’t panic, move slowly, engage professional services where not sure #ITWCchats
— Deonis Morozenco (@InsightTSG) March 26, 2015
On Q4, It is all about communication with customers, …#ITWCchats
— Tamer Marzouk (@tamer_marzouk) March 26, 2015
Take the time to understand what the appl does, who uses it, what the value of it is. Are we spending money on apps no one uses? #ITWCchats
— Navantis Inc (@Navantisinc) March 26, 2015
A4 Amp up marketing efforts and reach out to organizations so they start migration earlier and don’t all come rushing in July #ITWCchats
— Sikandar Aftab (@sikandaraftab) March 26, 2015
A4 – #ITWCchats Partners should plan and build to scale #repeatability & leverage existing tools http://t.co/lsSP3jRdl6
— John Weigelt (@Thumbtackhead) March 26, 2015
A4 Prioritize clients. Make sure that clients with a high lifetime value don’t get short changed in the rush to handle it all. #ITWCchats
— Jim Love (@CIOJimLove) March 26, 2015
A4 Be very prepared. Know your clients and what their challenges will be before having the conversation #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
Q5 What can channel partners do to encourage enterprises to migrate before the deadline? #ITWCchats
Q5. It’s all about awareness. Constant communication with your clients. There is a compelling event coming. #ITWCchats
— Navantis Inc (@Navantisinc) March 26, 2015
A5 If a partner has engaged in proper future proofing w/ their customer, migration should already be part of the plan #ITWCchats
— Anthony Bartolo (@WirelessLife) March 26, 2015
A5- #ITWCchats – Partners can share successful business outcomes of others that have migrated from Windows Server 2003 #OvercomeInertia
— John Weigelt (@Thumbtackhead) March 26, 2015
A5 #ITWCchats Opportunity for Partners to share plan / approach for transformed IT capability and how it provides competitive advantage
— John Weigelt (@Thumbtackhead) March 26, 2015
Q6 Will organizations need to migrate their applications as well? How can channel partners help support this? #ITWCchats
On Q6, this is a major barrier and challenge facing organizations. Here is where most of the complications might arise. #ITWCchats
— Tamer Marzouk (@tamer_marzouk) March 26, 2015
A6:Big YES. Inventory common client apps and setup relationships with app vendors proactively. Setup Win/Win for all #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
A6: if an organization hasn’t already migrated this is why. An app I’d holding them back. #ITWCchats
— Mat Pancha (@mpancha) March 26, 2015
A6 This is why major migrations are no simple thing for a business. You need to ensure all your legacy apps will still work. #ITWCchats
— Jeff Jedras (@JeffJedrasITW) March 26, 2015
Application+ OS+ Hardware of the same technological level= Success! Plan and refresh regularly= Win! #ITWCchats
— Deonis Morozenco (@InsightTSG) March 26, 2015
Q7 What do companies need to consider before upgrading through one migration path versus another? #ITWCchats
A7. Assign value and priority to each application. Focus on what gives you the best return on your money and effort. #ITWCchats
— Navantis Inc (@Navantisinc) March 26, 2015
A7:Consider if in-place upgrade or side-by-side better. Usually new install works best. Look at supportability vs. speed #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
A7 Also consider moving to IaaS solution for easy hosting and migration #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
A7. It’s a great opportunity to start or expand Consolidation and virtualization investment. #ITWCchats http://t.co/DYnA9guVRm
— Navantis Inc (@Navantisinc) March 26, 2015
A7 Might be a good time for companies to consider where they can use cloud services, can they unburden their servers? #ITWCchats
— Brian Jackson (@brianjjackson) March 26, 2015
A7 The only way I ever find out which migration path will work best is to pilot. #ITWCchats
— Jim Love (@CIOJimLove) March 26, 2015
Q8 Do you predict that the majority of Canadian enterprises will migrate by July 14? If they don’t, do they face any penalties? #ITWCchats
A8 Penalties from who, the software police? I doubt most will have migrated. See Vista, Windows #ITWCchats
— Jeff Jedras (@JeffJedrasITW) March 26, 2015
A8:Most won’t. Penalty will be with clients when they have security breaches. Find out obligations client have to their clients #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
A8: Given past history all too many will not migrate by the deadline even if it means some fall out of compliance. Sad by true. #ITWCchats
— Jim Love (@CIOJimLove) March 26, 2015
A8 No support after July 14th will be a compliancy issue for some. Something to consider. #ITWCchats
— Anthony Bartolo (@WirelessLife) March 26, 2015
A8: @jeffjedrasITW I’m with you. Even a few years ago there were still some Windows 95 implementations on desktops. #ITWCchats
— Jim Love (@CIOJimLove) March 26, 2015
Q9 With the impending migration, is this a better time than any for businesses to move to cloud that haven’t? Why or why not? #ITWCchats
A9 Absolutely. Doesn’t necessarily mean cloud is right for everyone, but its the perfect time to explore and revisit your options #itwcchats
— Richard Boelens (@Rboelens) March 26, 2015
A9 Hybrid cloud deployments are getting more common #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
A9: It may be a better time to move to the cloud – but people still need to do their homework. #ITWCchats
— Jim Love (@CIOJimLove) March 26, 2015
A9. Moving to the cloud allows you to build a parallel environment so that u can plan your move properly. #ITWCchats http://t.co/oHv7Q5lCWu
— Navantis Inc (@Navantisinc) March 26, 2015
A9 W/ #Mobility now being the norm, having the tools to securely enable benefits the org as a whole #ITWCchats
— Anthony Bartolo (@WirelessLife) March 26, 2015
A9 Last year would probably have been a better time. It’s a good time for partners to make the pitch though; ticking clock helps #ITWCchats
— Jeff Jedras (@JeffJedrasITW) March 26, 2015
Q10 What are the benefits of upgrading to a more modern server OS? What challenges arise by not upgrading? #ITWCchats
A10:Security reliability performance. Lack of security will be biggest challenge of not upgrading #ITWCchats
— Donald Bauer (@bauerdon) March 26, 2015
A10: Support is the only benefit sometimes and for many that might be it (especially #SMB) #ITWCchats
— Mat Pancha (@mpancha) March 26, 2015
Q10 #ITWCChats Modern OS – Better management, agility, security and productivity. Old OS – Less secure, less manageable and not agile
— John Weigelt (@Thumbtackhead) March 26, 2015
A10. Upgrading to the current version of anything is of NO value, unless you leverage the new features. #notlikeforlike #ITWCchats
— Navantis Inc (@Navantisinc) March 26, 2015
A10 Have plan based on your business needs and app compatibility. Consider 3rd party after life support if you need more time #ITWCchats
— Jeff Jedras (@JeffJedrasITW) March 26, 2015
One key piece.. Just because #microsoft stopped supporting #Server2003 doesn’t mean IT partners have stopped supporting it. #ITWCchats
— Mat Pancha (@mpancha) March 26, 2015