US-CERT issued an alert on Monday, warning all users that Microsoft is ending support for the Windows Server 2003 operating system on July 14, 2015.
Security patches that aid in protecting against malware and other new threats, assisted technical support from Microsoft, and software and content updates will no longer be available following the end of support date, according to the alert, which cautioned that running unsupported software exposes users to attacks and data loss.
“Users may also encounter problems with software and hardware compatibility since new software applications and hardware devices may not be built for Windows Server 2003,” the alert indicated.
Users can upgrade to currently supported operating systems or other cloud-based services, and software vendors and service providers are available to assist in the migration, according to the alert.
