What is General Support?

General Support commences when a product is released, and continues for a minimum of 5 years for Operating Systems and 3 years for Applications and Software Services (for more details, refer to a specific product on the main Product Support Lifecycle page). During the General Support phase of the product support lifecycle, the purchase of maintenance includes product upgrades and updates, technical support, and software patches and fixes.

Additional support options are available for purchase, such as assigned Premium Service Engineers and Account Management. See Premium Service for more information.

What is Extended Support?

Extended Support is intended to be an interim solution for customers who are moving to the most current version of a product, but need additional time to make the transition.

When General Support ends, we may offer Extended Support for an additional two years. The combined duration of General Support and Extended Support will be for a minimum of 7 years for Operating Systems and a minimum of 5 years for Applications and Software Services. During a product's Extended Support phase, customers continuing to pay maintenance on the current version of the product may purchase an Extended Support Service Request package for installation and configuration technical support. See the Extended Support Service Request Package for more information.

What is Self-Support?

Self-Support includes free and some fee-based resources and is available for ten years from the start of General Support. Find out what Self-Support options are available.

What software patches and fixes are available during General Support?

During the General Support phase, We will make available to maintenance customers software defect resolution in the form of support packs, patches, or field test files. Defects are evaluated and prioritized to ensure the most critical issues are remedied. Maintenance customers may continue to receive technical support on any support pack while their product version is in the General Support lifecycle phase. As part of the resolution of an issue, however, customers may be asked to upgrade to a support pack with defect support.

Customers may also request new or enhanced product features during the General Support phase. As a product moves through its lifecycle, customers should expect us to be significantly more discriminating when evaluating software defects and enhancement requests.

How long may I expect defect support on a support pack?

We provides defect support for support packs for one year after the release date of the current support pack. For example, Product A SP2 was released in October 2011. Product A SP3 was released in December 2012. Product A SP2 will have defect support through December 2013, one year after Product A SP3 became available.

Maintenance customers may continue to receive technical support on any support pack while their product version is in the General Support lifecycle phase. As part of the resolution of an issue, however, customers may be asked to upgrade to a support pack with defect support.

What software patches and fixes are available during Extended Support?

During the Extended Support phase, we will continue to make available critical security updates for maintenance customers who have purchased Extended Support. Other software patches and fixes may be provided if we deem appropriate and strategic. Additional software patches and fixes may also be available on a fee basis. During the Extended Support phase, We will not accept requests for warranty support, design changes, new or enhanced product features. As a product moves through its lifecycle, customers should expect us to be significantly more discriminating when evaluating software defects and enhancement requests.

If I already pay maintenance, do I need to purchase Extended Support for my older products?

Yes, if the older version product has moved from the General to the Extended Support phase, you must purchase an Extended Support Service Request Pack in order to receive technical support. The Extended Support Service Request Pack allows customers to receive technical support on the older product for a longer period of time as they complete their transition to the current version. To qualify, you must have maintenance for the current version of the product.

To see if Extended Support is available for your product, see the Product Support Lifecycle web site. For more information and pricing, see the Extended Support Service Request Package.

If I am a partner, do I need to purchase Extended Support for older products?

The support we provide through partner programs such as PartnerNet is intended for products that are in the General Support phase. Partners who need support for products beyond the General Support phase will need to purchase Extended Support. See the Extended Support Service Request Package for more information and pricing.

If I have multiple products, do they all share the same Product Support Lifecycle schedule?

The Product Support Lifecycle is designed to be consistent by product categorization and by product family. However, there may be some exceptions to the guidelines. For this reason, it is important to verify product support lifecycle schedules posted on the Product Support Lifecycle web site.

What does "Current Version" in the Product Support Lifecycle schedule mean?

"Current Version" is the latest released product version for the product listed in the “Product Release” column. We recommend our that customers make reasonable efforts to be on the current version of their products.

What does "Replacement Product" in the Product Support Lifecycle schedule mean?

"Replacement Product" is the current product which replaces the product listed in the “Product Release” column of the lifecycle status page.