Categories
Uncategorized

Blast from the past: Connectix Virtual PC

Another interesting find in my effort to cover at least one customer and partner challenge or issue per day

Over the weekend I did a little spring cleaning and came across a number of old application floppies (yes, applications used to come distributed on floppy discs). One of the discs I came across was the Virtual PC: Microsoft acquired the virtual machine systems via Connectix back in 2003 (details here) for Macintosh and Windows computers. Although the product is no longer generally supported, there are still several references and support documents available here on the Microsoft support site, as well as information here on TechNet.

Today, you can find our more about how the technology has evolved into support available on Windows 7 (in the Professional and Ultimate SKUs) with Windows XP Mode and Windows Virtual PC here on Microsoft.com.

 

Tags: Microsoft, how to, customer support, Microsoft Product List 2010, feedback, customer service, Virtual PC.

Clubhouse Tags: Clubhouse, how-to, customer service.

Delicious Bookmark this on Delicious Bookmark and Share

Also available via http://bit.ly/asm7bk

Categories
Uncategorized

Your questions: Windows Essential Business Server 2008 (EBS2008) was discontinued… what are my options?

Windows Essential Business Server 2008


From Daniel… timely in my effort to cover at least one customer and partner challenge or issue per day



“I read the news today… EBS2008 [Windows Essential Business Server] was discontinued… what are my options?”


The news in question is from this post on the Essential Business Server blog



Today, we announced the decision to streamline our server product portfolio and will discontinue future development of EBS, effective June 30th, 2010.


Since the launch of EBS, several changes have occurred that drove our decision to streamline our server product portfolio. First, midsize businesses are rapidly turning to technologies such as management, virtualization and cloud computing as a means to cut costs, improve efficiency, and increase competitiveness. Those capabilities are already available through other offerings, including Windows Server 2008 R2, Microsoft System Center and the Microsoft Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS).


This information is taken from the EBS 2008 FAQ page


2008 Discontinuation of Future Development


Q. I just bought EBS 2008.  Should I stop deploying it or move to another set of products?


A. There is no reason why you cannot or should not move forward and deploy it. Microsoft will continue to support EBS 2008 through the normal product lifecycle.  EBS 2008 is a suite that includes several individual products, each with different support lifecycles. So support will last through 2017 for some components and through 2018 for others. For more detailed information on the lifecycle for the EBS 2008 suite, customers can go to the Microsoft Support site.  If you acquired EBS 2008 with OEM hardware, contact the manufacturer of your server hardware that came with EBS 2008 for the OEM’s support policies.


Q. If I am an existing EBS 2008 customer, what happens now?


A. Your EBS 2008 product will still receive support through the normal product life cycle.  Because EBS 2008 is a suite that includes several individual products, each with different support lifecycles, support will last through 2017 for some components and through 2018 for others. For more detailed information on the lifecycle for the EBS 2008 suite, customers can go to the Microsoft Support site.  If you acquired EBS with OEM hardware, contact the manufacturer of your server hardware that came with EBS for the OEM’s support policies. 


Next, we recognize that discontinuing EBS could result in additional cost and complexity for customers when they decide to upgrade.  Because of this we are going to provide a one-time limited offer for all EBS 2008 customers.  Beginning on June 30, 2010 until December 31, 2010, current EBS 2008 customers can get most of the individual component software from the suite for free (local taxes, shipping and handling charges may apply).  This means EBS 2008 customers can get copies of Windows Server 2008 Standard, Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Standard and Microsoft System Center Essentials 2007. To learn more about this offer, EBS customers should visit the EBS Promotions and Offers page.


Q. What are you doing for EBS Volume Licensing customers who purchased Software Assurance?


A. EBS customers who purchased Software Assurance will be able to take advantage of the same offer listed above and will also receive next versions of individual software products from the suite.  For EBS 2008 Standard customers, those products include: Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard, Exchange Server 2010 Standard, System Center Essentials Standard 2010 and Forefront Threat Management Gateway 2010.  EBS 2008 Premium customers who have purchased Software Assurance will also be entitled to SQL Server 2008 R2 Standard edition. 


Q. Will I be able to purchase more CALs for EBS 2008?


A. Yes, customers can continue to purchase EBS 2008 CALs from either the Microsoft Volume Licensing program or through Microsoft partners. 


Q. I have been an EBS partner, what should I recommend to my customers now?


A. Windows EBS was based off the Core IO model.  Partners can still implement the Core IO model by implementing standalone products according to the capability maturity model by workload of Core IO.    For more details on Core IO, please visit the Core Infrastructure page of the Partner Sales Resources site.  


More Questions? You can email the team at askEBS.



Added 030510: For additional commentary and views see these posts…



Tags: Microsoft, how to, customer support, Microsoft Product List 2010, feedback, customer service, EBS 2008.


Clubhouse Tags: Clubhouse, how-to, customer service.


Delicious Bookmark this on Delicious Bookmark and Share


 


Also available via http://bit.ly/9pW32R

Categories
Uncategorized

Your questions: What are the support options for Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio Concurrency and Coordination Runtime (CCR) and Decentralized Software Service (DSS) Toolkit 2008? (Whew!)

Microsoft Office Clip ArtToday I continue the effort to cover at least one customer and partner challenge or issue per day … Turns out I wasn’t far off in my estimate of current supported products. Thanks to Jared I have the current list of in-support products we have today, most noted on the Microsoft Lifecycle support Information site.

Ignoring the various versions (e.g. Service Pack 1, 2 and 3, I’ll look at the latest supported SP), I’ll pass by the Alacris Identity Validation Server/Client and look today at the Concurrency and Coordination Runtime and Decentralized Software Service Toolkit 2008 (aka, thankfully, "CCR and DSS Toolkit 2008 R2" ;).

The CCR and DSS Toolkit delivers a set of .NET and Compact Framework class libraries and tools that enable developers to better deal with the inherent complexities in creating loosely-coupled concurrent and distributed applications. (More info on the Toolkit is available here.)

It’s designed to help developers take advantage of the CCR and DSS, originally released as part of Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio (Microsoft RDS), a Windows-based environment for academic, hobbyist, and commercial developers to easily create robotics applications across a wide variety of hardware. The CCR and DSS Toolkit targets early adopters by providing access to select technologies today, transitioning to Microsoft’s .NET Framework in the future.

You can see the various support options here on the CCR and DSS support page, including these support forums on MSDN:

You can also get Assisted Support via a Microsoft Support Professional; MSDN Subscribers can contact a Microsoft Support Professional using an incident provided with their subscription.

Or, if you need Worldwide support for CCR and DSS, you can find worldwide support resources here.

 

Tags: Microsoft, how to, customer support, Microsoft Product List 2010, feedback, customer service, CCR, DSS, Toolkit, Robotics.

Clubhouse Tags: Clubhouse, how-to, customer service, CCR, DSS, Toolkit, Robotics.

Delicious Bookmark this on Delicious Bookmark and Share

Also available via http://bit.ly/9Xhm38

Categories
Uncategorized

Your questions: “Will you answer questions on any Microsoft product? How long does Microsoft support their products?”

Diane asks…

"Will you answer questions on any Microsoft product? How long do you [I assume she means Microsoft] support the products?" 

Sure, I’ll try to provide answers and of resources available for the product line. This is not a replacement for our support system for products that are currently supported (aka in mainstream support) — which I might add is really an incredible machine when you consider the breadth. It’s more of an attempts to cover all of our various products and provide information of where you can get support, such as assisted support, updates, hotfixes and more.

Clip Art from Microsoft Office OnlineAs for how long we support our products, that depends on the product.

First there’s "mainstream support." What’s that? Glad you asked.

See Jared’s post on technet

For all products, the Microsoft Support Lifecycle policy begins with the Mainstream Support phase.  In this phase, we are able to provide all of the standard support services that Microsoft offers.  For example, in-the-box support, paid incident support, design change requests, non-security hotfixes, security updates and online self-help support may all be available during the Mainstream Support phase.
Consumer products that are released annually are provided a total of 3 years of Mainstream Support.  Some examples of these are Microsoft Money, Encarta, Streets & Trips, etc.

For the rest of Consumer, Hardware and Business & Developer products, the Mainstream Support phase is provided for a minimum of 5 years or 2 years after the successor product is released, whichever is longer.

At the end of the Mainstream Support phase, support for Consumer products comes to an end.  Business & Developer products, on the other hand, are provided a minimum of another 5 years of support in the Extended Support phase.

When it comes to direct customer support, your options may vary. For example, support for our Windows is available to users directly )phone, email) from Microsoft for the first 90 days at no charge, but your computer OEM (aka Original Equipment Manufacturer) – the likes of Acer, Asus, Dell HP, Gateway, Panasonic and more – may offer a year of free support (or more!) through their support lines. Users of products like Microsoft Office get the first 90 days of support for free, too. YMMV depending on the product.

There are also our free support forums (like Microsoft Answers, metioned yesterday), a community-based support site where you can ask and answer questions, or just browse other’s answers.

Then there’s Extended Support, as Jared discussed in his post on the end of support for Windows 2000 and Extended Support phase transition for Windows Server 2003. (This support extends primarily to business customers that license our software directly.)

If you missed my last post, we recently discussed the upcoming end of support for Windows Vista with no service packs installed and Windows XP SP2. In a similar vein, in this post I want to discuss support transitions that will primarily impact our enterprise customers.

First, let’s discuss the upcoming changes for Windows 2000. All editions of Windows 2000 will reach the end of the Extended Support phase on July 13, 2010. This will be the end of support for Windows 2000.

As you may recall, at the end of the Extended Support phase, Business & Developer products are no longer publicly supported, although Self-Help Online support (such as Microsoft online Knowledge Base articles, FAQs, troubleshooting tools, and other resources) will be available for a minimum of 12 months after the product reaches the end of its support. This means that there is no more paid support, no support assistance and no further security updates. Due to this, customers are highly encouraged to move to a supported product as soon as possible.

After Extended support, Microsoft offers custom support that "may include assisted support and hotfix support, and may extend beyond 10 years from the date a product becomes generally available. Strategic Microsoft partners may also offer support beyond the Extended Support phase. Customers and partners can contact their account team or their local Microsoft representative for more information."

For more on this and the support options, visit the Microsoft Support Lifecycle Policy FAQ page.

 

Tags: Microsoft, customer support, feedback, customer service, Microsoft Product List 2010.

Clubhouse Tags: Clubhouse, how-to, customer service

Delicious Bookmark this on Delicious Bookmark and Share

Also available at http://bit.ly/9Ed8Lb (030210: corrected link)

Categories
Uncategorized

Your questions: “Will Office 2003 work with Windows 7?”

win7o11On today’s WSJ.com in Mossberg’s Mailbox from Nov. 18, 2009 on the allthingsd.com/ site (the blog where venerable technology columnist Walt Mossberg answers readers’ questions) Mr. Mossberg answers several reader questions, including one on Microsoft Office 2003 and Windows 7.  This must be a popular topic, because I received emails this week (thanks, April and Josh) with essentially the same question.

Q: Will Office 2003 work with the new Windows 7 operating system?

A: Microsoft, which makes both products, says the answer is yes, though I haven’t tested it.

I have. It works. I used it until recently at home (one machine recently moved to Office 2007). But you want more than anecdotal information from me.

Well, there’s a web page for that ;).

As I initially reported here, you can find more information on the Microsoft Windows 7 Compatibility Center. Perhaps folks could include a reference to this helpful site when wondering online about Windows 7 application compatibility (aka "appcompat" at Microsoft). Just a thought.

With respect to Office 2003, we have tested it and you can see the results for yourself on the Windows 7 Compatibility Center, specifically on these pages for the Office 2003 Suites (and be sure to get Office 2003 Service Pack 3 provides the latest updates).

atd101309 You can get information on more products on the Windows 7 Compatibility Center, and by using the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor. A few weeks ago, Katie Boehret (a reporter for the Wall Street Journal who pens the weekly Mossberg Solution column), talked about this Windows 7 Upgrade Made Easy just before we released Windows 7 on October 22:

"Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor Beta [my note: it’s released now], Microsoft’s own tool, analyzes what will and won’t work properly when the newest version of Windows installs."

More info: if you’ve got questions about Windows 7, look thru the posts from community experts on the Microsoft Answers site about Windows 7 (in 11 languages!) at http://bit.ly/ZbSp6.

 

Tags: Windows Vista, what I read, twitter, Microsoft, Windows 7, FAQ, your questions.

Clubhouse Tags: Clubhouse, how-to, upgrade, Windows 7, Office.

Delicious Bookmark this on Delicious Bookmark and Share

Also available via http://bit.ly/4itwVB