The third and final year of Extended Security Updates for Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2 ended on October 13, 2026. There is nothing left to buy. How to contain the servers still running it, and the fastest ways off: in-place upgrade, rebuild, AWS's End-of-Support Migration Program, or retirement.
Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2 left extended support in October 2023. Microsoft then sold three years of Extended Security Updates, and the last of those ended on October 13, 2026. Unlike Windows Server 2016 in January, there is no paid option left. Every vulnerability found from now on stays open.
Book a free 30-minute call. You'll leave knowing what we'd do first and roughly what it costs, whether or not you hire us.
Remove any inbound internet access. No public IP addresses, no direct RDP; use Systems Manager Session Manager or Fleet Manager for administration.
Restrict security groups to exactly the clients and ports the application needs.
Take the servers out of the domain's privileged paths: no domain admin logons, no shared service accounts with rights elsewhere.
Monitor them closely (GuardDuty for the account, endpoint protection on the servers), and back them up so a compromise is recoverable.
Once a month: what changed in tech that month and what it means for you, from cloud and AI to security and the tools you build with. Every item links to its source. No sales pitch, unsubscribe in one click.
Book a free 30-minute call about it. Bring your setup and your bill; you'll leave knowing what we'd do first and roughly what it costs, whether or not you hire us.
Or keep reading
Windows Server 2016 End of Support (January 12, 2027): Your Options on AWS
Windows Server 2016 stops receiving security updates on January 12, 2027, and IIS 10 and .NET Framework 4.6.2 on it go with it. In-place upgrade, ESUs through Azure Arc, AWS's End-of-Support Migration Program, containers or Linux: the cost, effort and licensing traps of each on EC2.
Read
.NET Framework 4.6.2 End of Life Is January 12, 2027, and .NET 8 Ended November 10, 2026: Getting to .NET 10
.NET 8 and .NET 9 both lost support on November 10, 2026. .NET Framework 4.6.2 ends with Windows Server 2016 on January 12, 2027. What to do with each, what ports cleanly to .NET 10 and what does not (Web Forms, WCF, Workflow Foundation), and how AWS Transform changes the cost.
Read
As of October 25, 2026. Provided as is, for general information, and accurate to the best of our knowledge on the date shown. Not legal, compliance, tax, financial or other professional advice. Prices, limits and vendor services change; check current vendor documentation before relying on anything here. Terms of use.