The end of support for Windows Server 2003 is the perfect time to help your customers innovate and adopt not only the benefits that come from Windows Server 2012 R2, but also the move into the cloud within a hybrid environment. It also opens up numerous opportunities spanning hardware as well as application upgrades and development.
This page is designed to make you aware of the rich set of features and capabilities available to help you meet your customers’ changing needs. It is organized in four steps: Discover, Assess, Target, and Migrate.
Before you get started, read the following Forrester report and review the datasheet to find out more about the benefits of upgrading to Windows Server 2012 and other Microsoft Cloud Services.
Partners can now provide Microsoft with their list of offers and tools as they relate to Windows Server 2003 end of support so that they can be surfaced within the new Microsoft Migration Planning Assistant (MMPA) online tool. This tool allows customers to identify the workloads that need to be migrated, and then provides a report listing the tools and locally available partner offers that can assist in migration efforts.
Partners must send the Microsoft Migration Planning Assistant tool team (MMPA@microsoft.com) the completed MMPA partner offer entry form so that all offers can be surfaced to customers.
Start migrating
If you are already familiar with the migration process and assets, get started with the Windows Server 2003 Modernization workshop. This online workshop helps you and your customers migrate and modernize your Windows 2003 server with Microsoft Azure or Windows Server 2012 R2.
Get started
Review these assets so you can better explain and market the importance of migrating to Windows Server 2012 or a hybrid solution to your customers. Among the assets are planning toolkits, process information, marketing material, and supplementary research on why migrating is important to the sustainability and growth of their business.
IDC white paper: Why You Should Get Current
Explore Windows migration options and the benefits associated with a modernization effort. The white paper also evaluates the risks customers face if they do not migrate their technology.
Read the white paper
ModernBiz marketing material
Show your customers the importance of migrating from Windows Server 2003 with these ModernBiz marketing materials. This includes partner readiness material and to-partner pitch decks, email templates, brochures, and more.
Microsoft assessment and planning toolkit
Make it easy to assess your current IT infrastructure for a variety of technology migration projects. This Solution Accelerator provides a powerful inventory, assessment, and reporting tool to simplify the migration planning process.
Download the toolkit
Windows Server 2003 roles migration process
Categorize platforms through discovery, planning, and assessment then choose one of the platform methods to establish an adequate migration plan.
Review the migration process
TechEd 2014 demo: Infrastructure Migration
Dive into the details of migrating your infrastructure to the latest operating system. This includes how to migrate various workloads and foundation services like DHCP, DNS, File/Print, and more.
Watch the demo
Build a hybrid cloud solution for customers
Become familiar with Microsoft Azure solutions and how you can implement a Microsoft Azure Hybrid Solution within your own organization then provide the same service for your customers.
Get started
Design the Hybrid Cloud
Attend this online workshop to develop cloud strategies by building and enhancing your hybrid cloud readiness to deploy Microsoft Cloud Platform solutions for your customers.
Learn more
Now that you have leveraged the discovery assets, it is time to assess your customer’s current technology landscape. Learn how to categorize applications and workloads by type, importance, and degree of complexity with the following resources.
Assessment and Planning Experience (APEx)
Use APEx to help your customer perform an assessment of their IT environment including an analysis of the Windows Server products they own. APEx provides Microsoft sellers and partners with discussion guides, datasheets, sales guides, an online WorkSpace, and an Analyzer application with summary charts and tables to help customers understand the results of their assessment and plan for the product upgrades and IT estate modifications they need to meet their business goals.
Learn how to use APEx with your customers and get started today
Re-architect your infrastructure with Windows Server 2012 and Microsoft System Center 2012
This technical architecture discussion covers each of your critical system components and how you can redesign what you have now to be ready for the future.
Get started
Reimagine and migrate your active directory
Learn how to restructure your Active Directory design to be more efficient by leveraging virtualized and automated DC deployment with DC cloning.
Watch the video
Networking infrastructure and management
This four-part series discusses not only what can be done to re-architect what you have now, but also shows you how to do it.
Watch the video
File servers and storage options
This demo-heavy session shows you what is possible in this new world of storage and file servers as well as provides details on how to implement and migrate to these solutions.
Learn more
Upgrade your apps
As you upgrade your Windows Server 2003 environment, don't forget about the apps. Consider updating your overall platform to get the best database capabilities. Explore your app migration options with the following SQL resources.
Choose a migration destination for each application and workload, either in the datacenter or in the cloud. Not sure which product or solution to choose? Leverage trial subscriptions to determine which option best fits your customer’s needs.
Product trials
Your customers should now be ready to migrate to Windows Server 2012 or a hybrid solution. Now is the time to help them build a migration plan. These resources will help you do just that and more.
Microsoft deployment toolkit
A unified collection of tools, processes, and guidance for automating desktop and server deployments.
Download the toolkit
Windows Server 2003 modernization workshop
This online workshop helps you and your customers migrate and modernize your Windows 2003 server with Microsoft Azure or Windows Server 2012 R2.
Learn how
Windows Server 2012 migration training
This short video covers the entire process of upgrading to Windows Server 2012.
Start migrating
Move to Hybrid Cloud with System Center and Microsoft Azure Jump Start
An end-to-end video training that covers the process and key topics associated with implementing a Microsoft hybrid cloud solution.
Get started
Review and leverage additional resources for more information around migrating your customers to Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter or the cloud.
Server and cloud blog
Stay up-to-date on best practices by following the Server and Cloud blog.
Visit the blog