Microsoft Malaysia on life after NT4

16.11.2004
Von Justin Then

It?s said that all good things must come to and end. And this applies aptly to Microsoft Corp.?s Window NT 4 operating system. Launched in 1996 as the company?s first product for the enterprise IT space, NT 4 has certainly served its master and the user community well. In fact, NT 4 can be credited as the first product that gave Microsoft credibility in the enterprise IT environment.

Although the technology behind NT 4 is now eight years old, many organizations still have NT 4 deployed within their IT infrastructure. This is despite the fact that Microsoft has, since NT 4?s introduction, released two other server operating systems -- Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003.

But by the end of this year, Microsoft will officially cease all support for NT 4. Support for NT 4 was supposed to end in 2002, but the company had actually extended the support period on two occasions since then, says Ali Jaleel, group manager for server platform solutions at Microsoft Malaysia.

?The reason why we extended the support period twice for NT 4 users was because we wanted to make sure that they are ready to move to a new operating system,? he says. ?We wanted to make sure there is a clear migration path for them and that there is enough time for them to port legacy applications where possible. And we think the time is now right.?

The natural path for NT 4 users would be to migrate to Windows Server 2003 (or for smaller businesses, Small Business Server 2003), and Ali says that Microsoft is committed to help customers take that step. In an interview with Computerworld Malaysia, Ali explains the details of the migration plans, as well as the challenges and opportunities ahead for NT 4 users.

Computerworld: There are still quite a number of Windows NT 4 users, despite its end of life for support from Microsoft by the end of the year. What?s keeping the Windows NT 4 base going?

Ali: Windows NT 4 has served customers well for many years. But it?s certainly not designed to cater to today?s IT needs, especially if you talk about a more global approach to IT and a more web service-centric environment. There have been many advances in technology since NT 4 was first launched.

Some users are still using it because they employ it as a file and print server or as a storage server, which is a very rudimentary use of a server operating system. Because NT 4 is still serving them well in these aspects, this group of users therefore feel that they don?t need to move on to a new server technology. However, we believe these users have yet to be exposed to new technologies that Microsoft has introduced, which could give them more capabilities to do more things using less time.

Another reason why users are still using NT 4 is that they are still running legacy applications on it. It may be very painful for them to move away from NT 4 because they may not be able to port their existing applications over to the new platform, which in this case is Windows Server 2003. They have to consider the time, effort and expense required in rewriting the application?s codes. Or it could be because the ISV who developed and sold the legacy application is no longer around to support them in migrating to a new platform.

CW: What is Microsoft doing then to help these users migrate from NT 4 to Windows Server 2003?

Ali: To help users migrate to the new platform, we have two strategies. Each is targeted at different groups of users. For those who are still using NT 4 for file and print services, for instance, we are running awareness campaigns, seminars, and other events to introduce to them the myriad technology capabilities and opportunities that are available in Windows Server 2003 that NT 4 can?t handle.

We want to explain to them that today?s IT environment is all about things like collaboration, web access, remote access, web authentication, support for wireless technologies and better security protocols. These are just some of the things that Windows Server 2003 can deliver and NT 4 cannot.

We are also charting a migration path for those who are running legacy applications on NT 4 and have plans to continue to do so. We?ve organized many technical hands-on lab sessions for these customers to show them how they can have NT 4 and Windows Server 2003 coexist on a single hardware platform.

Basically, we?re advising them to run a new hardware by installing Windows Server 2003. They can then install Microsoft Virtual Server on top of this and then run NT 4 as a guest operating system on the new hardware. So, while they are still running old applications, they can also at the same time explore what the new hardware and Windows Server 2003 can do for them.

We also have tools for customers who actually want to port their applications over to Windows Server 2003. The Microsoft Application Compatibility Toolkit 3.0, which is a free download, is one such example. It helps them make legacy applications compatible to run on the new operating system. For those applications that can?t be ported, they can continue to run them on NT4, on top of Microsoft Virtual Server.

CW: Was Virtual Server designed specifically for this purpose of letting NT 4 and old applications run on top of Windows Server 2003?

Ali: Virtual Server is actually designed to do two things. One is to help NT 4 users migrate their legacy applications and NT 4 to a new hardware, running on top of Virtual Server and Windows Server 2003.

The other is to help customers with server consolidation, but this is also very much linked to the first purpose. For example, some customers may have four or five NT 4 machines now, and what we can do with Virtual Server is help them consolidate those servers into maybe 2 or 3 new servers running Windows Server 2003.

Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 is therefore a very important component for this migration process to help customers maintain their legacy applications. It actually allows for an integrated and consolidated scenario where a single piece of hardware can run multiple operating systems and multiple applications.

CW: Do you see Linux attacking the NT 4 base? That could mean Microsoft losing market share. How does Microsoft see this?

Ali: Of course, there will always be competitive threats. Microsoft as an organization has always thrived on a challenge. We believe in producing the best technology that has the most value for the customer. In the end, it is the customer that decides on what he or she feels is best for them.

The platform value that we offer today is great enough for a customer to realize the worth of making the switch from NT 4 to Windows Server 2003. Even on the total cost of ownership as validated by third parties, we outshine open source. So there is definite value in staying with the Windows platform (studies can be referred to at www.microsoft.com/getthefacts).

Being a server market leader is a testimony of the robustness of our platform. We are confident about our technology and are willing to face competition and win based on value. We have no plans on losing any market share and are engaging with our existing customers to help them undertake the migration journey.

CW: Why is it more of a challenge to move NT 4 users in the SMB segment to a new operating system as opposed to customers in larger enterprises?

Ali: With SMBs, typically their rate of IT usage and spending level is lower. Also, their IT requirements tend to be simpler when compared with larger enterprises. Hence, NT 4 suited them well and is, to a certain extent, still useful and relevant for their IT environment.

Having said that, I think it?s very important for us to make these users understand that there is a lot more that they can do with a server operating system today. They should really consider all the new technologies and opportunities that Windows Server 2003 offers. For instance, NT 4 is just not equipped to deal with today?s security issues such as blended threats. In addition, NT 4 requires at least 50 per cent more time and resources to manage a network. There is also limited support for wireless access, and smart-card authentication is not supported at all by NT 4. And the list goes on.

That?s why we are really encouraging the smaller businesses to look at Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003. For companies with 10 to 15 users currently on NT 4, Small Business Server 2003 is the perfect package for them at less than 2,000 ringgit (US$527).

We will continue to assist organizations with their migration plans. To date, we have more than 2,000 Microsoft business partners trained to help customers migrate from NT 4 to Windows Server 2003. We are also making sure that partners engage customers in hands-on labs so that customers know what new features in Windows Server 2003 can be used for their business advantage. Apart from that, we are also offering a discount to end users so that they will find it more cost effective to move to Windows Server 2003