Re: Huh?
>Its optional.
Is it?
"you'll need to be a Windows Server Standard or Datacenter user and have Software Assurance, or run Windows Server in Azure."
What MS haven't said is whether this is additional to the normal WS support life or not. So will a customer be able to set up a WS either on-premise or on Azure and run it for 16 years, fully benefiting from MS's bug and security fix service and not have to worry about Semi-annual or LTS updates?
The only real beneficiaries of the Semi-Annual channel are developers who get an early indication of what willis likely to be in the next LTS release and thus develop accordingly and have products available closer to the launch of the LTS that can utilise the new functionality. But then their needs can be catered for via the development build channel. For useful new functionality the out-of-fashion Service Pack or Extension is a much better way of getting new functionality into existing production systems before the next major update; from a production environment viewpoint, you just don't want (or need) the hassle of the Semi-Annual channel and even the LTS.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
