Microsoft Office 2019 is a version of Microsoft for the Windows and MacOS operating systems. Office 2019 replaces Office 2016 and is the second release codenamed Office 16, just like its predecessor Office 2016. Users can use the different types of applications Microsoft Office offers in its software suite. Each of these applications are intended for different purposes, such as preparing documents or making presentations. However, Microsoft's products have an End of Life (EoL) date. After this date, users can still use Office, but it is no longer supported by Microsoft. Which can cause a number of problems. In this article, you can read more about Office 2019's End of Life and what to expect after the End of Life.
Office 2019: Support
A distinction can be made between the two types of support Microsoft offers. For instance, Microsoft offers mainstream and extended support for many of its products. This is also the case with Office 2019. In total, mainstream and extended support both consist of five years, but this differs from product to product. Office 2019 uses mainstream support for the first five years. It is worth noting that this starts right from the release of the product. Microsoft Office was released on 24 September 2018 and so mainstream support starts from this date.
Mainstream support for Office 2019 ended about five years later on 10 October 2023. When the mainstream support applies then the user will get new updates and enhancements during a certain period. The mainstream support for Office 2019 is over, which means it only uses the extended support. With extended support, users will only get security updates.
Office 2019: End of Life
When extended support has also expired, it is called End of Life. After extended support, no more support is offered. For Office 2019, this is the case on 14 October 2025, when extended support will expire. Microsoft will then also no longer offer technical support for the product. So users who are still using Office 2019 today do not yet need to upgrade to a newer version. They only need to do so around the End of Life date, but users can of course choose to upgrade earlier. That way, they can be sure they won't run into any problems and use the latest features. Office 2021, compared to Office 2019, has a number of new features that could improve ease of work. These could increase productivity.
Office 2019: Issues
Users who have a perpetual licence can still use Office 2019, only there is no more support. Microsoft brings versions of its products to an end in order to give users the best possible experience. Microsoft is constantly improving and developing its products. As a result, older versions are slowly coming to an end as they no longer meet current requirements and standards.
Once Office 2019 reaches its End of Life date, your Office data could be affected. For instance, the number of cybercriminals has increased in the past year. With the development of technology, cybercriminals are getting more and more means to enter systems. The cybercriminals are constantly looking for vulnerabilities, with unsupported software being an easy target. It is therefore important to ensure the security of your Office data. Customers can therefore assume that you operate responsibly as an organisation or company. Therefore, make sure you upgrade to a newer version in time to ensure you are not at risk.
Which Office versions are still supported?
Besides Office 2019, there are two other Office versions available. For instance, its predecessor, Office 2016, is also still supported until 14 October 2025. This is the same End of Life date as Office 2019. It is therefore not worth purchasing Office 2016 if you have Office 2019. After all, Office 2016 also has fewer features compared to Office 2019.
There is also Office 2021, which is the most recent version of Microsoft Office. This version still has the mainstream support. Users will get new features and improvements with the mainstream support. Office 2021 also gets security updates. As mentioned earlier, new features or improvements can enhance ease of use, as there may be features that simplify some tasks. However, Office 2021 does not have extended support, meaning Office 2021 will reach its End of Life after the mainstream support. This will take place on 23 October 2026. In fact, Microsoft had planned to focus only on a subscription model, meaning that no more individual licences would be sold. Nevertheless, a new version of Office was recently announced, called Office 2024. This will most likely also be available through licences. Microsoft has since released a preview build, showing new additions and improvements. This will give users a better idea of what to expect.
Read more about Office 2024.
Read more about the differences between Office 2021 vs 2019.
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