Developer Tools Family Product Support Lifecycle FAQ
Microsoft .NET Framework1. The current service pack for the .NET Framework is SP2. Based on the service pack support policy, does Microsoft support SP1 for the .NET Framework? No. The support for the .NET Framework Service Pack 1 (SP1) has already ended. Therefore, SP1 is not covered under the current support policy. However, Microsoft will continue to support the .NET Framework Service Pack 2 (SP2) until either support for the .NET Framework ends or for 12 months after the .NET Framework Service Pack 3 (SP3) is released (if SP3 is created), whichever comes first. 2. Can I request a new hotfix for the previous service pack? Yes. You can request a new hotfix for the previous service pack for one year after the release of the current service pack as per the Microsoft Support Lifecycle policy. Note that Microsoft does not currently support the .NET Framework SP1. As with any hotfix request, Microsoft reserves the right to refuse the hotfix request. 3. What is the support lifecycle for the OracleClient and ODBC .NET data providers that were released as add-ons for the Microsoft .NET Framework 1.0? Developer Tools1. Which developer tools are covered under the new Microsoft Support Lifecycle policy? All the products in the Microsoft Visual Studio .NET product family that were released as of October 15, 2002, and future products will follow this policy. The policy revision went into effect June 1, 2004; it affects most products that were currently in mainstream support at that time, as well as future products. Currently, this includes: Microsoft Visual Studio .NET Professional Microsoft Visual Studio .NET Enterprise Developer Microsoft Visual Studio .NET Enterprise Architect Microsoft Visual Studio .NET Academic Microsoft Visual Basic .NET Standard Microsoft Visual C++ .NET Standard Microsoft Visual C# .NET Standard Microsoft Visual SourceSafe 6.0 Note Microsoft Visual J# .NET will be supported as part of Visual Studio .NET. Currently, there is no Visual J# .NET Standard product. 2. What is the support policy for other version 6.0 products, such as Microsoft Visual C++ 6.0, Microsoft Visual InterDev 6.0, and Microsoft Visual FoxPro 6.0? Microsoft provided mainstream support for Visual InterDev 6.0 and Visual FoxPro 6.0 until the end of September 2003. Extended support for Visual InterDev 6.0 and Visual FoxPro 6.0 will end in September 2004. Mainstream support for Visual C++ 6.0 will end in September 2004. Extended support will end in September 2005. These products are not affected by the Support Lifecycle policy revision of June 1, 2004. 3. Is the support policy that applies to older products and to products that are currently being released valid only if the product was purchased as part of Visual Studio? No. This support policy is valid whether you received the eligible product as part of Visual Studio or separately in any one of its available editions, such as Professional, Enterprise, or Academic. 4. What is the support policy for Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft Commerce Server, Microsoft BizTalk Server, Microsoft Host Integration Server, and Microsoft Windows 2000 Server that are included with Visual Studio .NET? For detailed support policies for all Microsoft products, see the Select a Product for Lifecycle InformationWeb site. 5. What is the support policy for the developer tools SDKs? The support policy for SDKs depends on whether the SDK is installed as part of the Visual Studio installation process. If the SDK is installed by the Visual Studio installation process, the SDK is assumed to be a part of Visual Studio and will follow the same support policy as Visual Studio. If the SDK is included with Visual Studio, but is either not installed as part of the Visual Studio installation process or is available as a separate download, the SDK may not follow the Visual Studio support policy. Microsoft frequently wants to share emerging technology toolkits with customers while the underlying standards are still evolving. In these cases, Microsoft will keep the SDK separate from the Visual Studio installation process and will make a reasonable effort to explicitly specify the support policy for that SDK. The SDK support policy may be shorter than the standard Visual Studio support policy. In summary, any SDKs that are part of the Visual Studio installation process are supported for the full length of the standard Visual Studio support policy. 6. What is the Support Lifecycle policy for component products? Component products, such as Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC), are products that are available as a piece (a component) of other products. Component products have the same support lifecycle as the product that they are included with. For example, MDAC 2.7 is a component of Microsoft Windows XP. Therefore, the support lifecycle for MDAC 2.7 is the same as the support lifecycle for Window XP. 7. Is the support policy for run-time components, such as the Microsoft .NET Framework runtime, different from this policy? The support for run-time components for Visual Studio, such as the .NET Framework, is five years of mainstream support and fiveyears of extended support from the date of their original availability. For the run-time components that are included with anoperating system, the support policy for the runtime components is the same as the support policy of the operating system that they were included with. 8. Will Microsoft support run-time components for an operating system after its extended phase is ended? No, Microsoft will not support the run-time components for an operating system after its extended phase has ended. 9. What is the support policy for a run-time component that was released with an earlier version of an operating system and is released again with a newer version of such operating system? When a run-time component is re-released with a newer version of an operating system, its support policy will be reset to match the policy of the newer version of the operating system. 10. What happens when an operating system update, such as a newer version of Windows, introduces new functionality or data types that were not supported in the original release of a currently supported product? Microsoft provides commercially reasonable support for backward compatibility on new versions of operating systems. However, Microsoft cannot guarantee that a new operating system feature that was introduced exclusively in a new version of an operating system will be supported in the older version of the tool. For example, if a new resource type were added to a new version of Windows, an older version of Visual Studio would not necessarily support that new resource type. 11. Will Microsoft provide a hotfix for an issue that occurs only on an operating system whose extended phase has alreadyended, even if the issue occurs in a supported developer tool or run-time component? Microsoft does not provide hotfixes for unsupported products. However, Microsoft may sometimes be able to provide a workaround ifthe issue occurs in a supported developer tool or runtime on an unsupported operating system. Microsoft will make a commercially reasonable effort to provide a workaround in these cases, but strongly recommends that customers upgrade their operating systems and programs during their supported lifecycle. 12. If a product release specifies that the product requires a specific service pack such as Microsoft Windows NT 4.0SP6, will the product also be supported on earlier service packs such as Windows NT 4.0 SP5? No. The new service pack support policy does not supersede system requirements that are specified for products and tools. 13. What is the support policy for the design-time components? The design-time components of products such as the Microsoft .NET Framework follow the support lifecycle of the developer tool software they were included with. Microsoft SOAP Toolkit1. What is the SOAP Toolkit? Is it supported? All SOAP Toolkits have been replaced by the Microsoft .NET Framework. The .NET Framework provides basic Web service capabilities with COM components and applications. SOAP Toolkit versions prior to 3.0 are no longer supported. Support for SOAP Toolkit 3.0 has been extended beyond the original retirement date of July 1, 2004 to more closely align with the support offered for Visual Studio 6.0. Standard support for SOAP Toolkit 3.0 will now expire March 31, 2005 and extended support will expire April 8, 2008. For the latest information about supported technologies for developing Web services, visit the Web Services Developer Center on the MSDN Web site. To learn about the benefits of building Web services solutions on the .NET Framework and to take advantage of the latest advanced Web services capabilities, read the MSDN articles on migration. Microsoft Web Services Enhancements1. What is the Web Services Enhancements (WSE)? Is it supported? Web Services Enhancements for Microsoft .NET (WSE) is an add-on to Microsoft Visual Studio .NET and the Microsoft .NET Framework. WSE provides a toolkit that developers can use to secure interoperable Web services based on many WS-* specifications such as WS-Security, WS-Addressing, and WS-Policy.Support for WSE is tied to the Support Lifecycle of the Microsoft .NET Framework. This support consists of:
To learn about the benefits of building Web services solutions on the .NET Framework and to take advantage of the latest advanced Web services capabilities, read the MSDN articles on migration. Microsoft Visual Basic1. Microsoft announced a different Support Lifecycle policy for Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0 in April 2002. What happens to that policy now? The support policy for Visual Basic 6.0 will remain as it was announced in April 2002. For more information, visit the Visual Basic 6.0 Product Family Lifecycle Guidelines Web site. Support for the SOAP Toolkit will be retired starting July 1, 2004. For the latest information about supported technologies for developing Web services, visit the Web Services Developer Center on the MSDN Web site. For additional information about the SOAP Toolkit, visit the MSDN Soap Toolkit Web site. 2. How will Visual Basic 6.0 be supported on Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008 and Windows 7? Details on Visual Basic 6.0 support for Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008 and Windows 7 can be found on the MSDN website. For more information please visit: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vbrun/ms788708.aspx. Microsoft Visual C++1. Why did Microsoft decide to extend the Visual C++ 6.0 mainstream support phase by one year instead of keeping the extended support phase for two years? Microsoft decided to extend the mainstream support dates by one year to make continued use of Visual C++ 6.0 easier while customers migrate to the current version of Visual C++ .NET. With this change, customers have an additional year of full support at no extra charge while they are migrating to the current version of Visual C++ .NET.?? Microsoft Visual Studio1. What is the Lifecycle Support policy for the Microsoft Visio for Enterprise Architects product that is included with Visual Studio .NET Enterprise Architect? Support will follow the new support policy because the Visio for Enterprise Architects product is part of a currently released product. 2. How does the Lifecycle Support policy for service packs apply to Visual Studio? There has been no service pack for Visual Studio yet. If Service Pack 1 (SP1) for Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2002 is released, Microsoft will support that service pack under the service pack support policy, and will also support the original release version of Visual Studio .NET 2002, for up to one year after the release of the service pack. If Microsoft releases two service packs for Visual Studio .NET 2002, Microsoft will support SP1 and Service Pack 2 (SP2) for up to one year after the release of SP2 under this policy. For more information about the service pack support policy, visit the Microsoft Support Lifecycle Web site. 3. Does the Lifecycle Support policy for service packs apply to Visual Studio 6.0? No. Microsoft will not support two service packs at the same time for older products such as Visual Studio 6.0. Only Visual Studio .NET 2002 and the .NET Framework are eligible for the new service pack support policy. Microsoft Visual SourceSafe1. I understand that Visual SourceSafe 6.0 has its own Support Lifecycle policy, yet it is also shipped as a part of Visual Studio .NET. Does the Support Lifecycle of Visual SourceSafe 6.0 vary depending on how the product was acquired? How a product was acquired does determine the Support Lifecycle the product will have. For example, if Visual SourceSafe 6.0 was purchased alone, it will follow its own Support Lifecycle policy. If the product was acquired as part of Visual Studio .NET, it will be supported for the life of Visual Studio .NET. |
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Last Review : July 30, 2009
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