The future of on-premises Microsoft Dynamics solutions: should businesses move to the cloud?
March 2026
Microsoft is gradually reducing the number of on-premises products available for purchase as perpetual licenses. This change is driven by modern business requirements: the need to quickly receive security and functional updates, convenient collaboration and integration with the latest technologies, such as artificial intelligence.
The lifecycle of most Microsoft software products is 10 years and includes four stages:
After Microsoft ends all types of support, companies can continue using on-premises versions of Microsoft Dynamics solutions, but this is associated with several risks, including:
- security risks – after the end of the lifecycle, any new vulnerability discovered in the software will remain unresolved permanently;
- compliance and legal risks – for businesses in regulated industries (finance, healthcare, government), using unsupported software is often a direct violation of compliance standards such as GDPR, HIPAA or SOC2. A data breach in a system with EOL (End of Life) status can lead to significant legal penalties and complete loss of customer trust;
- compatibility issues – as the world moves to modern web standards, legacy on-premises systems increasingly face difficulties integrating with latest services such as Outlook, Power BI, and third-party marketing tools, and eventually become nonfunctional as their security protocols exceed the capabilities of outdated server infrastructure.
The table below shows the current support status of legacy on-premises versions of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement (CRM), Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Supply Chain Management.
Product Version | End of Mainstream Support | End of Extended Support | Product Status in 2026 |
Dynamics CRM 2015 | Jan 14, 2020 | Jan 14, 2025 | EXPIRED |
Dynamics CRM 2016 (v8.2) | Jan 12, 2021 | Jan 13, 2026 | EXPIRED |
Dynamics NAV 2016 | April 13, 2021 | April 14, 2026 | Support Ends Soon |
Dynamics NAV 2017 | Jan 11, 2022 | January 11, 2027 | Support Ends Soon |
Dynamics NAV 2018 | Jan 10, 2023 | Jan 11, 2028 | Supported |
Dynamics AX 2012 R3 | October 12, 2021 | January 10, 2023 | EXPIRED |
Dynamics AX 2012 R2 | Oct 9, 2018 | April 12, 2022 | EXPIRED |
Dynamics AX 2012 | Oct 9, 2018 | April 12, 2022 | EXPIRED |
Dynamics AX 2009 | Oct 9, 2018 | April 12, 2022 | EXPIRED |
Should businesses be afraid of the end of support for on-premises Microsoft Dynamics versions? Definitely not, but it is important to be aware of the associated risks and manage IT infrastructure accordingly.
Global consulting companies predict that soon, the use of cloud technologies will become an essential requirement for maintaining business competitiveness. Cloud solutions reduce IT infrastructure maintenance costs, enable faster implementation of innovations, allow efficient management of large volumes of data, as well as ensure cybersecurity, flexibility, and continuity of business processes.
Innoware – a Microsoft Solutions Partner – has been providing implementation and support services for Microsoft Dynamics 365 solutions for almost 25 years and has completed over 500 successful projects for companies of various sizes across 18 countries.
Innoware specialists will help you choose the most cost-effective licensing option, design the optimal architecture, and propose an efficient, well-founded approach for migrating on-premises Microsoft Dynamics ERP/CRM solutions to the cloud.
To receive a consultation regarding the cost and timeline of a project for migrating on-premises Microsoft Dynamics ERP/CRM solutions to the cloud specifically for your company, please contact us by phone +38 044 490 22 20 (UA), +1 (302) 467 2024 (US), or email: cloud@innoware.com
Nataliia Sulzhyk,
Microsoft Volume Licensing Specialist, IT-consultant
INNOWARE USA
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United States
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