What to do when support for the Server version is over?

A change is coming for the users of Atlassian systems. The producer announced that support for Atlassian products in the Server version will end on 15 February 2024. If your organization is using this version of the software, this article is for you. Secure your enterprise and safely lead it through the changes.

Which products does the end of life of the Server version apply to?

The affected Atlassian solutions will include:

Jira Software,
Jira Core,
Jira Service Management,
Confluence,
Bitbucket,
Crowd,
Bamboo,
server applications developed by Atlassian.

How and when will support for the Server version solutions change?

The decommissioning process has already begun, specifically:

as of February 2, 2022, Atlassian stopped selling new Server licenses and developing these products,
as of February 15, 2022, the ability to upgrade or downgrade tiers for the Server products and apps was discontinued,
as of February 15, 2023, new apps will be withdrawn from sale, which means that it will no longer be possible to purchase new apps for existing Server licenses,
the final end of technical support is scheduled for February 15, 2024.

What steps do I need to take to migrate from the Server version?

First: audit your system.

This includes:

verification of the number of licenses used,
checking the add-ons currently used on the Server version and finding out if they are all available in the Data Center or Cloud versions.

Second: choose the target system version – Data Center or Cloud.

The decision will be easier to make when you compare:

availability of the add-ons used,
license costs.

When choosing your hosting, it is key to verify the ability to maintain the system using your own resources, which is what the Data Center version requires.

Third: select the scope of data from the system to be migrated and define the migration schedule.

In this step, you need to decide on the following:

whether all projects/spaces will be transferred or only a part of them,
whether all groups/users will be migrated,
whether the selected data will be transferred in one step, or whether this should be split into stages.

Fourth: carry out the migration, i.e. transfer data from one type of hosting to the one chosen.

If you decide to migrate your data to the Cloud, the materials prepared by the experienced Atlassian Team will help and significantly simplify the data transfer process.

What support offered by Atlassian can you use to decommission the Server version?

Here are the aids the producer offers when transferring solutions from the Server version:

cost comparison tools to determine the price list applicable to your cloud-based system,
Cloud Migration Assistant, designed for Confluence, Jira Software, and Jira Service Management applications, which will facilitate the selection of data for migration and its smooth transfer to the Cloud,
Atlassian documentation containing step-by-step procedures for preparing and carrying out migration.

What challenges may an organization face when migrating Atlassian solutions from the Server version?

According to the producer, the migration of an instance with up to 1000 users is much simpler and faster and can be done on without external assistance. Complications can arise when the number of accounts is higher. The process can then be more complex and take much longer.

According to Atlassian, migration time increases in direct proportion to the increase in the number of users:

approx. 3 months with up to 1000 accounts,
approx. 6 months with 1000-5000 users,
approx. 9 months when there is more than 5000.

It is definitely worth considering these estimates when planning the process.

When choosing to transfer your data to the Data Center version, the available materials that could facilitate this process are, unfortunately, far less comprehensive. Most aspects and decisions should be analyzed with no external support, possibly with the help of the Data Center Migration Guide published by Atlassian.

When choosing this option, you should follow all the standard steps described at the beginning of the guide, and also familiarize yourself with the Data Center hosting architecture.

This version requires:

providing adequate infrastructure in your own organization,
choosing the method of data clustering,
providing an ongoing support team on the part of the organization or a supporting partner.

How does Hicron support organizations in transferring Atlassian products from the Server version?

Unfortunately, the transition of Atlassian solutions from Server to the other available versions is inevitable. However, this operation should not be postponed. It is advisable to prevent situations when the software is no longer supported by the producer and more and more companies start looking for help. Then there may not be enough specialists handling such migrations, which will cause downtime for your organization.

Therefore, if you are facing such a decision – do not wait. Use the support of professional consultants today and provide your company with an effective, fast, and secure migration. Our experienced team will conduct a detailed audit of your system and build a transfer schedule now. As experienced specialists carrying out migrations for various organizations, we will conduct yours in the most efficient and secure way possible. At Hicron, we work together with the Client to implement such projects step by step.

Contact our specialists. We will work with you to see which solution is best for you, carry out the migration process, and make any adjustments so that they are tailored to your business.