Should Denali work on Windows XP

Microsoft release a list of Operating Systems (OS) and SQL Version Upgrade Paths that will be compatible with SQL Denali, SQL 11, aka SQL Next or whatever it will be called,  the next version of SQL.

1) The current support matrix for OSes is as follows:

·    Windows Vista SP2 or later

·    Windows Server 2008 SP2 or later

·    Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 or later

·    Windows 7 SP1 or later

2) Denali will support upgrading from these SQL Server versions:

·    SQL Server 2005 SP4 or later

·    SQL Server 2008 SP2 or later

·    SQL Server 2008 R2 SP1 or later

3) The installer is going to block installation on unsupported OSes and it will block unsupported upgrade paths.

Go and leave your comments, get your thoughts in because this is your chance.

“So Balls”, You say, “What’s your opinion?”

Well Dear Reader I’ve got a couple thoughts I’ll give those and then I’ll give you the post I put in place.

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE CUSTOMERS

No matter what industry you are in you serve a customer.  Every year Microsoft has a lot of people whose sole job is to find out how many Microsoft Licenses you company has and how many it needs to have.  They work out Licensing deals and companies pay money.  When this occurs Microsoft get’s an inventory of sorts that let’s them know what people are using. 

I don’t know how granular that gets, I have no access to that information, I can only speak for myself.  Every job I’ve had since graduating college or while I was still in college has been using computers that ran Windows XP.  It has been around a LONG time.

So I would hope that the numbers Microsoft get’s would tell them what Percentage of customers still running XP.  You would then assume a natural upgrade trend, whatever the average is they see in their analysis.

I would then hope that they look at the number of hours it would take to make Denali work on XP or any other OS, based off the amount of work, the talent and cost of the team (and there is some serious Talent working for them) vs. the Revenues they project to get from licensing. 

Then I would look at the number of shops that run a lot of SQL Server and what their XP breakdown is.  If it doesn’t make Dollars and Sense they shouldn’t do it.

MAYBE THEY SHOULDN’T

“But Balls,” You say, “Earlier you told us you would like to see it support XP?   WTH?”

Ahh Dear Reader, I would like it.  It would make it easier for me to demo at work, and sell to management.  Which would work out to some of those Licensees that I talked about up top.  I’ve Windows 7 at home, and I’ll install it and learn the heck out of it there. 

But what is right for me might not be right for Microsoft.  Or it could be, it would all depend on where their customers are.

Even here at work, there is an upgrade strategy that will eventually be put into place, but that may be months or a year or more from now, those decisions are currently above my pay grade.

So finally here is what I wrote.  In the end it is up to Microsoft.  And as they are with the Clouds so am I with them, when it comes to Microsoft “I’m All IN!”.

Hi Dan,

   I'm going to disagree with the crowd, I think support for XP should be put in place.  I'm on Windows 7 at home, but work is still on XP slowly moving to 7. 

For some of us IT is a fight, it is a fight to get our companies to adopt the latest and greatest, and sometimes the big ships turn slowly.  This would certainly hurt my ability to sell the technology internally and I would assume I'm not alone in this.

As a SQL DBA I feel by default I'm a Microsoft Advocate.  In IT there are 50 ways you can do anything, I choose to do those 50 things using Microsoft and predominately SQL Server.  I Advocate moving to new technology and using the latest and greatest.  But it was a fight to use Powershell 2.0, Mirroring, 2008 R2, and Policy Based Management. 

I won't stop Advocating but it will make my fight more of an uphill battle if I cannot install on XP.

Thanks,

Brad