Microsoft to Phase Out Office Online Server to Strengthen Its Microsoft 365 Ecosystem
Microsoft pushes organizations toward its cloud-powered Microsoft 365 platform.
Key Takeaways:
- Microsoft will retire Office Online Server by the end of 2026.
- Organizations are urged to transition to Microsoft 365 for continued browser-based Office access.
- Migration may pose technical and compliance challenges.
Microsoft has announced that Office Online Server will reach end of support deadline on December 31, 2026. After this date, the company will no longer provide security updates, bug fixes, or technical support for the platform.
According to Microsoft, this change will help to focus on cloud-first solutions like Microsoft 365. This means that systems running Office Online Server may become vulnerable to security vulnerabilities and threats.
“Office Online Server was designed to provide browser-based versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote for on-premises environments. As organizations have adopted Microsoft 365, Microsoft is focusing its browser-based Office app investments on Office for the Web to deliver secure, collaborative, and feature-rich experiences through Microsoft 365,” Microsoft explained.
Migration challenges organizations may face
Microsoft recommends organizations still relying on Office Online Server should begin transition to Microsoft 365, which offers automatic updates, enhanced security and compliance, integration with Teams, Outlook, SharePoint Online, OneDrive, and access to Microsoft 365 Copilot.
Notably, migrating from Office Online Server to Microsoft 365 can be complex for organizations with on-premises setups. To ease the transition, hybrid models integrating Microsoft 365 with existing infrastructure allow businesses to retain control over sensitive data while benefiting from cloud-based collaboration.
Impact on SharePoint, Exchange, and Skype for Business
Microsoft warned that Office Online Server integration with SharePoint Server SE or Exchange Server SE. Alternatively, the company suggests moving to Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise and Office LTSC 2024 for viewing and editing documents hosted on those servers.
The retirement of Office Online Server will also affect organizations using Skype for Business for rich PowerPoint presentations. For instance, presenter notes and annotations will no longer be available, embedded videos will play at lower quality, and slide rendering may lose its high-fidelity appearance. However, this change won’t affect core meeting tools like whiteboards, polls, and app sharing.
Microsoft advises that migrating to Teams allows organizations to benefit from modern meeting features like real-time collaboration, integrated chat, and seamless file sharing. For presentations, customers should use screen sharing or hosting events through Teams Live Events.
Rabia has a master's degree in Software Engineering and she has years of experience writing professionally about Microsoft products and other technologies. Rabia has also written for OnMSFT.com as well as Windows Report. She is always up to date on t...
