SQL Server 2016 end of life: what it means for your practice database

Microsoft ended extended support for SQL Server 2016 on July 14, 2026. If your practice software keeps its data in Microsoft SQL Server, that database no longer gets regular security fixes. Here is how to find out which version you run and what your options are.

What ended on July 14, 2026

Microsoft gives each SQL Server version at least 10 years of support: five years of mainstream support, then five years of extended support. Extended support includes only security updates. For SQL Server 2016, extended support ended on July 14, 2026.

That date covers every edition Microsoft lists for SQL Server 2016, including the free Express edition as well as Standard and Enterprise. Microsoft describes end of support as the point where it no longer provides servicing and support for the product. The database keeps running. It just stops getting fixes.

Why your practice software cares

Most practice management and imaging programs do not store your data on their own. They sit on top of a database engine, and Microsoft SQL Server is one that many Windows business programs use. If yours is one of them, your schedule, charts, ledgers and image index may all live inside SQL Server on the office server.

Not every dental program uses SQL Server. Some use other database engines. Your vendor’s system requirements page, or a call to their support line, will tell you which one yours uses and which SQL Server versions each release supports.

The version matters for two reasons. An unpatched database that holds patient records is a target worth protecting. And software vendors decide which SQL Server versions they support, so an old SQL Server can block your next software update, while a software update can force a SQL Server upgrade on short notice.

How to check your SQL Server version

Do this on the server, or ask whoever manages it. Microsoft lists several methods:

• SQL Server Management Studio: connect to the server. The version appears in parentheses next to the server name in Object Explorer.
• A query: run SELECT @@VERSION. The result names the product, for example Microsoft SQL Server 2016, along with the update level and edition.
• Product version number: run SELECT SERVERPROPERTY('productversion'). Microsoft labels SQL Server 2016 as version 13.x, so a number that starts with 13 means SQL Server 2016.
• The error log: the first lines of the ERRORLOG file, in the SQL Server LOG folder under Program Files, show the version. You do not need to log in to SQL Server to read it.
• Discovery report: the Installed SQL Server features discovery report, on the Tools page of SQL Server Installation Center, lists every SQL Server instance on that machine.

One server can hold several SQL Server instances. Practice software, imaging software and other programs sometimes each install their own. Check all of them, not just the first one you find.

Your options

• Upgrade to a supported version. Microsoft recommends a current version of SQL Server. Pick one your practice software vendor supports, and check its end date too. Microsoft’s summary table lists 2027 as the end of extended support for SQL Server 2017.
• Move the database to Azure. Microsoft offers hosted SQL options. This only makes sense if your practice software vendor supports it.
• Buy Extended Security Updates. Microsoft sells ESUs for SQL Server 2016 for up to three years after end of support. Its lifecycle page shows ESU Year 3 running into July 2029.

Getting ESUs for a server in your office takes some setup. Microsoft says the server has to be connected to Azure Arc. You then need Software Assurance under one of Microsoft’s listed agreements, or you turn on pay-as-you-go billing through Azure Arc. If the server cannot connect to Azure Arc, Microsoft says you might be able to buy ESUs through volume licensing instead.

ESUs are narrow. Microsoft releases one only when it rates a flaw as Critical, so there is no regular schedule. ESUs include no new features, no functional improvements and no customer-requested fixes, and Microsoft will not fix non-security bugs. Support covers installing and activating the updates, nothing more.

SQL Server and Windows Server often age together

A SQL Server 2016 database often sits on a Windows Server 2016 machine. Windows Server 2016 reaches the end of extended support on January 12, 2027. Microsoft also warns that newer SQL Server versions might not support older Windows versions. Planning both upgrades together usually means one migration weekend instead of two. Our guide to Windows Server 2016 end of life covers the server side.

Where we come in

We can check which SQL Server versions you run and plan the move to supported versions as a dental practice migration. Start with a free on-site assessment.