Exchange Server Subscription Edition (SE) is now generally available.

Microsoft has announced the general availability of Exchange Server Subscription Edition (SE). This new release introduces significant innovations and a roadmap for organizations running Exchange services in on-premises, cloud, and hybrid environments.

Details:

• Support for Exchange Server 2016 and 2019 will end in October 2025.

  After this date, Exchange SE will be the only on-premises version of Exchange supported by Microsoft.




• Modern Lifecycle Policy will apply.

  This new release will be supported under Microsoft’s Modern Lifecycle Policy.

  • There will be no fixed end-of-support date.

  • Support continues as long as deployments and systems are kept current.




• Exchange SE becomes an “evergreen” product, meaning there will be no new versions with year-based names.




• While Microsoft continues to develop cloud-based solutions like Exchange Online and Microsoft 365 Copilot, long-term support for customers with on-premises infrastructure will be provided through Exchange SE.




• Exchange SE Cumulative Updates (CUs) will be released twice per calendar year, along with security or hotfix updates as needed.




• With Exchange SE CU2, Exchange Server 2016 and Exchange Server 2019 can no longer coexist in the same environment, similar to how Exchange 2019 CU15 was incompatible with Exchange 2013.




• Future Exchange SE CUs will:

  • Modernize installation prerequisites,
  • Require new Exchange SE-specific server license keys,
  • Introduce new features and functionalities.

• The Exchange Server SE RTM version can be installed as a Cumulative Update (CU) on:

  • Exchange Server 2019 CU14 or CU15.
  • It can be deployed as a classic CU in Exchange 2019 environments (PrepareAD may be required for CU14).
  • For Exchange Server 2016, classic mailbox migration is required.

Differences Between Exchange 2019 CU15 and Exchange SE RTM:

• The codebase is largely the same.
• No new features have been added; no existing features have been removed.
• There are no Active Directory schema changes (PrepareAD may be required if upgrading from CU14).
• No new license key is needed.
• The license agreement has been updated.
• The name “Microsoft Exchange Server 2019” has been changed to “Microsoft Exchange Server Subscription Edition.”
• Build and version numbers have been updated.
• Fixes released after CU15 have been integrated into Exchange SE RTM.