Can You Afford to Go Naked? Why Your Company Needs Software Support Services

It can be dangerous to drop or decline software support services on business-critical products, even if they’re stable.

If your company has built a large collection of on-premises software over the years, you might have considered going without software support services for certain products and letting the software “go naked.”

Here are some of the reasons why dropping support might not be such a good idea, plus a look at options that can make the support process more customer-friendly.

Downsides of Going Naked with Your Enterprise Software

You wouldn’t cancel your car insurance because you haven’t had a fender bender for years. The same applies to software support services.

Even if your company hasn’t reached out to support in ages, not having an expert to contact when something does go wrong can lead to catastrophe, including:

• No help resolving emerging issues. Even highly stable products can suddenly encounter problems internal teams aren’t sure how to solve. When new security vulnerabilities or non-defect bugs (common in highly customized enterprise environments) occur, knowing who to call on the spot is essential.
• Added avoidable downtime. No one can afford downtime and resolving it can require expertise that spans multiple IT disciplines. Besides the obvious financial ramifications, downtime also costs companies a loss in overall productivity, potential data loss, and the risk of a damaged brand image.
• Lost access to product experts. Even the largest companies don’t keep specialists on staff for every single software product in the estate. Beyond major issues and protracted downtime, losing expert-level insight into how your software ticks means losing the ability to use it at its most productive and efficient.

Why Do Businesses Drop Software Support?

Financial motivations can drive the decision to move away from software support services. Software maintenance consumes 90% of the average IT budget, making OEM support services and their escalating annual/per-agreement costs an immediate source of scrutiny for any business seeking potential savings.

Companies also often consider going without support following negative or counterproductive experiences with OEM providers. Common issues businesses face include:

• Sudden changes. When Broadcom announced its decision to stop selling and supporting VMware perpetual licenses, many companies assumed they’d have to go without VMware support if they wanted to keep using their current software instead of buying Broadcom’s new product bundles.
• Forced upgrades. When products move to end-of-support (EOS) status, software megavendors often tell their customers that upgrading to a new software version is the only way to retain support.
• Diminishing support levels. IBM Extended Support and Sustained Support options tend to cover fewer issues the further the product gets from its initial release date, and Big Blue isn’t the only megavendor whose support structure works that way. Hearing from an OEM that an issue is unresolvable because product coverage is defect-only can push any business to question why it continues to pay for support.

Options Beyond OEM Software Support

For companies feeling stuck between exorbitant OEM support costs and the risks of going naked, independent software maintenance vendors add a compelling third choice. Providers like Origina offer ongoing support, cybersecurity coverage, and maintenance for software the business wants to keep using, even if it has been moved to EOS status by the OEM.

Companies using stable, long-running software versions that have moved (or will soon move) to EOS status can use independent software maintenance as an insurance policy. When something does eventually go wrong, there is always an expert to contact.

Having help beyond the OEM also means no need to undergo forced upgrades just to keep an active support agreement. With a software maintenance vendor providing support for all versions the user is entitled to, it’s possible to keep using the current software indefinitely without adding unwanted years, products, and costs to the current agreement, which are three reasons companies consider going naked to begin with.

Keep Your Software Maintenance Options Open

If your company is feeling the urge to let portions of its estate go naked, keep in mind that your software maintenance choices aren’t binary. Companies like JCPenney have made great use of a hybrid software support model by keeping certain products under OEM coverage and placing the rest – typically stable, established software that has moved to EOS status – with an independent maintenance and support provider.

By keeping all relevant products supported while upgrading and renewing only the software that suits their current planning, companies can realize significant cost savings and exert more control over their IT roadmaps. If the company decides upgrading and moving back to OEM support is the right move for their EOS software in the future, they can do so at any time.

In most cases, companies only consider going unsupported because the alternative options are even less aligned with business needs. But support from the OEM vendor isn’t the only choice. By directly addressing the root causes that make going naked seem sensible, independent software maintenance providers offer a different take – one that lets businesses keep their current software supported indefinitely, without inflating costs and prescriptive upgrade tracks forcing their hands.

Independent software maintenance saves companies from going naked. Read Gartner’s report and see how.