Move a SharePoint 2016 or 2019 intranet without buying years you cannot have

Extended support ended mid-July 2026. There is no ESU. The only supported on-prem line is Subscription Edition. SharePoint Online is the other documented destination. We will tell you which job you actually have.

Australian .NET team. We look at the farm before anyone talks about a rebuild.

Still running SharePoint 2016 or 2019?

The intranet still works. That is why it has been left alone.

Most of the farms we hear about were built around document libraries, a few custom WSPs, and a pile of InfoPath forms. Then the person who understood Designer workflows left, and “it still works after July” became the whole strategy.

You might recognise one of these:

  • You are on SharePoint Server 2016 or 2019, and July 2026 has already passed
  • InfoPath forms or Designer / 2010–2013 workflows are the intranet
  • Farm solutions and custom master pages block a clean attach
  • SQL Server 2016 is still the content-database host
  • Someone asked whether you can buy extra SharePoint patches
  • You are not sure whether to stay on-prem or go to SharePoint Online

You do not need a new brand, or a Viva pitch. You need a clear read on the farm you already have.

Why these farms stall

SharePoint is still a real product. The only supported on-premises server is SharePoint Server Subscription Edition, GA 2 November 2021, on Microsoft’s Modern Lifecycle Policy, listed In Support — no fixed retirement date on the lifecycle page. 2016 and 2019 are already past extended support.

July 2026

No ESU

InfoPath

SE or SPO

2016 and 2019 extended support ended mid-July 2026.

Microsoft Learn: SharePoint Server 2019 mainstream ended 10 January 2024; extended ended 15 July 2026 06:59:59 AM PT. SharePoint Server 2016 mainstream ended 14 July 2021; extended ended the same July 2026 timestamp. Industry shorthand is 14 July 2026. SharePoint Server 2013 extended ended 12 April 2023 — already years past. After extended end: no security updates, no assisted support. The product can still be used. That is not the same as patched.

Caption under the diagram:

No ESU. The only supported on-prem hop is Subscription Edition, new farm, database-attach.

There is no SharePoint ESU programme.

Unlike Windows Server or SQL, SharePoint 2016 and 2019 are not on the public Extended Security Updates lists. You cannot buy another three years of patches. Same-week companions on the 2026 end-of-support list: InfoPath 2013, SharePoint Designer 2013, Project Server 2016/2019, and SQL Server 2016. If the content database still sits on SQL 2016, that host ended the same week.

InfoPath and Designer die with the farm, not as a later project.

Client InfoPath 2013 and Designer 2013 ended the same week as 2016/2019. Farm solutions (WSP), full-trust code, InfoPath forms, Designer / 2010–2013 workflows, classic publishing, and custom master pages do not become Subscription Edition or SharePoint Online features. Those customisations are the intranet. Identity is a second project if Online is the destination — old Windows claims or NTLM versus Entra ID.

Subscription Edition is not SharePoint 2022.

There is no year-numbered successor. Microsoft’s documented on-prem path is a database-attach into a new SE farm from SharePoint Server 2016 or 2019. SharePoint has never been an in-place OS-style upgrade. 2013 and older are not a direct attach to SE — hop 2013 to 2016/2019 to SE, or migrate to SharePoint Online. SE is subscription-licensed, not a perpetual 2019 key. Hybrid is a configuration with a written sunset, not a product you finish.

None of that makes the documents or the business process worthless. It does mean “it still works, so we have time to buy ESU” is the wrong first sentence.

How we work

We start with the farm, not with a destination.

1

Look at what you have

2013, 2016, or 2019, farm solutions, InfoPath, Designer workflows, classic publishing, the SQL version under the content databases, and how people sign in. We will tell you what a database-attach will carry, and what is a rebuild.

2

Decide the job

There are three honest outcomes. We recommend one, not all three.

3

Do the work in stages

Libraries, metadata, and the sites people actually use come across. Full-trust code, InfoPath, and Designer workflows do not become SE or Online features. Unused site collections stay behind.

4

Hand it back so the next person can run it

Source, a short record of what changed, and a farm or tenant someone else can understand.

Three honest outcomes

  • SharePoint Server Subscription Edition on a supported Windows and SQL stack. That is the only supported on-prem path: new farm, database-attach, subscription licence.
  • SharePoint Online / Microsoft 365 , with Power Platform, Viva, or custom SPFx where the intranet actually needs it. Hybrid only with a written sunset for the on-prem farm.
  • Replace the intranet with a custom ASP.NET Core app or another intranet product if SharePoint is a custom-application host, not a document platform.

We will not tell you Microsoft sold you ESU for 2016 or 2019. We will not tell you WordPress is the answer to every intranet. If you already know you want to stay on SharePoint forever, a SharePoint-only partner may be a better fit. If you want an honest fork in the road, talk to us.

What we need for the first call

A URL and a rough version is enough to start.

  • Which SharePoint Server: 2013, 2016, 2019, or already Subscription Edition
  • Whether farm solutions, InfoPath, Designer workflows, or classic publishing are load-bearing
  • SQL Server version under the content databases
  • How people sign in today (Windows claims, NTLM, on-prem AD)
  • On-prem only, already hybrid, or aiming at Microsoft 365
  • What “done” looks like: SE, SharePoint Online, replace the intranet, or get a clear picture first

The first call is 30 minutes. You leave with a recommendation you can take to a manager, not a rebuild estimate pulled from thin air.

Related work

We have taken over and modernised ageing .NET systems for Australian organisations, including work with Data#3, Hastie, NESS, and NSW Health. Hastie was a custom SharePoint 2007 plus ASP.NET 3.5 self-service portal, commissioned via Data#3. NSW Health TESL was a custom SharePoint plus ASP.NET 4.0 replacement of a ColdFusion / Classic ASP leave system, also via Data#3. That is related SharePoint and .NET work — the same shape of customisation problem — not a published 2016/2019 to Subscription Edition or SharePoint Online case study. Your farm still starts with its own assessment. We will not pretend it is a project we have already published.

FAQ

Can we buy ESU for SharePoint 2016 or 2019?
No. There is no SharePoint ESU programme on the public Microsoft ESU lists. After mid-July 2026 there are no security updates and no assisted support. The farm can still run.
Is Subscription Edition just the next numbered SharePoint?
No. There is no SharePoint 2022 or 2026. SE is the only supported on-prem line, subscription-licensed, installed as a new farm with a database-attach from 2016 or 2019.
Do InfoPath forms come across?
Do not assume that. InfoPath 2013 and Designer 2013 ended the same week as 2016/2019. Farm solutions, InfoPath, and Designer workflows are not SE or Online features. They are the project.
Will the intranet switch off?
No. Microsoft does not remotely disable the farm. You lose patches. SQL Server 2016 ending the same week is a second unpatched box if you never moved the content databases.
We only have a backup and an old farm.
That is common. Bring that.

Talk through the SharePoint intranet you already have

Thirty minutes. Bring a URL and a version number if you know it. We will tell you whether to attach into Subscription Edition, move to SharePoint Online, or replace the intranet — and we will not sell you ESU Microsoft does not offer.

Book a free 30-minute discovery call