With Sage’s recent announcements on the scheduled retirement of Sage Line 500 and Sage 1000, you should be considering an alternative system.
Sage’s announcement means that between now and the end of 2024, Sage will gradually reduce levels of support across various elements, whether that be functional issues, developer support, compliance support, or the platform the product sits on and ultimately, they’ll remove the help desk that supports Sage 500/1000. The last updates for both ERPs will be 31st of December 2022 as part of the extended support phases.
Risks of running unsupported ERP software
Security
When software is out-of-support, patches, bug fixes and security upgrades stop. Security is compromised because vendors no longer offer a security patch if a vulnerability is discovered, leaving you open to cyber-security hacks.
Incompatible software
New applications are released almost daily, and these are optimised for the most recent operating systems. That means when using out-of-support ERP, you cannot use the latest applications or upgrade to the latest versions. If you are holding on to legacy applications, you will not have access to the latest features and developments. This causes issues with your systems, as they are unable to communicate with each other.
‘Landlocked’ operating systems and ageing hardware platforms
The issue concerning operating systems and out-of-support software needs to be highlighted as a key risk to any business. Out-of-support software is not only not optimised for the most recent operating systems, but also often incompatible entirely, leaving the business ‘landlocked’ to legacy operating systems and therefore vulnerable to viruses, malware and cyber-attacks. As hardware platforms need replacement, the operating system is almost always replaced/upgraded also. If the hardware cannot be replaced due to the out of support software being incompatible with the new operating system, the business is exposed to a potential hardware failure with little or no backup options.
Higher operational costs
Out-of-support software costs more; whether it’s through lost/stolen data, updating and maintaining with third parties, legal liabilities, or lost revenue from downtime or issues. The cost of upgrading to a new ERP can sometimes seem large and prohibitive from a business point of view. But consider the consequences of a security breach, major bug or data loss. The peace of mind that comes with having a fully secure and supported system that won’t randomly go offline is worth the investment.
Next steps?
If you currently use Sage Line 500 or Sage ERP 1000, then we recommend you get in touch for a chat to discuss your requirements and for a closer look at Sage 200 – the leading Business Management/ERP solution for SME’s in the UK and Ireland.
