Question Regarding Windows Server 2022 Marketplace Image Migration Notice

성대현 20 Reputation points
2026-05-30T07:37:21.4266667+00:00

Hello Microsoft Support Team,

I received the notice titled "Migrate to new Microsoft Marketplace Windows Server 2022 images by 9 June 2026" and would like to clarify several points.

Currently, I am operating three Azure Virtual Machines that were created using Windows Server images with:

  • PublisherID = microsoftwindowsserver
  • The VMs referenced in the notification

Additionally, none of these virtual machines are using .NET 6 applications or services.

I would appreciate your clarification on the following questions:

  1. Will the three existing virtual machines become unavailable or stop operating after June 9, 2026?
  2. If the virtual machines will continue to operate, will they continue to receive Windows Server security updates and patches after June 9, 2026?
  3. Due to operational constraints, we may not be able to migrate to the new Marketplace image before June 9, 2026. If migration is not completed by that date, what will be the impact on our existing virtual machines?
  4. Based on the notification, it is unclear whether existing virtual machines will remain operational after June 9, 2026, or whether they will become unusable. Could you please confirm the expected behavior of existing VMs created from the legacy Windows Server 2022 Marketplace images?

Thank you for your assistance. We would appreciate any additional guidance regarding the recommended actions for customers who are not using .NET 6 but are currently running virtual machines created from the affected Marketplace images.

Best regards, [Your Name] [Company Name]Hello Microsoft Support Team,

I received the notice titled "Migrate to new Microsoft Marketplace Windows Server 2022 images by 9 June 2026" and would like to clarify several points.

Currently, I am operating three Azure Virtual Machines that were created using Windows Server images with:

  • PublisherID = microsoftwindowsserver
  • The VMs referenced in the notification

Additionally, none of these virtual machines are using .NET 6 applications or services.

I would appreciate your clarification on the following questions:

  1. Will the three existing virtual machines become unavailable or stop operating after June 9, 2026?
  2. If the virtual machines will continue to operate, will they continue to receive Windows Server security updates and patches after June 9, 2026?
  3. Due to operational constraints, we may not be able to migrate to the new Marketplace image before June 9, 2026. If migration is not completed by that date, what will be the impact on our existing virtual machines?
  4. Based on the notification, it is unclear whether existing virtual machines will remain operational after June 9, 2026, or whether they will become unusable. Could you please confirm the expected behavior of existing VMs created from the legacy Windows Server 2022 Marketplace images?

Thank you for your assistance. We would appreciate any additional guidance regarding the recommended actions for customers who are not using .NET 6 but are currently running virtual machines created from the affected Marketplace images.

Best regards,

Azure Virtual Machines
Azure Virtual Machines

An Azure service that is used to provision Windows and Linux virtual machines.

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Answer accepted by question author
Vinodh247-1375 44,796 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
2026-05-30T08:05:13.2033333+00:00

Hi ,

Thanks for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A.

Your existing VMs will not stop or become unavailable after June 9, 2026. The notice is about Marketplace image lifecycle, not running instances. VMs already created from the legacy microsoftwindowsserver images will continue to run normally.

However, no new VMs can be created from the retired images after that date, and those images will no longer receive updates. Your running VMs will still get Windows Server OS security patches through standard Windows Update, as long as the OS version itself is in support. The risk is mainly around image-level updates and long-term maintainability, not immediate outage.

If you do not migrate before the deadline, there is no immediate impact, but you are effectively running on a deprecated base image, which can create future compliance, patching consistency, and support limitations. Microsoft’s recommendation is to plan a phased rebuild using the new Marketplace images, even if .NET 6 is not in use, to stay aligned with supported image baselines.

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  1. Anonymous
    2026-06-01T01:58:09.0033333+00:00

    Hey there! It looks like you’re wondering what happens to your three Windows Server 2022 VMs (publisherID = microsoftwindowsserver) after the June 9, 2026 enforcement date now that the legacy Marketplace images are being deprecated. Here’s the rundown:

    1. Will the existing VMs stop or go offline on June 9, 2026? No—deprecation of the Marketplace image doesn’t power off or delete your already running VMs. They’ll keep running as-is.
    2. Will they still receive Windows Server security updates and patches? Yes as long as the OS itself is still in support, you’ll continue to get Windows Updates on those VMs. Deprecation only affects the Marketplace image offer, not the OS lifecycle.
    3. What if you can’t migrate by June 9, 2026? After that date, any operations that rely on the deprecated image (creating new VMs, scaling out VM Scale Sets, reimaging, or doing backup restores that pull the Marketplace image) will fail. But your existing VMs remain online and your running workloads continue. You just won’t be able to deploy new instances or reimage from the old SKU.
    4. Expected behavior of legacy-image VMs post-deprecation? They stay up and reachable. Only image-related operations (new deploys, scale-outs, reimages, backup restores using that exact Marketplace offer/SKU) will be blocked.

    Recommended next steps

    • Plan to transition to the new Windows Server 2022 Marketplace images (the ones without .NET 6) before June 2026.
    • For standalone VMs you can either: • Reimage in-place via the portal/CLI/PowerShell to point at the new image offer, or • Spin up new VMs from the new image and migrate disks or data (detach/attach disks, use snapshots, or do a file-based copy).
    • For VM Scale Sets, update the image reference in your ARM templates/CLI/PowerShell and do a rolling upgrade.
    • Because you’re not using .NET 6, you don’t have to worry about runtime removal—just make sure your new image choice matches your patching and compliance needs.

    Hope that clears things up! Let us know if you need any help with the reimage or migration steps.

    References

    1. Azure VM Image Deprecation overview & troubleshooting https://learn.microsoft.com/azure/virtual-machines/deprecated-images
    2. Deprecated images FAQ – When & how to migrate your VMs https://learn.microsoft.com/azure/virtual-machines/deprecated-images?wt.mc_id=knowledgesearch_inproduct_azure-cxp-community-insider
    3. Deprecated images FAQ – Part 1: Create a new VM https://learn.microsoft.com/azure/virtual-machines/deprecated-images#part-1-create-a-new-vm
    4. Deprecated images FAQ – Part 2: Migrate data & switch over https://learn.microsoft.com/azure/virtual-machines/deprecated-images#part-2-migrate-data
    5. Image deprecation notice: Plan your migration to the new Azure Marketplace Windows Server 2022 image offer by 9 June 2026 (case 2604140040011087)
    6. Guidance for deprecated WS2022 image 2022-datacenter-azure-edition & recommended replacement (case 2605150030007151)
    7. .NET 6 EOL migration for Windows Server 2022 Marketplace images (case 2603240030000132)

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  2. AI answer

    2026-05-30T07:37:43.0333333+00:00
    1. The three existing virtual machines will not become unavailable or stop operating after June 9, 2026. For first‑party images without a purchase plan (such as Windows Server from microsoftwindowsserver), when the Marketplace image is deprecated and reaches its enforcement date, the image goes into a “soft delete” state. Existing VMs created from that image continue to run normally and are not deleted or modified.
    2. Yes. The deprecation of the Marketplace image does not, by itself, stop Windows Server OS security updates and patches on existing VMs. For images without a purchase plan:
      • Existing VMs continue to run without disruption after the enforcement date.
      • Start, stop, restart, deallocate, and redeploy operations continue to work.
      • Backup/restore and disaster recovery operations continue to work.
      OS patching and security updates are governed by the Windows Server product lifecycle, not by the Marketplace image deprecation. As long as the underlying Windows Server version is still within its support lifecycle, security updates remain available.
    3. If migration to a new Marketplace image is not completed by June 9, 2026, the impact is on new deployments and certain image‑dependent operations, not on the running VMs: For images without a purchase plan (such as your Windows Server 2022 VMs):
      • New VM creation from the deprecated image is blocked after the enforcement date.
      • Reimage operations are blocked, because they require recreating the OS disk from the original Marketplace image.
      • Virtual machine scale set scale‑out from that specific deprecated version is blocked (if applicable). Scale‑out using automatic OS image upgrade or latest version continues to work.
      • Existing VMs continue to run, and normal lifecycle operations (start/stop/restart/deallocate/redeploy) continue to work.
      Since the workloads are not using .NET 6, the .NET‑specific change (removal of .NET 6 from future Windows Server 2022 images) does not directly affect the existing VMs’ runtime behavior.
    4. Expected behavior of existing VMs created from the legacy Windows Server 2022 Marketplace images:
      • Existing VMs remain operational after the enforcement date.
      • They are not automatically shut down, deleted, or made unusable because the Marketplace image is deprecated.
      • Backup restore and disaster recovery continue to work for first‑party images without a purchase plan.
      • What is blocked is the ability to create new VMs or perform operations that require the original Marketplace image (for example, reimage, and some VMSS scale‑out scenarios tied to that specific version).

    Additional guidance for customers not using .NET 6 but running VMs from the affected images:

    • Migration is not strictly required for first‑party Windows Server images without a purchase plan if only the image version is deprecated and there is no need to reimage or scale out from that specific version.
    • To reduce future dependency on Marketplace image availability, consider capturing the current configuration as a custom image in Azure Compute Gallery. Custom images are not subject to Marketplace deprecation.
    • If at any point a newer Windows Server 2022 image (without bundled .NET) is desired, create new VMs from the newer image and migrate workloads and data, because in‑place OS upgrades on Azure VMs are not supported.

    References:

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