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Several social media posts from people who knew Michael Hampton dated around October 5 and an Ever Loved obituary dated October 1 state that he has passed away.

Here on Server Fault, where he was moderator until stepping down early 2020, he regularly solved problems merely with comments, yet still earned the highest reputation on the site.

He was the most active Server Fault user and was also very active throughout the SE family of sites, notably Travel.

Little information is available from Michael Hampton, as he did not appear to maintain any social media or other public profile, other than his helping us.

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    Good guy. Chatted with him on and off for years, and will miss his wit.
    – Magellan
    Commented Nov 26, 2021 at 20:39
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    Oh, no! I'm so sorry to hear this!
    – Katherine Villyard
    Commented Dec 1, 2021 at 23:03
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    This saddens me deeply. I really admired him for his knowledge, I always had the impression that he could answer any question on serverfault.com. While we will surely miss him, it might be a consoling thought that much of his outstanding expertise will stay here forever. RIP Michael
    – digijay
    Commented Dec 2, 2021 at 13:49
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    Very sad to hear this. What a great chap. Spoke to him on and off in the past. RIP Michael and hope all the best for those he left behind.
    – Matthew Ife
    Commented Dec 14, 2021 at 10:53
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    He appears to have been posting helpful answers to the last day of his life. This is so sad.
    – CPlus
    Commented Nov 30, 2023 at 21:14

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Michael was someone I only knew online, here and through other sites. Among the group of very experienced and widely knowledgeable SysAdmins that he interacted with, he stood out as being pretty much the most knowledgeable and helpful.

In addition to having the most rep here on SF, he was active and effective on other SE sites. He stepped down as a moderator on SF when he was first battling cancer, and from the time he came back from treatment until his passing, he we still actively contributing.

All of the online communities that he was part of are greatly diminished by his early passing.

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    Cancer sucks. :(
    – Aaron Copley
    Commented Dec 4, 2021 at 19:31
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I have no words. I seen the new yesterday but I still can't find the correct words.

I didn't knew Michael in real life, but he was a great mentor there for me. (and possibly for other members). He was really stellar on SF, even when he was not a moderator he was behind the scene a lot.

Rest In Peace, dear friend. Wishing you comfort and peace.

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I just was thinking about him the other day when writing a question and how much knowledge he had and how helpful he was. It makes me sad to hear about this and wish his family and friends all the best. And know that he has positively influenced a lot of people and still continues to do so.

My spouse died of cancer almost 2 years ago and I know first hand how much that sucks. But also how much it helps for people to just say a word, it can be anything. Don't worry you have no words to say. Just say something, if you feel like it. And know that grieving is normal and you will get through it eventually. It may come back at times, that too is normal and healthy.

Cancer sucks, but from a science point of view it is also very interesting. Strange as it may seem, that helped me.

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So sad to read this news. I haven't been around as much since everyone left the Comms Room, but he helped me with several of my own questions here over the years. He was so incredibly knowledgeable about so many things. My condolences to those that knew him.

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My condolences, spoke to him in the past quite frequently on the Comms Room, he always very active on Serverfault (always got that answer in before me!).

Wish the best for his family, he was very knowledgeable and was always keen to help people.

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