advertisement
Facebook
X
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Reddit

Goodbye Windows 7: What the end of the Windows 7 support cycle means for your business

More than 10 years ago Microsoft released the follow-up to Windows Vista in Windows 7.

The newer operating system boasted improved performance on the same hardware Vista was being run on, the UI was much cleaner and ultimately, it was a much more stable operating system.

But now over 10 years since its release Windows 7 will no longer receive security updates and support from Microsoft.

Windows 7 users may have noticed this warning from Microsoft on their PC as Windows 7 reaches end of life

The official date for end of support is 14th January 2020.

So what happens on 15th January 2020 if you still happen to be using Windows 7?

The good news is that your PC will still work but it will essentially be frozen in time. We say this because the operating system will no longer receive security updates. What’s more is that customer service for Windows 7 will also no longer be available.

This isn’t just for operational software though. Services for Windows 7 will be discontinued over time. The electronic program guide present in Windows Media Center for instance, will no longer be available after January 2020.

For users who browse the internet using Internet Explorer on a Windows 7 device, that application on that operating system will also no longer receive support. However, it should be noted that Windows 10 still supports Internet Explorer 11 as part of that operating system’s backwards compatibility.

Because technical support for the operating system is ending that means that newer applications may experience stability issues. This is of special concern for companies still using Windows 7 alongside newer applications such as Office 365.

While Microsoft has promised to provide security updates to Office 365 users on Windows seven until January 2023. The advice however is that businesses should use this time to transition to a newer operating system such as Windows 10. It should be noted that while Office 365 will receive security updates on Windows 7, it will not receive feature updates.

The best advice right now is to start the process of migrating to Windows 10. Not only will you receive the latest updates as they are released, newer software is often primed to operate properly on newer operating systems and issues relating to instability will be less common.

Of course as a business going it alone is not advised and expert guidance is not only recommended, it’s encouraged. A trusted partner can assist with application migration, setup, and more.

If you are in need of any assistance in this regard, contact Pinnacle today.

[Image – CC BY SA mendhak (cropped)]

advertisement

About Author

advertisement

Related News

advertisement