Microsoft released Windows 7 on October 22nd, 2009 and will discontinue support on January 14, 2020.
What does this mean for you?
- If your PC is running Windows 7 after January 14, 2020, it will no longer receive security updates.
- If you’re in a regulated industry you’re likely required to use software that still receiving security updates from the manufacturer in order to be compliant.
- After January 14, 2020 Windows 7 will be the new “Windows XP” and will be red flagged during IT assessments as a security risk.
If you’re a business and run Windows 7, here’s what we recommend:
- If your computer was manufactured less than 3 years ago:
- If it’s less than 3 years old, you may have rights to Windows 10 Pro for free.
- Manufacturers were selling Windows 10 Pro computers with a downgraded Windows 7 operating system (for software compatibility issues) as recently as just last year.
- Ask your IT company about this strategy.
- If your computer is over 3 years old:
- You can buy a Windows 10 Pro retail copy for $199 and squeeze more life out of your computer. We do not recommend using a computer past 5 years, as it will be more likely to experience hardware failure and have trouble keeping up with modern demands of business software.
- You can replace the computer with a modern Windows 10 Pro machine. Please note that the computer hardware industry is experiencing massive Intel CPU shortages (read our blog about it here) and it’s difficult to find Intel computers in stock. Get with your IT company sooner rather than later to start the process.
- Your final option is buying an “Extended security update” 12 month subscription from Microsoft for $50 a device if your Windows 7 was purchased via Open Licensing. This should only be used in special situations, such as if your proprietary application only works on Windows 7 for now and you need another year to move to Windows 10. If you’re not on Open Licensing, this can be very expensive path to keeping Windows 7.
Please reach out to us if you need assistance reviewing your IT fleet for Windows 7 and for a solution to get to Windows 10 for a maximum return on your IT investment.
