As of Tuesday, January 10, Microsoft will no longer release new security updates for Windows 7, which will definitively end support for the 13-year-old operating system. The American hardware and software company advises anyone who still works with the outdated OS to upgrade.
That writes technology company on a support page.
Windows 7 support ended three years ago.
It is October 2009 when Microsoft launches the successor to Windows Vista: Windows 7. At its peak, 63 per cent of all desktops worldwide ran on this version of Microsoft’s operating system. According to Statcounter, Windows 7 is currently on 11.2 per cent of all computers; in the Netherlands, the market share is currently 3.3 per cent.
It is not surprising that Windows 7 is hardly used anymore. Support for the operating system ended on January 14, 2020. Because many consumers, businesses and government agencies still use the operating system, Microsoft decided to offer security updates until January 2023. In this way, the hardware and software company wanted to give everyone plenty of time to switch to a newer operating system version.
Microsoft: Consider buying a new PC
Microsoft recommends that anyone still working with the outdated operating system purchase a new PC. Today’s computers are faster, more powerful and slimmer, and Windows 11 is already installed.
They say most Windows 7 devices need to meet the hardware requirements to upgrade to Windows 11. For those who can’t afford to buy a new PC with Windows 11, switching to Windows 10 is an option. “Before investing in a Windows 10 upgrade, remember that the Windows 10 support date will expire on October 14, 2025,” warns Microsoft.
Windows 7 is one of many products that no longer receives security updates from Microsoft. The same also applies to Windows 8.1, Windows RT and Windows Server 2008, among others.
The government pays millions for Windows XP security updates.
In the past, the Dutch government paid millions of euros to Microsoft to roll out security updates for longer. In April 2014, Windows XP support officially ended for consumers. Companies and government organizations that had waited too long to upgrade and wanted to continue to receive security updates had to pay for this.
In 2014, the Dutch government paid an amount of 3 million euros through the Extended Security Update (ESU) program. About 40,000 computers then received security updates for a year. In 2015, the government once again dug into its pockets. That year, the government paid 1.7 million euros to provide 5,000 PCs with security updates, and these computers received security patches for six months.
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