With blazing-fast adoption in computers and systems upon its July 2009 arrival, Windows 7 offered many a new graphical interface, which was met with a lot of concerns. As end-users adapted to the new feel of the operating system, some looked to further productivity. Machines running this 10-year-old operating system will begin to stumble, as they lack the pace to keep up with technology.
Windows 7 Support Is Reaching its End of Life
With this year moving fast, we’ve noticed several businesses have begun to overlook the end-of-supportable life for Windows 7 systems. As many already know, it’s the patches, updates, and service packs that are used to update our systems. These are not upgrading, as the hardware hasn’t been changed, simply bug fixes, and user experience issues, alongside major security vulnerabilities.
On January 14th, 2020, Microsoft officially announced the end of an era. Although the Windows 7 operating system wasn’t known to be the “best” or “most stable” platform, it was a reliable operating system for many, nonetheless. We must stress, these updates are needed because without them, systems and infrastructure become more vulnerable than ever.
Why the Big Deal?
Many of these business applications or systems running Windows 7, Exchange 2010, SQL or Microsoft Server 2008 will all be forced to upgrade to the newest operating system. These upgrades are necessary because the machines that were built when Windows 7 was released (July 22, 2009) will soon be reaching 10 years old. These systems lack the performance to upgrade to the latest version of Windows 10 due to the many features and additional layers of security employed throughout the new operating systems.
We recommend for many businesses using machines older than 3 years in age, to replace their systems completely, as it’s been our experience with Windows 10, and the current cost of technology, that it’s far more cost-effective to replace the system than replace the parts needed to complete the migration.
If your systems were purchased within the last 3 years, the chances are; your machine would meet the performance requirements needed to upgrade, and we can help you get there.
We understand some systems might be running Windows 7 for a Line-of-Business tool, like a shipping computer or guest work stations. Microsoft has recently announced many avenues that businesses can take when migrating from Windows 7 to Windows 10 or equivalent products. In many cases, we’ve been able to assist businesses in garnering the resources they need for the business objectives they have, like moving to the cloud or paying for server licensing. There is a better way to do IT. Reach out to have Clare Computer Solutions provide you a comprehensive roadmap to getting your employees up-to-date and secure.