If your PC and / or its operating system is more than five years old, it is urgent to offer them a serious facelift. Microsoft has planned to end from January 14 all software updates and monthly security patches for its operating system Windows 7, released in October 2009.
According to StatCounter figures, 22% of PCs in France are still running a version of Windows 7, compared to 69% under Windows 10. Microsoft customers are therefore invited to upgrade to the most recent version of the most popular operating system used to the world thanks to a free update, provided that their PC has a sufficient configuration. Whether or not this is your case, we help you prepare for it.
Why is Microsoft unplugging Windows 7?
After 10 years of loyal service and a few bugs, Windows 7 has come to the end of the normal operating system cycle. Microsoft has only contracted to provide this support service for a decade.
"There is a cost to maintaining previous versions of software," says Gavin Millard, cybersecurity expert at Tenable. "There is also a problem of resources because the creators of Windows 7 have also been reassigned to other projects and can therefore no longer improve it, it is the same rhythm at Apple with its software at end of life" explains -t it.
Available in seven different editions including a professional, Windows 7 had gradually buried Windows XP and Vista before being itself gently replaced by a decried Windows 8 without Start menu and then by Windows 10 from 2015.
It is this operating system that equips all new Windows PCs and tablets. PC manufacturers have stopped selling models with Windows 7 pre-installed to individuals since October 31, 2014.
In fact, Microsoft had even stopped bringing new features to Windows 7 since January 13, 2015, but PCs continued to benefit from "extended" support, that is to say major updates and especially fixes. security when a flaw was discovered after a hack.
What does it change for the user of a PC?
The end of Windows 7 Home support does not mean that workstations under this obsolete operating system will no longer be able to function normally. Simply put, they will no longer be able to request technical support from Microsoft teams in the event of a complete crash, a simple bug or a hacker attack that exploits a security flaw.
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The addition of hardware, and the drivers that go with it, is also complicated because the manufacturers have also abandoned this version of the OS. Your PC will no longer be immune to viruses and malware, and most of its internal software like Word or Excel will also no longer be able to be updated.
The good news is that software publishers, especially valuable antiviruses, have the good taste to extend their technical support to a few more years so as not to abandon their customers to hackers.
Another reassuring news, the firm created by Bill Gates still carries out emergency updates in the event of a major cybersecurity problem like Wannacry in 2017.
What does it change for your business?
With its two versions dedicated to the IT infrastructure of companies, Windows 7 had been widely adopted. Manufacturers continued to sell computers running Windows 7 Professional until October 2016.
However, Windows 7 Pro and Windows 7 Enterprise will continue to receive security updates for one to three years as long as you ... pay.
It will thus cost several tens of euros for a single item then an increasingly large rate will apply until January 2023 in order to encourage companies to move for good to Windows 10.
What can you do to avoid losing everything on your outdated PC?
In December 2019, Microsoft released the latest security patches for Windows 7 and Windows 2008 systems. Computers and their content are therefore vulnerable to new attacks.
"Access by a hacker to the system is easier thanks to bugs or vulnerabilities that are always discovered even years after the release of the operating system," recalls Gavin Millard of Tenable, a company specializing in cyber security for companies.
It is therefore advisable to save online or to an external disk the essential files which will then be downloadable or transferable to a new brand new PC or to a computer updated to Windows 10. The best way to avoid bad ones remaining surprises indeed to convert to the latest version.
Finally, watch out for questionable security packs sold online which offer continuity for Windows 7 but which often harbor malware.
How to adopt Windows 10?
The first solution is radical: put your old PC to retirement and buy a new or recent product that will have standard support for the Windows 10 Home operating system ... until May 11, 2021. The extended support will continue a few years.
Since 2015, Microsoft has offered its customers to upgrade to Windows 10 for free thanks to a migration tool. There is a small software to download which facilitates this change. Provided you have paid for a Windows license and have the product key or digital license used to activate the installed operating system.
The first step is to check that the PC can continue to function well by comparing it with the minimum configuration required.
All PCs less than five years old are normally in the nails: a processor of at least 1 Ghz, 1 or 2 GB of RAM and 16 to 32 GB of hard drive space.
Ex-Windows 7 users will not be disoriented, at least on PC, because version 10 takes up the principle of a Start menu while taking up the principle of downloading through an online store of applications, as on smartphones and tablets.