Time to upgrade to newer Windows is running out

Jul 15, 2019 06:04 GMT  ·  By

Windows 7 has officially entered the last six months of support, as the 2009 operating system is projected to be retired on January 14, 2020.

Windows 7, which continues to be the second most-used desktop operating system worldwide, reached the end of mainstream support on January 13, 2015 for devices where the Service Pack 1 was installed.

Without SP1, Windows 7 no longer receives support since April 9, 2013.

However, Windows 7 Service Pack 1 continues to be serviced with security updates as part of Microsoft’s extended support, albeit these updates do not include any new features.

Once Windows 7 SP1 also reaches the end of extended support on January 14, 2020, the operating system would be officially listed as retired, meaning that no patches would continue to be offered to devices running it.

Companies and organizations worldwide can purchase custom support for Windows 7, with Microsoft servicing computers still running the OS based on a fee per each PC.

Second most-used desktop OS

According to third-party data provided by NetMarketShare, Windows 7 continues to be one of the most popular choices for desktop users.

While Windows 10 is currently the top option with a market share of 45.79%, Windows 7 remains the runner-up with no less than 35.38% share for the month of June. All the other OS versions for the PC are far behind, with macOS 10.14, for instance, securing the third spot with a share of 5.31%.

There’s a big chance that Windows 7 would continue to run on a substantial number of devices when the January 14, 2020 milestone is reached, and this is worrying for both Microsoft and users given that these systems would no longer receive security patches.

Windows 10 is obviously the recommended choice for those who decide to upgrade, albeit Windows 8.1 continues to be serviced as well.