If you haven’t already upgraded to Windows 10, now is the time. Microsoft has officially stopped supporting Windows 7. Going forward, Windows 7 users won’t receive any updates, including critical security patches, for the 10-year-old platform, putting their computers at increased risk for viruses and other forms of malware.
Microsoft has been urging PC owners for five years to move to Windows 10, the most secure version of the operating system ever developed. But many users werenΓÇÖt interested because of Windows 7ΓÇÖs popularity.
From July 2015, to July 2016, Microsoft offered the Windows 10 upgrade to Windows 7 and 8 users free of charge. It now costs $140 on the company’s website.
Despite the fee, it’s a good idea to make the shift to Windows 10 to protect your privacy and security. Here’s more on the pros and cons of performing the upgrade.
Why Is Support for Windows 7 Ending?
Supporting the software behind an outdated operating system has become too costly, even for a company as large and rich as Microsoft.
Operating systems require constant maintenance. It’s difficult to maintain code from several years ago while at the same time trying to maintain code for the latest operating system. 
To MicrosoftΓÇÖs credit, the cutoff date for Windows 7 support was announced with the original release of the operating system in October 2009. Microsoft also says that the 10-year life-span for Windows 7 is longer than what’s offered by its competitors.
The oldest operating system to receive updates from Apple within the past year is macOS Sierra, released in 2016; it was last updated in September 2019. It’s worth noting that macOS upgrades are free as long as your hardware is compatible. Catalina, the latest version of macOS (released in October 2019), supports laptops released as far back as 2012.
The ultimate goal for Microsoft is to commit fewer resources to Windows 7 and focus more on making Windows 10 as secure as possible against todayΓÇÖs threats.
What Does ‘End of Support’ Actually Mean?
Now that support for Windows 7 has ended, Microsoft will no longer produce updates for the operating system. That means you won’t receive new features or improvements to MicrosoftΓÇÖs digital assistant, Cortana. But more to the point, it means you’ll be cut off from security updates, which puts you and your data at greater risk.
And while antivirus software can protect you from malicious software, a Microsoft spokesperson says it may still leave you vulnerable to ΓÇ£sophisticated attacks, like phishing and ransomwareΓÇ¥ if your operating system no longer receives updates.
Will Your Computer Continue to Function?
Yes, your Windows 7 laptop will continue to operate largely as it does today. You can browse the web with Google Chrome and create and edit documents in Microsoft Word or Excel. Your printer wonΓÇÖt suddenly stop working. In fact, not much of your day-to-day computing will change.
But just because your laptop will power on and let you print your childΓÇÖs book report doesnΓÇÖt mean thatΓÇÖs a smart move.
Ideally, you should move to Windows 10.
How Do You Move to Windows 10?
You can download Windows 10 from the Microsoft website or buy the software on a thumb drive from a retailer such as Amazon. Either way, the upgrade will cost you about $140.
The installation is fairly simple. You’ll need at least 8GB of free space to download Windows 10 from Microsoft.Microsoft provides the steps, you reboot your PC and follow the on-screen prompts. The process takes about an hour depending on the age of your computer, the company says.
Before you begin that process, though, be sure to do a backup, preserving the contents of your computer on an external drive or in cloud storage just to be safe.
Or, if you have any questions or want help with the upgrade, call us at IT Nation.
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