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Microsoft is warning customers that the end is soon coming for Windows 7 in much the same way it came for Windows XP earlier this year. The company will end free mainstream support for Windows 7 on January 13, 2015, but users will continue to get security updates till 2020. Windows 9 is considered to play a key role in Microsoft’s strategy to move users to newer platforms.
Redmond today rolled out a new advisory to warn that support for several software products across its range is coming to an end, which basically means that those running it should upgrade to a newer release as soon as possible.
There’s no doubt that Windows 7 is the number one entry on the list, with Microsoft warning that support for Enterprise, Enterprise N, Home Basic, Home Premium, Professional, Professional N, Starter, Start N, Ultimate, and Ultimate N packages is ending on January 13, 2015.
While these Windows 7 versions are exiting mainstream support, they will still get extended support for an additional 5 years, but Microsoft says that it’s anyway recommended to upgrade as soon as possible just to make sure that you’re completely secure.
“With the average Windows Server taking over 200 days to migrate, now it is the time to act and start planning for your migration," the company said in a statement, trying to emphasize that it’s better to create a plan to complete the upgrade to a supported OS version in time. "With the Architectural changes in 32 bit to 64 bit technology – everything changes in Windows Server 2012."
As you can see, Microsoft seems to be ready to start a new and very long upgrading process of its software, even though the company still struggles to convince those on Windows XP to switch to either Windows 7 or Windows 8.1.
At the same time, it’s also working on some pretty critical updates for the Windows platform, including a brand new Windows version that could hit the market in early 2015 as Windows 9.
