Windows 7 extended support ends on January 14, 2020

[Brink]

Microsoft is ending free extended support for Windows 7 in one year on January 14, 2020.



Source: Windows lifecycle fact sheet

 

[Brink]

See also: Windows 7 Enters Its Final Year of Support - Thurrott.com

 

[Banyarola]

Windows 7 End Of Support

What are your plans for when this happens??? Interested to hear what you're gonna do..
https://www.howtogeek.com/400783/windows-7-only-has-one-year-of-security-patches-left/

 

[Aardvarkly]

End of W7 support

Having read countless articles about the impending demise of Windows 7 support I am left with unanswered questions.

No one is saying that MS will send an update that will kill W7 so why can't we just keep using it?

The scare story is that it will suddenly be open to attack by malware & viruses. Given the number of years that this OS has been in use why hasn't MS found all the vulnerabilities by now? Was it so full of errors from day one that it can't possibly survive without constant plugging of holes? Having said that, I haven't had a single problem with it since I gave up my death grip on XP in 2010 to make the switch. I dumped ME and luckily avoided Vista and W8 completely but am completely happy with W7. I don't care how many bells and whistles W10 may offer because I value my privacy and have no confidence in MS to make their "hand held" device system perform as well as 7 does at the moment.

Another claim is that the existing software we use with W7 will stop working. Why is this? If it works today, why wouldn't it work next month? I am still using a version of Paint Shop Pro that hasn't been updated since I first installed it in 2001. It worked with W98 and XP before I started using it in W7.

Only fairly recently has the usage of W10 overtaken W7 worldwide and I suspect that is only because of the stranglehold MS has on the hardware manufacturers. It is increasingly more difficult to buy a PC or laptop without W10 pre-installed. I build my own so it has never been a problem but I see now that the later processors lack the "architecture" to support W7. Time to stock up on N.O.S. hardware or start learning Linux.

Can anyone shed light on what the future might have in store for us Windows 7 diehards?

 

[Paul Black]

Hi Aardvarkly,

There have been quite a few discussions on this forum about this topic. This one is worth a read => Beyond Windows 7.

 

[Brds7t7]

I really don't care how much people bleat on about "you must update to Windows 10 by 2020" or your PC will explode! There are still plenty of people running XP who haven't been hit with viruses or malicious software.

Many articles written by people (mostly suckered in by MS marketing) will have you believe that after the Windows 7 EOL every PC will be getting hit with ransomware, or you'll be getting hacked left, right & centre - it just isn't true - providing you use common sense online.
- Don't open dodgy looking emails or attachments
- Use browser/privacy protection
- Keep many layers of good security like AV and Ransomware protection (particularly nasty these days). I scan every downloaded file with both AV and MalwareBytes
- Keep copies of all your drivers and software setup files
- Keep regular and multiple images/backups and 7 will continue to run fine for a while.
Even when I do decide to move on to something else, I'll still be running multiple VMs with 7 installs, because it just works for the things I need it to do.

Eventually some software will stop getting updates for 7, but again it'll be a few years yet. Plenty of businesses will continue to run 7 for a few years.
Some software makers are still updating their products for XP & Vista, and I'm still using older versions of some software if I haven't liked newer versions. I'm not one of these who has to have the "latest and greatest" of everything because "newer is always greater, because.... erm... it's newer... right!?". There's nothing wrong with being a so-called "techno-luddite" when you have something that works fine.
I've yet to have been hit with a virus since I started using Windows '95!

My brother just bought a new laptop within the last 12 months and first thing he did was wipe Windows 10 and install 7 because he hated 10. Had to search around for a few drivers for it, but the laptop runs fine with 7 on it. And he's not even a "techy" bloke.

Here's what I'll be doing after Windows 7 EOL....

Zero, zilch, nothing - at least not for a couple of years anyway!

 

[Aardvarkly]

Nice one! Power to the people.

 

[Banyarola]

Well, so far most of what I read have been personal opinions and feelings..
Not much about what preventive measures anyone is taking or methods to make up for the lack of no security updates when end of life happens.

I have been around since the DOS days and have built several computers and am pretty knowledgeable..I know I don't know everything but do know that doing nothing and planning nothing usually is a future disaster waiting to happen...

Anyway, it's an interesting discussion...

 

[ranett]

....

Here's what I'll be doing after Windows 7 EOL....

Zero, zilch, nothing - at least not for a couple of years anyway!

Yep, same here.

 

[michael diemer]

The best preventive strategy is to start using Linux now. I just put Kubuntu on my wife's laptop, along with Windows 7. By the time next year rolls around, she will be comfortable with Linux and will use it daily, especially for sensitive uses. And she will still have W7 for any programs she likes, and the games (Linux games are good, but Windows are better). she has already discovered she can open her spreadsheets she did in windows, in Kubuntu with no problem and work on them without missing a beat. and Linux updates come frequently and as needed. You rarely even have to restart. After using Windows, it's a revelation. Operating systems can be smart, up to date and easy to use. All for free (or a donation, which you really should make). Now is the time get to know Linux.

 

[Banyarola]

Thanks MD, I was thinking of checking into Linux..

 

[Brds7t7]

Windows Vista officially had its EOL in 2017 and updates are still available for it until 2020 and easily available online.

Windows 7 is getting extended paid security updates for enterprise until 2023. They won't be available through Windows update to us, but that could be seen as more of a blessing these days!
I'm not sure how MS is intending to deliver the updates, but if they're delivered as MSUs, these will most likely "find their way" online and be available to download somewhere (this can be a good or bad thing though, depending on where you're getting them from). WSUSOffline could also be a future option to continue getting the updates, but again I'm not sure how they're being made available.

Well, so far most of what I read have been personal opinions and feelings..
Not much about what preventive measures anyone is taking or methods to make up for the lack of no security updates when end of life happens.

What specific preventative measures are you referring to though? I've just listed a few above as an example that I'll be using. It wasn't meant to be a comprehensive list, I was just giving some examples. Those weren't just "feelings" though, they were genuine suggestions. I'm always open to any new suggestions though.
There's plenty of other suggestions such as don't download pirated software from dodgy websites, and be careful what you're clicking (this is where good browser protection helps).

There's much better preventative measures than just installing windows security updates though. There are users on here who haven't installed updates since the Windows 10 upgrade push (not my personal choice, but that's up to them), and their systems are still running fine. I've even noticed some users saying they haven't installed updates in years.

Anyway, these days if somebody is really determined to find a way into your PC, they could find a way with or without windows security updates. Most hackers aren't that interested in getting photos or documents from Uncle Jim's 15 year old PC though. They're going after much bigger and more important targets these days. You're probably more likely to get your details stolen from a website hack than a PC hack. If a website gets hacked and they get your personal details from that - Windows updates aren't going to make a blind bit of difference to that anyway. Now ransomware - that's a different kettle of fish. And that's where decent ransomware protection comes in. I also lock my PCs down with a lot of software restriction policies too.

I'm not saying everyone should be nonchalant about the issue, but I'm not concerned about any post 2020 impending PC apocalypse either. There's always a risk with anything that's attached to the Internet these days.

What are you planning to do Banyarola? Switch to Linux as MD suggested? I'm slowly learning it (and I do mean slowly), but don't think I'll be quite ready to go full Linux by January.

 

[lehnerus2000]

XP Armageddon

I'm still waiting for the "XP Armageddon" we were promised (back in 2014).

W10 now has more discovered Distinct Vulnerabilities than W8.1 & XP.
Top 50 products having highest number of cve security vulnerabilities

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

As far as I'm concerned, MS support for Win 7 ended a year ago last month due to the repeated broken updates since then. I stopped updating and rolled back to then because I got sick and tired of updates crippling or breaking my computers.

 

[michael diemer]

Just curious, if I wanted to roll back to the last update that behaved itself, what would that be?

 

[Brds7t7]

Just curious, if I wanted to roll back to the last update that behaved itself, what would that be?

I believe both Lehnerus and Lady F stopped installing them in December 2017.
I think that's around the time when the Spectre/Meltdown fixes were pushed out which were reportedly slowing down some older PCs on 7 & 8.1. I'm still running Haswell and Gigabyte has yet to officially push out a BIOS update for it, although they did email me a beta BIOS for my board after I contacted them. I haven't noticed any day to day slowdowns though.

I think MS pushed out their update which threw up the "Unsupported Hardware" error on 7 & 8.1 for later CPUs in May 2017. Again, totally unnecessary as both 7 & 8.1 work fine on newer CPUs.
Just another one of MS "persuasions" to get people to upgrade to 10, luckily there are ways around it. The more they do things like that, the more people aren't going to want to upgrade. And most who wanted to upgrade would have likely done it by now anyway.

I've carried on installing them as I like to report back here and see if there are any bork ups that month (and probably because I'm a sucker for punishment ).

I think the general feeling is that the last couple years of updates haven't really been all that great though!

 

[michael diemer]

Than you, I have a system image from une 2017 that I recently installed temporarily, to see if it had a working version of a program I can't seem to activate anymore. I suppose I could use that image and install updates until December if I continue to experience update problems.

 

[lehnerus2000]

Accidentally On-Purpose

As far as I'm concerned, MS support for Win 7 ended a year ago last month due to the repeated broken updates since then. I stopped updating and rolled back to then because I got sick and tired of updates crippling or breaking my computers.

Agreed.

The "accidentally on-purpose" broken W7 updates (all of last year) have reinforced my opinion that I've done the right thing by not updating my W7 systems (since the December 2017 updates).

Macrium Reflect is my protection now.

Just curious, if I wanted to roll back to the last update that behaved itself, what would that be?

The January 2018 updates were the start of the fiasco.

The last W7 update I installed was the "December 2017 Security-Only Rollup".

Than you, I have a system image from une 2017 that I recently installed temporarily, to see if it had a working version of a program I can't seem to activate anymore. I suppose I could use that image and install updates until December if I continue to experience update problems.

That should work.

Remember to install Macrium Reflect (or other Imaging software) and make regular Backup Images, just in case some devastating malware does get released.

 

[Melchior]

What about Microsoft's plan to sell continued Win7 support? cost?

 

[Brds7t7]

What about Microsoft's plan to sell continued Win7 support? cost?

So far, all I've been able to find is this:

As Jared Spataro, Corporate Vice President for Office and Windows Marketing, explained: “Today we are announcing that we will offer paid Windows 7 Extended Security Updates (ESU) through January 2023. The Windows 7 ESU will be sold on a per-device basis and the price will increase each year.”

No pricing details were revealed (I suspect it’s a lot) and Spataro confirmed these would only be offered to customers running Windows 7 Professional or Windows 7 Enterprise in Volume Licensing – aka large businesses. Consequently this excludes the vast majority of Windows 7 users, as the operating system still runs on almost 40% of computers worldwide.

So, for enterprise customers, it'll probably be expensive and will increase every year, giving them more incentive to upgrade to 10. Home or small businesses won't be able to purchase them though, but that's not to say they won't be available somewhere. As they're on a per-device basis, who knows what they'll decide to charge. I can't see them being cheap though.