Microsoft to end Windows XP support Tuesday

    
Microsoft will end support for Windows XP on April 8, 2014. There are indications that leaving Windows XP unsupported will expose organisations to a growing risk as the number and severity of security exploits grow, and continued support from Microsoft will be costly.

There are lots of organisations still using Windows XP. Really, almost every organisation will have some XP left – there is lots of Windows 95 running in hospitals, for example. But overall, when support ends, we estimate that 20-25 per cent of enterprise systems will still run XP and that one third of enterprises will have more than 10 per cent of their systems remaining on XP.

The risk of security breaches on systems running Windows XP beyond April 2014 is high. Companies still running XP should address these concerns by having a plan to get rid of it as soon as possible.

Organisations should reduce user rights on the machines, restrict the PC to run only “known good” applications, and minimise web browsing and email use on the Personal Computers.

There is also the need to move critical applications and users to server-based computing. Where users or applications can’t be moved for regular use due to licensing, cost, or capacity issues, have the applications installed for server access in case of emergency.

 Even in organisations without Windows XP, a user that puts an unpatched Windows XP machine on the network can introduce problems.

While most applications now support Windows 7, it’s possible an organisation has very old applications or versions that don’t. Application testing is of paramount concern.

Organisations need to decide whether to deploy Windows 7 or Windows 8. A migration to Windows 7 will likely be faster, but one to Windows 8 will have more longevity – Windows 7 support ends in January 2020, less than six years away, and organizations that are so late on Windows XP should not get into the same situation with end of Windows 7 support.

For many, the best alternative would be to deploy Windows 7 for the most critical users and applications now and working to be able to start deploying Windows 8 starting early in 2015.



-Gartner.com