Windows XP shutdown what's next
An overview of EOL XP
— Brought to you by the 2X Cloud Computing Team —
Change is common in every industry. Especially in the IT industry, technology keeps innovating every single day and businesses have to be quick to adapt newer technologies. A recent concern for businesses is the announcement of Microsoft regarding the end of support for XP. In early 2012, Microsoft announced that the support for XP would be closed on 8th April, 2014. According to the Microsoft Support Lifecycle Policy, every Microsoft product gets a 5 year mainstream support and a 5 year extended support and XP that is launched on 25th October, 2001 is already 12 years old now. Owing to its amazing popularity and considering the fact that 30% of PC users still use XP, Microsoft has given ample time for customers to migrate to a newer version. Moreover, the company offered anti-malware support till June 15th, 2015.
What is EOL?
Microsoft software products come with a lifecycle. This lifecycle encompasses the timeline between the release date and the end of support date. The end of support date refers to the date when the company stops providing automatic updates, fixes and technical support for the product. While EOL is a common phenomenon for every windows product, the EOL of XP is hitting headlines because of its amazing popularity among PC users.
It is important for businesses to keep track of this product lifecycle data so that product migration and updates can be planned accordingly. Else, businesses have to face several challenges like compliance and security risks and lack of support from hardware manufacturers and independent software vendors. Microsoft offers various support options to migrate to a higher version of windows. For enterprise customers, extensive tools and expert guidance is offered for an easy migration and deployment of latest windows product, Windows 8.1. Small and medium businesses can take the help of Microsoft Certified Partners to explore best options for their business needs. Home PC users can download the Windows Upgrade Assistance tool that checks if the PC is compatible with the new software. If found incompatible, your PC might require a replacement. Even though XP has come to the end of life, you can still install and activate it. However, you won’t receive any updates and security for the software.
Even though there is Windows Vista, the successor of XP, it hasn’t got all this attention. The reason is XP is more popular among PC users owing to its simplicity, intuitive interface and efficient performance. In fact, most of the ATMs in the US are still using Windows XP. As these ATM machines are very old, upgrading them to a newer version of windows might not be possible. A complete overhaul of the machine is required which will result in huge investments for the financial institutions. This is another reason for Microsoft to be going backward on the EOL. However, as the end date approaches, businesses have to choose between migrating to a newer version of Windows and implementing alternate security measures to protect XP machines.
2X offers an innovative solution to XP users. The new 2X LifeCyclePlus for Windows XP enables you to effectively leverage your existing infrastructure. This new product from 2X replaces Windows shell with the 2X client, giving it the required security and optimized efficiency. 2X is a leading desktop and virtual software solutions provider.
About 2X Software
2X Software is a global leader in virtual desktop and application delivery, remote access and cloud computing solutions. Thousands of enterprises worldwide trust in the reliability and scalability of 2X products. 2X offers a range of solutions to make every company’s shift to cloud computing simple and affordable.
For additional information, visit www.2x.com or contact Giorgio Bonuccelli by email Giorgio.Bonuccelli@2x.com, phone +356 2258 3800.
