Today the official support of Windows 7 by Microsoft is cancelled. The system will no longer receive standard security patches. Companies can still get help and updates but have to pay for it.
Microsoft’s official support for an operating system includes security patches and updates, such as new features. Windows 7 without support can, therefore, be particularly vulnerable to attacks.
Companies that still want to run longer on the system, for example, because they have special software that is difficult to transfer, can pay extra for an extension.
The so-called Extended Security Updates are available for another three years and will cost more each year, trying to get users to switch to a new version of Windows.
Windows 7 has been around for eleven years and still runs on around a quarter of Windows PCs worldwide. The system was particularly popular because it was the first “good” operating system after Windows XP.
Many users skipped Vista (the system that came out after XP), and they did it again with Windows 8, which was mainly aimed at mobile devices. The latest version of Windows, number 10, is currently on a majority of Windows computers, but not all.
Ten will also be the last Windows by the way. The system no longer receives major new versions but is updated via regular updates.
