Internet Software Sciences Newsletter – October 2019
End of Life for Windows 7 – January 14 2020 – Are you ready?
January 14, 2020 – Mark that in your calendar!
You might start seeing these pop up windows (above) appear out of the blue on your Windows 7 machines!
There are two important items that all Web+Center users should be aware of concerning the Windows OS environments is that Windows 7 goes End of Life (No update support) after January 14 2020 and how Windows 10 is moving to “Windows as a service” model. We also explain how to successfully migrate any Web+Center application installed on a Windows 7 machine to another machine below.
If you read the official Microsoft site about Windows 7 EOL, they say:
To avoid security risks and viruses, Microsoft recommends you upgrade to Windows 10.
Probably most Windows 7 machines can be upgraded to Windows 10 successfully, but it must be done carefully and data should be backed up before attempting the upgrade. Microsoft has made Windows 10 compatible with almost all Windows 7 software and hardware, which they did not do with XP to Windows 7/Windows 10 migrations. I upgraded some machines here and researched cost and options and according to MS under their upgrade option, they want you to 1) Get started with a new device 2) Upgrade to Windows 10 Pro $199.99 (see below) or Deploy Windows 10 Enterprise.
Important: If you search around and talk to IT folks who do PC installs and repairs, they will tell you that you can still upgrade to Windows 10 from Windows 7 for free legally with valid Windows 10 licenses.
We recommend everyone read the official documentation from Microsoft on the shift of their previous operating system model of new major windows versions every few years (XP, Windows 7, Vista, Windows 10, etc) to their new model of “Windows as a Service”
READ Microsoft’s Overview of Windows as a Service
From MS – the official word:
“The Windows 10 operating system introduces a new way to build, deploy, and service Windows: Windows as a service. Microsoft has reimagined each part of the process, to simplify the lives of IT pros and maintain a consistent Windows 10 experience for its customers. These improvements focus on maximizing customer involvement in Windows development, simplifying the deployment and servicing of Windows client computers, and leveling out the resources needed to deploy and maintain Windows over time.”
“Prior to Windows 10, Microsoft released new versions of Windows every few years. This traditional deployment schedule imposed a training burden on users because the feature revisions were often significant. That schedule also meant waiting long periods without new features — a scenario that doesn’t work in today’s rapidly changing world, a world in which new security, management, and deployment capabilities are necessary to address challenges. Windows as a service will deliver smaller feature updates two times per year, around March and September, to help address these issues. “
I am certainly hoping that this new model from Microsoft will allow users to continue to use their PC hardware for longer time frames in a safe and OS security updated mode. It seems so wasteful the number of machines that become obsolete and turn into door stops and filling up our closets with E-waste from a OS End of Life decision date from MS. In my experience, my quality DELL computer hardware typically out lasts the OS life span.
If you are running Web+Center on a Windows 7 machine as the web server host machine, you can easily migrate your complete current installation to a new windows 10 OS machine without having to re-install web+center from the original installation .exe or perform any version upgrade, or pay for upgrade licenses or support. If you simply perform a Windows 7 to Windows 10 OS, Web+Center will continue to work as fully configured before under Windows 7. Web+Center works on any Windows OS and we are not aware of any issues our software failing after an OS upgrade. Different OS versions requires some different initial install steps.
If you want to migrate your Web+Center version X without any upgrades, please follow the steps outlined in this resource article on our website at:
If you wish to perform an migration and upgrade to Web+Center Version 10.0 from any previous version, you must have a current Web+Center support contract. If you are running a free version of Web+Center for 2 or less tech, you must purchase a minimum 3 tech license ($300) and 3 tech license annual support/upgrades ($100).
You can check the status of your support contact on our Customer Account Manager site.
Conclusions
Operating system security provided by Microsoft is extremely important in our internet connected world and not upgrading makes your machines and operations vulnerable to potential hacks and security breaches that be devastating. We are reminded daily of entire city governments and very large organizations like the UK’s UHS that have been compromised by unsecured operate systems. Schedule time and make a priority to upgrade any Windows 7 machine before the January 14th deadline. Even today, 40% of windows users still run Windows 7, so there are many out there who need to be helped to be upgraded.
Sincerely,
Scott Vanderlip
President, Internet Software Sciences
