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Windows 11 usage stats within touching distance of... XP

(2022/04/19)


Windows 11 is continuing to struggle both in the enterprise and at home, according to figures published by IT asset management platform Lansweeper. Disappointingly for Microsoft, it has yet to even surpass Windows XP.

Lansweeper's figures come from a scan of 10 million PCs, 20 percent enterprise and 80 percent consumer. The latter comes from the company's Fing acquisition, a network scanning and discovery app.

[1]

Click to enlarge

It makes for grim reading from Microsoft's perspective. Upgrades might have tripled over the last three months, according to Lansweeper, but we'd contend that Windows 11 was starting from a pretty low base.

April's snapshot has Windows 11 on 1.44 percent of Windows machines surveyed. The long-dead XP and recently culled Windows 7 were on 1.71 percent and 4.7 percent respectively. Windows 8 only accounted for 1.99 percent while Windows 10 squatted on an impressive 80.34 percent of systems.

"Although the rate of adoption is increasing bit by bit, it's obvious that Windows 11 upgrades aren't going as fast as Microsoft had hoped, especially within the business environment," said Roel Decneut, chief strategy officer at Lansweeper. "Many organizations have been put off from having to buy new machines that meet these conditions, while others are simply happy with the current existence of Windows 10 which continues to be supported until 2025."

[2]Windows 11 growth at a standstill amid stringent hardware requirements

[3]Microsoft backtracks on lack of easy Windows browser choice

[4]New Windows 11 build boasts inbox updates and UI tweaks

[5]Microsoft gives tablets some love in latest Windows 11 build

With more than half of the devices surveyed incapable of a Windows 11 upgrade, thanks to Microsoft's stricter hardware requirements, customers would be forgiven for staying put. We'd also find it hard to imagine many enterprises doing a wholesale upgrade until Windows 11 has been out for at least year or so and had time to settle down.

In terms of adoption trend, consumers are unsurprisingly ahead of businesses when it comes to Windows 11. The OS is headed toward 2.5 percent in terms of consumer share while barely passing 1 percent for business.

[6]

Click to enlarge

The continued dominance of Windows 10 echoes the [7]recent survey performed by AdDuplex (which only includes Windows 10 and 11 systems), although that report found that Windows 11 growth had pretty much ground to a halt, likely as a result of most of the consumers that could having already performed the upgrade. AdDuplex's data is based on apps using the company's advertising platform.

"This situation will likely continue in the future unless businesses are given a compelling reason to upgrade," said Decneut.

[8]

There was a glimmer of light for Microsoft with a marked decline in machines running end-of-life operating systems, which fell to 6.6 percent from 9.75 percent in January. While that figure includes unsupported versions of Windows Server, XP and Windows 7 still accounted for a significant proportion.

[9]

Microsoft doesn't provide much in the way of usage figures itself, but The Register asked for its take and will update should the company respond. ®

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[1] https://regmedia.co.uk/2022/04/14/lansweeper_os_marketshare.jpg

[2] https://www.theregister.com/2022/03/31/windows_11_stalls/

[3] https://www.theregister.com/2022/03/29/microsoft_browser_choice/

[4] https://www.theregister.com/2022/03/10/microsoft_windows_11_insider_tabs/

[5] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/25/windws_tablet/

[6] https://regmedia.co.uk/2022/04/14/windows_11_progress.png

[7] https://www.theregister.com/2022/03/31/windows_11_stalls/

[8] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Yl6IU0ZhK1J1Cucs-H1LSwAAAJM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0

[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Yl6IU0ZhK1J1Cucs-H1LSwAAAJM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0

[10] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/



Potemkine!

Deploying Windows 10 everywhere was a huge task, one could say a hassle.

What's the point of making the same work again to deploy Windows 11 whose only novelties are related to GUI and therefore will disorient users?

I need my feet everyday. I don't see the need to shoot myself in them.

El Bard

An enterprise might even be faced with the question: should we really upgrade all our PCs/laptops, or should we just go with Windows 365 online?

One of those situtations where one is not sure whether it's a brilliant evil plan or the result of a series of serindipitous mess ups

TonyJ

"..."Although the rate of adoption is increasing bit by bit, it's obvious that Windows 11 upgrades aren't going as fast as Microsoft had hoped, especially within the business environment," said Roel Decneut, chief strategy officer at Lansweeper..."

Go figure! When you rule out companies deploying it to new hardware because it doesn't meet some arbitrary hardware requirements, AND your existing OS is good for another 3 years of support, why would anyone be surprised at the slow adoption?

Add to that, that rolling out a new OS even with MECM (SCCM as was) etc is still a fundamentally large, slow, process for many companies then you just hit the point where the barriers to doing so are too high. And they really shouldn't be.

Intune can help - especially since the introduction of offline domain join (though the few attempts I've had at that on my home lab have been very hit and miss) but the biggest (artificial) stumbling block is that needing a new machine for so many. Especially given so many companies and individuals upgraded in 2020/21 - there isn't a new hardware refresh due for years.

Paul Crawford

A friend of mine had her laptop updated to 11, not by her (knowing choice) and it sucked. Really I was surprised at how slow it was and presumably that ~3 year old laptop was considered suitable!

I'll keep my Win7 VM than kyou...

"This situation will likely continue [until] businesses are given a compelling reason to upgrade"

Pascal Monett

Absolutely.

Borkzilla is finding out that businesses have other things to do then jump every time Borkzilla says so.

And about bloody time too.

You are lost in the Swamps of Despair.