One-year countdown to 'biggest Ctrl-Alt-Delete in history' as Windows 10 approaches end of support
- Reference: 1728926832
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2024/10/14/final_year_windows_10/
- Source link:
A year from now, on October 14, 2025, Windows 10 will drop out of support. Some users will be able to continue receiving security updates for a fee. Others using Long Term Servicing Channel (LTSC) editions have more time. Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSC extended support ends on January 13, 2032, while Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC runs until January 9, 2029. But for the rest, just 365 days remain until Microsoft halts updates.
Steve Haskew, Group Director of Sustainability and Growth at Circular Computing, called it "The biggest Ctrl-Alt-Delete" in history. Other organizations, such as the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), have called on Microsoft to [1]extend support for Windows 10 to prevent millions of devices suddenly being rendered eligible for landfill overnight.
[2]
While Windows 10 won't suddenly stop working for users still on the operating system, stopping security updates will inevitably leave customers increasingly vulnerable to attacks.
[3]
[4]
According to the figures from Statcounter and Lansweeper, Windows 11 has enjoyed a modest surge in recent months. [5]Statcounter's numbers put Microsoft's flagship operating system as having half the market share of its predecessor. However, [6]Lansweeper suggested that the increase might be more down to enterprises finally hitting the upgrade button rather than buying new hardware.
But PC shipments don't seem to be experiencing the hoped-for wave just yet, as analysts [7]struggle to agree whether they're up or down , let alone surging.
[8]
When Microsoft launched Windows 11, it did so alongside hardware requirements that rendered many machines running Windows 10 suddenly obsolete. The problem was that there was not enough in Windows 11 to justify buying new hardware. Not helping matters was the fact that, with the assistance of workarounds, many owners of rejected Windows 10 devices found that Windows 11 would run without issues, further highlighting the artificiality of Microsoft's requirements.
[9]Windows 11 24H2 hoards 8.63 GB of junk you can't delete
[10]PC shipments stuck in neutral despite AI buzz
[11]Windows 11 migration? Upgrade engine revs up, enterprises have no choice
[12]Saying goodbye to the tech dreams Microsoft abandoned with Windows 11 24H2
Microsoft's gamble that customers would rush to its hardware partners to purchase new devices to run Windows 11 might have unintended consequences. After all, if a user has to buy a new device, how about a shiny new Mac? Or consider desktop Linux, which is very usable nowadays, allowing users to repurpose hardware that runs Windows 10 perfectly well.
The Windows-maker's Copilot+ PCs represent a final throw of the dice for the company and its partners to persuade users to upgrade to Windows 11. While [13]the hardware is undeniably impressive , there is little to make customers step out of a normal hardware refresh cycle.
There is now a year of Windows 10 support remaining for many customers. The modest uptick in the market share of Windows 11 will need to accelerate over the next 12 months if Microsoft is to avoid the scenario of legacy customers being exposed to risk because support for Windows 10 has been pulled, and an upgrade of dubious merit is impossible without purchasing new hardware. ®
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[1] https://www.theregister.com/2023/10/27/microsoft_petitioned_to_keep_windows/
[2] 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=2Zw2UhB54Ytz0ztFCF7V67wAAAAU&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] 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=44Zw2UhB54Ytz0ztFCF7V67wAAAAU&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Zw2UhB54Ytz0ztFCF7V67wAAAAU&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/01/windows_11_market_share/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/07/enterprise_windows_11_upgrade/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/10/pc_market_gartner_canalys/
[8] 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=44Zw2UhB54Ytz0ztFCF7V67wAAAAU&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/11/windows_update_cleanup/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/10/pc_market_gartner_canalys/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/07/enterprise_windows_11_upgrade/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/03/whats_gone_from_windows_11/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/07/dell_qualcomm_powered_copilot_pc/
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: And we all know what that means...
Copilot mysteriously pinned itself to my Win 10 taskbar last week.
Mysteriously, because Microsoft explicitly say that pinning must be an active user action, and must never be done programmatically.
Doesn't half look like Microsoft illegally abusing their monopoly power to push an unrelated product - yet again.
I only use Windows for legacy sotware, so why would I need to move off 7 ?
"While Windows 10 won't suddenly stop working for users still on the operating system ... " - Doubtless that will be the next innovation.
Hardware is not the issue
My 5 year old self-built Ryzen 7 system can handle Windows 11 but is still on Windows 10 despite MS nagging me to "uprade" every so often.
My work laptop has Windows 11 and.... I don't like it.
I don't like the barely functional Start Menu.
I don't like pinned icons being in the center of the screen.
I really, really don't like the retarded new context menu in Windows Explorer that breaks my workflow hundreds of times a day. (or did till I worked out how to disable that PoS)
I don't like or want Copilot or any other LLM based features.
I don't like using my work laptop because it has Win 11 on it.
There is nothing about Windows 11 that I do like and my Steam Deck keeps whispering that maybe I don't need Windows at all.
This should worry MS more that it seems to given I'm a software engineer who has worked with Windows and MS platforms for almost 30 years.
Re: Hardware is not the issue
I'm with you I-Ron. I have the same issues with usability in 11, it's UI seems to be designed to be anti-productive. I spend more of my time at work in WSL now, launching from the command line like the heady days of DOS.
Windows Recall might be a useful feature, if you could trust MS (I don't, LinkedIn is the latest in a long line of MS products that quietly tries to shaft you).
2 kids laptops and a desktop, wife's desktop, my two laptops. None of them upgradable, all of them perfectly cromulent. It's beginning to look a lot like Linux... if only any of the GUIs had a ducking usable cursor.
Re: Hardware is not the issue
I've not noticed a problem with the cursor in lxqt, kde plasma and whatever gnome rubbish ships by default with SLES 15.6. what problem are you having?
Well said.
I saw the writing on the wall with W8/8.1 and W10 eight years ago. They FSCK'd around with something that people liked for IMHO, no good reason.
Even Server 2016 broke a lot of my code so I called it a day on 30th Sept 2016.
These days, there are no Windows systems on my network. I have a firewalled subnet for any visitors running Windows otherwise, it is all Linux and MacOS.
Support??
Really??
With support from folk like Julie Larson-Green ("the ribbon")...........
.....and support from folk like Steve Sinofsky ("Windows 8")...........
.....I think we can DO WITHOUT any support from the folk in Redmond, WA......
Making the decision for me --
Microsoft's refusal to make AI components "optional" and defaulted as "not automatically installed without permission" has made the decision for me and my organization.
Linux has the alternative - leaving the OWNER of the hardware in control.
At this point, Windows 11 is nothing more than a data grab mixed in with a nod to hardware vendors to keep them afloat. Meanwhile, millions of pounds of e-waste will be generated by hardware that is perfectly usable - even running Windows 11 (as noted in the article).
Upgrading my linuxhardware
I suspect that a lot of hardware will come onto the market when people are conned into replacing it to run Windoze 11. Should be some good upgrade for my linux boxes mixed in there.
Re: Upgrading my linuxhardware
Yes. I'm thinking of getting a new old box to replace my old old box and had the same thought.
There seem plenty of quite well 'specced machines out there just now, but would it be better to hold on until the avalanche of perfectly good ex-windows 10 are on the market?
Decisions, decisions.
I'll be installing Ubuntu on my folk's machine when 10 is EOL. Heck of a lot cheaper, easier, and more secure than buying into "Recall" security hell!
They don't care as long as they can force you to get a Microsoft login
Microsoft decided a few years ago that subscriptions and advertising were the way to go and we're now nearly all, especially companies, sleeping walking along down this road.
Re: They don't care as long as they can force you to get a Microsoft login
Got the Groiup Policy
"Accounts: Block Microsoft Accounts". Set to "User can't add or log on with Microsoft Accounts"
still get the blob next to the user names asking to sign on to M$
While Windows 10 won't suddenly stop working
But every single one of 'em will cheerfully run the Linux of your choice.
Unfortunately, not everything works with linux
Built two high spec pcs in the last 2-1/2 years. The older of the two now runs linux, but minerals is totally broken on multi-screen desktops. Not just for 4k smart TV s (I have 6 connected to the new windbox, and room for 4 more), but even older hardware that USED to work (a pair of Samsung webmaster 1920x1200 screens) that USED to "just work" don't any more, not on the iGPU, not on a couple of old NVidia 1050ti cards, or any combo whatsoever.
This has been a problem for 3 years, no sign of a fix in sight. But no problem - I'll just image the system drive, anything nasty bits it I'll just restore from the image. Everything else has multiple backups on multiple drives On multiple computers, because storage is cheap.
0patch for Patching Win 10 after EOL
For those who will continue using Windows 10 after it goes EOL and want security updates without subscribing to those provided by Redmond (should they choose to offer them, at whatever their price), there is 0patch - https://0patch.com/. Several computers under my wing still running Windows 7 have been utilizing their "micropatch" security updates flawlessly since Win 7 went EOL.
From 0patch:
Long Live Windows 10... With 0patch
End of Windows 10 Support Looming? Don't Worry, 0patch Will Keep You Secure For Years To Come!
https://blog.0patch.com/2024/06/long-live-windows-10-with-0patch.html
Two articles:
0patch Explained: How It Works and What It Means for the End of Windows 10
0patch promises to keep delivering security updates to Windows 10 even after Microsoft stops next year. Should you use it? We help you decide.
https://www.pcmag.com/explainers/0patch-explained-how-it-works-and-what-it-means-for-the-end-of-windows
Want to safely use Windows 10 after Microsoft ends support? Meet 0Patch
With 0Patch, you can provide Windows 10 with updates beyond October 2025.
https://www.pcworld.com/article/2456251/windows-10-will-no-longer-receive-updates-from-october-2025-change-that-with-this-tool.html
And we all know what that means...
- No more unexpected reboots
- No crappy new software being installed without your permission
- No uninstalling of software that you're using and forcing people to download a newer (crappier) version from the store
Of course MS will try and force everybody to upgrade using all kinds of shady tactics before October 2025...