Tag: EOL

  • Windows 10 End of Life is Coming, and It’s Sooner Than You Think

    Windows 10 End of Life is Coming, and It’s Sooner Than You Think

    While Windows 11 (code name Sun Valley) hasn’t officially been introduced to the public, it’s created enough of a stir that the topic of Windows 10 support ending has been pushed to the forefront of the tech news cycle. Windows 10 will officially end mainstream support on October 14, 2025.

    Back in 2015 it was circled around that Microsoft 10 would be the “last Windows release”, indicating Windows would follow the route of Apple and just continuously update this version in perpetuity. We would have said that was unlikely back then and it seems we would have been right.

    While the comment that initiated that rumor can be tied back to one Microsoft employee, Microsoft didn’t exactly dismiss the notion at the time. They have been moving forward since then into the “as a service” model, especially with their service Microsoft 365 replacing Office 365 as it was known.

    Most of us can remember a time when you paid a one-time fee to use the Office suite of software, but Microsoft has fully moved to a subscription model only under Microsoft 365. “As a service” is basically the de facto model in tech at this point, with Adobe also being another example (remember when you could just buy Photoshop?).

    Businesses like Google always operated under an “as a service” model. So, it makes us question if the roll out of Windows 11 will look the same as past releases.

    Especially for businesses, instead of pricey one-time licensing fees will we be looking at a monthly charge potentially? And how would that work when Windows 11 eventually went end of life?

    Tech News #13

    Microsoft has operated under two models for end of life so far, fixed and what they now call the modern lifecycle. Under the fixed lifecycle there weren’t really too many restrictions for support, as long as you kept your version up to date you would receive some level of support for 10 years.

    Now, they operate on a regular update cycle. With a feature update usually arriving in October, a year end update in November and a mid-year update in June or July. While you can expect regular updates between those dates, major feature updates are now condensed.

    Customers are encouraged to perform at least one of these updates a year to stay current. Failing to update with one of these major releases may make your version ineligible for next year’s releases.

    More news about Windows 11 may be arriving next week in an event announced by Microsoft, you can attend the live stream here on June 24th at 11 AM Eastern Time. We’re looking forward to summarizing the details of this event in next weeks blog.

    Beyond Windows 10 for PCs, there will probably be a significant update to Windows Server as well. Server updates tend to happen more often, with Windows Server 2022 following just 3 years after Windows Server 2019 (it’s been in preview since March of this year).

    If your business needs help navigating the ever-changing landscape of Windows or if you’re trying to figure out how to get outdated, unsupported versions back to mainstream support, we’re here for you. Valley Techlogic is a Microsoft Partner and we’re experts when it comes helping businesses manage their Microsoft products, whether it’s Windows or Microsoft 365. Connect with us today to learn more.

    Looking for more to read? We suggest these tech articles from the last week.

    This article was powered by Valley TechLogic, an IT provider in Atwater, CA. You can find more information at https://www.valleytechlogic.com/ or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/valleytechlogic/ . Follow us on Twitter at https://x.com/valleytechlogic.

  • Windows 7 End of Life: Upgrade your existing machine or start fresh?

    A laptop upgraded windows.January 14th, 2020 looms ever closer and you may be scrambling for a solution to one problem: Does it make sense to upgrade your existing machine or purchase a new one?

    I can’t say for certain which one is the better option for you or your business, but one thing is for certain, remaining on Windows 7 after support ends is a dangerously ill-advised idea.

    Windows 10 released July 29, 2015, so chances are if your machine is still running Windows 7 it’s older than the 3 years I personally recommend a machine be replaced by. We know this is not always feasible so here are the minimum specs we recommend for an upgrade to Windows 10:

    • In my experience your machine will need at least 8 GBs of ram to run Windows 10 relatively smoothly, but ideally it will have at least 16 GBs at this point in time so it has enough power to run the operating system and all the processes you may use day to day.
      Something else to consider is whether your ram is soldered (very common in laptops), if it is an upgrade will not be possible.
    • Your CPU is something else to consider when upgrading or buying, here at Valley TechLogic we recommend Intel CPU’s and more specifically at least Core i-5 or Core i-7, both will run Windows 10 effectively but Core i-7 will be much more future proof.
    • A Solid State Drive, many older machines still use highly failure prone mechanical hard drives. A solid state drive will be less prone to hardware failure and it loads much faster. On average solid state drives load 5 to 20 times faster than a mechanical drive.
    • You may also need to purchase the Windows 10 license, at the present time that will run you $199.99 for a Pro license (what we recommend in a business setting).
    • There also may be a cost to having these upgrades performed for you if you don’t currently have an all encompassing Managed IT Plan in place (learn more here). This cost can really add up if you own a business with more than one outdated machine.

    Depending on your situation the costs associated with upgrading an existing machine may not make sense in the long run. Purchasing a new machine is an investment, and when done thoughtfully it will last many years into the future.

    It’s also possible to transfer your existing computer files from the old machine to the new one – even system settings – making the switch painless.

    Here at Valley Techlogic we work with our customers to come up with a solution that makes sense for their business, whether they’re upgrading existing computers with new hardware or helping them purchase a new one through our affiliates.

    We work to minimize downtime and through our comprehensive Managed IT Department plan upgrading is a covered project. If you’re in the Central Valley reach out today to see if we can help you with this end of life event, or any other IT projects you may have coming up.

    This article was powered by Valley TechLogic, an IT provider in Atwater, CA. You can visit us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/valleytechlogic/ . Follow us on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/valleytechlogic .