Microsoft is ending support for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008: here’s what you need to know

Support for Windows 7 and Server 2008 ends January 2020. Here’s how to protect your systems.

All good things come to an end, including popular and robust operating systems that outlive their lifespans. Microsoft is ending support for its Windows 7 desktop operating system and Windows 2008 server operating system starting January 14, 2020. This includes all versions of these operating systems for businesses and desktops. consumers, with the exception of federally certified voting systems that run Windows 7.

TO SEE: Windows 10: a cheat sheet (TechRepublic)

This does not mean that these operating systems will fail on January 15, 2020, but be warned: you will not be able to get support from Microsoft, nor will Microsoft release any other security patches for them. which will put your systems at risk.

Small businesses can purchase Windows 7 updates from Microsoft, though you must pay $25 per device for Windows 7 Enterprise and $50 per device for Windows 7 Professional for the first year of support. The price doubles sequentially for years two and three.

I advise against pouring more money into outdated systems and whenever possible upgrading desktops to Windows 10 and servers to at least Windows Server 2012, though if you’re going to go through the pain of the upgrade, it’s probably best to shoot for Windows Server 2016 or, even better, Windows Server 2019, as that will give you the most time before you have to upgrade again.

In order to know what to upgrade, you need to have some sort of inventory report provided by a centralized administration product such as System Center Configuration Manager, inFlow Inventory, or ZhenHub. These should be able to give you a list of systems that will be affected so you can get started.

Server upgrades are quite easy, especially with redundant systems. You’ll likely have to sift through change requests if you work for a large company and schedule work late at night or on weekends. The good news is that it is possible to upgrade to a newer server version and keep the same hostname, settings, applications, etc. – it’s even better if you can do it through automation, like with System Center Configuration Manager.

Desktop upgrades are trickier. You can use the upgrade process to move from Windows 7 to Windows 10, and it will also work through automated means, but there is often chaos and confusion among the user community.

Be prepared for apps that don’t work, settings that didn’t transfer, and the possibility of data loss. I always recommend that users back up their data to a centralized server such as a file share and make them responsible for owning and sharing the process.

If you can’t upgrade a Windows 7 machine (or series of machines) yet, you have a few options besides paying for support:

• Take the system offline only if network access is not needed (remove it from the wired or wireless network).

• If network access is required, place the system on a separate subnet and allow access to and from it only to authorized systems. Be sure to limit the ports allowed to connect to and from this system so that only necessary ports are open.

• If the system is a virtual machine, take periodic snapshots of it. So, if it is affected by any vulnerability, you can easily restore the snapshot.

Microsoft provides more details on how to handle the end of this support.