Microsoft is ending software support for Windows XP toda

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Microsoft is ending software support for Windows XP today. This basically means that after 12 years, the Windows XP joyride is over and Microsoft is insisting that you move on to Windows 7 or more preferably Windows 8.1.

It should be noted that you can still install Windows XP and activate it on a PC but the computer won’t receive any security updates.

You might wonder why this is such a big deal, and why you may need to upgrade to Windows 7 or Windows 8.1. But the truth is, even you are hugely attached to your operating system, it’s time to move on.

Here are the reasons that should help you make the leap.

Security: Without critical Windows XP security updates, your PC will be vulnerable to harmful viruses, spyware, and other malicious software, etc. As Microsoft points out that the anti-virus software alone won’t do the job as hackers will be able to exploit software bugs in the OS to hack into your machine.

Compliance: For businesses, which are governed by regulatory obligations, they may find that they can’t that compliance requirements. Internet and computer security at your business will matter and thus Windows XP needs to go.

Lack of Independent Software Vendor (ISV) Support: Many software vendors will no longer support their products running on Windows XP. So you might not get access to the latest software and thus upgrading will be the only option available.

Hardware Manufacturer support: Hardware manufactures do send out drive updates for your PCs throughout the course of the year. They are not going to support Windows XP on existing and new hardware and thus your PC performance will be affect.

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