This Is the End for Windows 7

In days, Microsoft is pulling the plug on both Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. If your business still has to move away from this software, you need to act today. The consequences for not moving away from these titles can be absolutely dire for your business. Let’s take a look at your options.

Option 1 - Purchase Upgraded Hardware and Migrate Your Data

This may not seem desirable (or possible), but with support ending for these titles, you will need to do your best to upgrade away from your current infrastructure. One real problem you are going to face is that the expedited nature of any migration will almost certainly cost you much more than if you would have upgraded months ago. 

While Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 will still work, they will no longer be supported. This means that any crucial security updates and software patches that are needed will no longer happen, leaving any vulnerability wide open for hackers to exploit. 

If your organization simply cannot afford to purchase new hardware, you may be able to at least upgrade to a supported platform on your endpoints. The minimum specifications that Windows 10 needs to run on a workstation are:

• Processor - 1 GHZ or faster
• RAM - 1 GB for 32-bit or 2 GB for 64-bit
• Hard disk space - 16 GB for 32-bit or 20 GB for 64-bit
• Graphics card - DirectX 9 or later with WDDM 1.0 driver
• Display - 800 x 600 resolution

Realize that this is the minimum, so don’t expect the system to run efficiently if these are the specs of your workstations. We recommend at least a 2 GHz dual-core processor, supported by between 4-to-8 GB of RAM, and a hard drive with at least 160 GBs of space.

Option 2 - Virtualization

Another option is that you can migrate your data and processing to the cloud. This option will also be costly, but it’s much more cost-effective than purchasing new hardware and software for every machine at the last moment. Businesses have begun to leverage virtual machines in cloud-hosted platforms such as AWS and Azure rather than hosting their infrastructure in-house. 

This also eliminates the need for huge computer upgrades as each end point you depend on can run as thin clients. The cloud-based system may not save you money in the long run, but being able to pay for your IT improvements as an operating expense rather than a huge capital expense, especially considering the lack of time you have before the software becomes unsupported, is a huge win. 

Option 3 - Microsoft 365

Sure, Microsoft 365 won’t solve your major Windows Server 2008 R2 problems, but it can be a great option if you really need to maintain productivity AND upgrade. Microsoft 365 provides users and administrators the tools they need to conduct business. It features Windows 10 for Business, the Microsoft Office 365 productivity suite (including Microsoft Teams, Outlook email, and OneDrive storage space), and customizable security tools that allow you to retain control of your organization’s data. By being able to get all the tools your team needs on such a short schedule, you can maintain productivity while you figure out your next move. Heck, you may like Microsoft 365 and choose to keep it as a core part of your productivity strategy.

The time is now to upgrade. Reach out to Computerware today at (703) 821-8200 to talk to one of our knowledgeable consultants and let us help you figure out how to get past this looming deadline before your entire business is in jeopardy.