Microsoft’s push towards Windows 10 continues. Today, Microsoft is ending support for Windows 8, as well as
older versions of its Internet Explorer web browser, IE 8, IE 9, and IE 10.
For end users, that doesn’t mean the software instantly becomes
non-functional, but that it will longer be updated with bug fixes or
other security patches. That could potentially expose a good portion of
online users to malware, if they choose not to upgrade, Microsoft
warns.
On its
website,
the company explains that security patches are necessary to protect
computers from attacks, so “upgrading and staying current is important.”
Microsoft suggests that users who want to remain on Internet Explorer
immediately move to the new version, Internet Explorer 11, which offers
better security, improved performance, better backward compatibility,
and support for web standards. This version of the web browser will
continue to receive fixes and security patches, as well as technical
support on several versions of Windows, including Windows 7, Windows 8.1
and Windows 10.
Of course, users can also choose to move to Microsoft’s new web browser,
Microsoft Edge, if they also move to a Windows 10 device. This successor to IE is
the built-in browser on Windows 10,
and offers a simple design, access to Microsoft’s virtual assistant
Cortana, a “Reading View,” and the added ability to doodle or annotate
web pages with notes, among other things.
Additionally, if you’re still slogging away on Windows Vista (SP2), IE 9 will continue to be supported, Microsoft said
previously. Windows Server also offers some exceptions, with IE 9 support on Server 2008 (SP2) and IE 10 support on Server 2012.
The current user base on IE 8 through 10 is sizable – it represents
roughly 20 percent of the desktop web browser market, according to data
from
Netmarketshare. That is, 4.18 percent of users are on IE 10, another 6.67 percent use IE 9, and 8.95 percent are on IE 8.
In addition to killing off older versions of IE, today is also the
last day for Windows 8 support, which will also no longer receive
security patches and other updates following today’s final Patch Tuesday
for the OS. That means Windows 8 users will need to upgrade to Windows
8.1 or Windows 10, in order to continue to protect their PC from
security risks.
Windows 8.1 upgraders will then receive support until Jan. 10, 2023,
and Windows 10 upgraders will have support until Oct. 14, 2025 after
they move to the new OS version.
Microsoft has been heavily pushing its newer OS Windows 10, and said
recently that the operating system is now running on over 200 million devices.
However, the company’s larger goal is to increase that figure to over a
billion in a few years’ time. In part, getting there will require
overcoming users’ inertia – and enterprise’s reluctance – to move to a
new version of an OS.
According to some sources,
Windows 8 is still running on 2-3 percent of PCs, or 30-40 million
devices. By forcing customers’ hands by ending support for older
versions, Microsoft is encouraging those users to finally ditch their
outdated software.
http://techcrunch.com/2016/01/12/microsoft-today-ends-support-for-windows-8-old-versions-of-internet-explorer/#.hv5coyz:wfha
