Windows XP is now coming to the end of its official supported life. In April 2014 Microsoft will no longer support this operating system. If you are a business still running XP PC’s, here are some interesting facts.
- In October 2013 31% of all global PC’s still used XP, (Windows XP was launched in 2001) second to Windows 7 which was 46%, Windows 89%, Mac OS X 8%, Vista 4% and Linux 2%.
- By the end of 2013 estimates suggest there will be 1.63 billion PC’s in use, which means approximately 500 million units, will still be using XP. That means in the UK alone there will be some 17 million users of which 13 million will be small to medium sized businesses.
- It is reported that 33% of businesses that are currently using XP are extremely confident that they are ready to migrate their systems by April 2014 however, 33% also stated that they were not even close to migration. Reasons were related to costs and disruption to the business.
2014-15 will no doubt see a steady migration away from Windows XP. Concerns of security issues will be a big reason, as post April, Microsoft will not be providing and further updates or patches. Obviously wear and tear is also another reason and also later software and hardware won’t be tested or supported by XP.
In the second half of 2012 protected Windows XP computers had 4.2 infections per thousand which is considerably higher than Windows 7 or 8.
Don’t forget if you are upgrading your systems, then Recycling your IT can take all your legacy equipment, making sure that you get all the legal documentation you need to satisfy the Environment Agency your computers have been disposed of correctly according to Environmental laws. We also can provide secure data destruction and certification.