In January 2020 Microsoft is pulling the plug on Windows 7 support. It will no longer provide security updates or support for PCs running Windows 7. As a result any new flaws discovered in the operating system are open to exploitation by hackers.
Cue, gnashing of teeth. Many people will ask; “Why should I upgrade to Windows 10 when I’m perfectly happy with Windows 7 and why should I pay for something I don’t want?”
If you have a computer that’s compatible that’s with Windows 10 and also have a valid Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 license key, you can still upgrade to Windows 10 for free.
Microsoft just doesn’t shout about it. You can find out more about it here.
Reasons to upgrade
Windows is the biggest target for malware and attackers have become intimately familiar with Windows 7’s flaws, running it leaves a big, gaping security hole on your computer.
- Of course good internet security software protection will keep you safe but clever attackers can exploit vulnerable operating systems to creep in under the radar and bypass security software.
- If anyone recalls the WannaCry ransomware, it exploited the even older Windows XP operating system. It had been unsupported for some time but lots of organisations were still using it. WannaCry spread around the world like wildfire crippling transport, banks, manufacturing and more.
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Will Windows 10 work on my computer?
The minimum system requirements for Window 10 are essentially the same as those for Windows 8.1. But they are minimums, as listed below:
- Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8.1
- A 1GHz processor or faster
- 1 GB RAM for 32-bit or 2 GB RAM for 64-bit
- 16 GB hard drive space for 32-bit or 20 GB for 64-bit
- DirectX 9 or later with WDDM 1.0 graphics card
- 1024×600 display
Time for a new computer?
If you’re running a machine designed for Windows 7, it’s probably at least seven years old.
- In computer time, this is ancient. Every component in a modern PC, from storage to CPU, memory, network, chipset, and graphics has been subject to Moore’s law for all those years.
- Moore’s Law is a well-known computing paradigm in which the numbers of transistors in a dense integrated circuit doubles about every 18 months to two years while the price of each component halves. In short, power doubles and costs fall.
- Moore’s Law has held good for 50 years and is something of a golden rule for the electronics industry. Its realisation has had significant economic and social impacts and is the reason why we have increasingly powerful computers at relatively low costs and why the technology revolution has been driven so rapidly.
What has this got to do with Windows 10? A of middle-of-the-road 2019 PC will have a performance much higher and faster than a seven-year-old Windows 7 PC. So from this point of view it might be worth upgrading to a new computer which already comes with Windows 10.
Source: https://www.bullguard.com/blog
