Tag Archives: Windows 7

Who Still Uses Old Windows Operating Systems?

Although Microsoft’s computer operating system was released in 2009 and will soon be three main versions out of date, many people continue to use it.

Back in January of this year, a survey was conducted by StatCounter:

This report specifically targets Windows users and excludes macOS and Linux from the runnings.

StatCounter gets its numbers by checking visitors to specific websites and taking note of which operating system they used to visit. It’s not a perfect measurement. It doesn’t count computers without an internet connection or ones that never visited the websites StatCounter watched; however, it’s a fairly good estimate of what people are using.

Out of all the Windows operating systems, StatCounter recorded 18.03 percent of them running Windows 7 in December 2020. Surprisingly, this is a great deal more than the people using its predecessor Windows 8.1, which came in at 3.95 percent.

Source: Make Use Of
Why don’t users just upgrade?

Both operating systems have essentially identical hardware requirements, most users can update for free, and Windows 10 will provide a familiar user experience. There’s no particular reason as to why Windows 7 users don’t just upgrade their operating systems.

Simply put: They don’t want to deal with the hassle.

However, with Windows 7’s end of support, not upgrading your PC could potentially cause more harm than good. This leaves open vulnerabilities for hackers to steal any personal information you have on the computer.


For help with any computer issues, call us at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities. This blog post was brought to you by our staff at the Denver Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Denver, CO please call or text the local office at (720) 441-6460.

Windows 7 Support Ends Tomorrow

For those Microsoft users who still use Windows 7, tomorrow marks the end of support. It was announced on their blog back in March of 2019, and in an updated post, they stated this:

Microsoft made a commitment to provide 10 years of product support for Windows 7 when it was released on October 22, 2009. When this 10-year period ends, Microsoft will discontinue Windows 7 support so that we can focus our investment on supporting newer technologies and great new experiences. The specific end of support day for Windows 7 will be January 14, 2020. After that, technical assistance and software updates from Windows Update that help protect your PC will no longer be available for the product.

Source: Windows Blog

If you’re running an activated copy of Windows 7 or newer, and need Windows 10, head over to the Download Windows 10 website. From there, you’ll click on the Download tool now and Run, shown under the Create Windows 10 installation media header. Simply follow the directions. Once the upgrade is finished, you can go to Settings Update & Security – Activation. You should be able to see a Windows 10 digital license.

Microsoft urges users that in order to have the safest experience, to keep your computer updated to the newest operating system.

For help with any Windows 10 issues, call us at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities. This blog post was brought to you from our staff at the Denver Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Denver, CO please call or text the local office at (720) 441-6460.

How to get Windows 10 after 7 Support Ends

Coming January 14th, 2020, Windows 7’s support officially ends – which means that if you’re still desiring those security updates or over various updates that allow your PC to work its best, you’ll want to upgrade to Windows 10.

There are a few options that you may have to get Windows 10, including:

You can still forget the 2020 deadline and continue using Windows 7. It’ll continue to be functional. However, any issues regarding 7 will be yours to deal with. Using the free upgrade can possibly cause more complications, including Microsoft determining your product key update eligibility.

Just a heads up, if you don’t activate Windows 10, you’ll most likely see watermarks on your desktop, requesting activation.

For inquiries with computer issues, call us at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities. This blog post was brought to you from our staff at the Frisco Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Frisco, TX please call or text the local office at (469) 299-9005.

Extended Support for Windows 7

Election year is right around the corner, and Microsoft understands that some voting machines in the U.S. continue to run on Windows 7. So to avoid disruption or issues, Microsoft announced on September 20th that they will be extending Windows Support for the operating systems until the end of 2020.

This particular exception will allow security updates to only the election voting machines.

Today, as part of Microsoft’s Defending Democracy Program, we are announcing that we will provide free security updates for federally certified voting systems running Windows 7 through the 2020 elections, even after Microsoft ends Windows 7 support. I would like to share more on why we help customers move away from older operating systems and why we’re making this unusual exception.

Tom Burt, Corporate Vice President, Customer Security & Trust

The company continues to work with government officials to transition the voting machines from Windows 7 to Windows 10. The extended support will officially end January 14, 2020. This means no security or software updates and no technical support available after this date.

If you are needing help with Microsoft issues, please give us a call at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities.  This blog post is brought to you from our staff at the Plano Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Plano, TX please call the local office at (469) 299-9005.

End of Life for Windows 7

All good things must come to an end.

Windows 7 End of Life

The last day of support for Windows 7 is January 14, 2020.  After which, Microsoft will no longer provide security updates or support for PCs running Windows 7.  With over half a year until END OF LIFE day for Windows 7 you should start making plans now.  All Windows 7 computers can be upgraded to Windows 10 and as of today, Windows 7 keys are still authenticating for Windows 10 installations.

The other option is to replace your computer and have all your data migrated to your new system.  Give us a call at 1-800-620-5285 and talk with one of our support specialists to figure out which is the best option for you.

You can read more about the End of Life for Windows 7 at https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsforbusiness/end-of-windows-7-support

 

Zeroday exploit for Windows and Chrome

There is a zeroday (meaning infection in the wild that was just publicly acknowledged and is infecting people) exploit for Windows 10 (and previous versions of Windows) combined with an exploit in Google Chrome .  You need to make sure to update both your Google Chrome to the latest version and apply any pending Windows 10 (or 7, 8, etc) updates.  Read more about it at:

https://arstechnica-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/arstechnica.com/information-technology/2019/03/attackers-are-actively-exploiting-a-serious-windows-zeroday-in-the-wild/?amp=1&amp_js_v=0.1

Microsoft ending Windows update patches for Windows 7 and Windows 8

Microsoft announced, last week, that they will end the normal Windows update patches for Windows 7 and Windows 8 in October 2016.  The normal Windows Update process will be replaced with a single monthly rollup that patches both security and reliability issues in a single package.  Each month’s rollup package will contain previous months rollups so only one package will need to be installed to bring your Windows operating system up to date.

https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/windowsitpro/2016/08/15/further-simplifying-servicing-model-for-windows-7-and-windows-8-1/

There are some clear cut advantages and disadvantages to this new updating patching system.  You will now only need to install one update if you ever need to reinstall your operating system.  Windows 7 updates go back years and can take hours of rebooting, downloading and installing to bring a new computer up to date.  One big disadvantage is if you currently skip any updates (for instance the much disliked auto update to Windows 10 update) they will be installed with the first month’s rollup package.  There will also be no method to test or remove individual updates and patches that cause issue with older software or hardware.  This Windows 10 like all or nothing update method can cause a issues after each monthly rollup is released.

If you have any questions post a comment or contact the office at 480-240-2950 and If you have any issues with your computer after an update give us a call and we can fix your system for you.