Microsoft officially terminated its working relationship with Windows 7 on January 14, 2020. Termination or end of life makes Windows 7 no longer receive assistance such as technical support, software updates, as well as security matters and bug fixes. Windows 7 users are also encouraged to update to Windows 10.
In its time, Windows 7 attracted many buyers because it was designed for a variety of needs. Now, Windows 7 has experienced a lot of quality decline due to the age.
To answer your curiosity, here are 5 facts about Windows 7 that Microsoft has officially closed.
1. Released on July 22, 2009
Windows 7 was officially released for computer manufacturers on July 22, 2009. After more than 10 years of working together, Microsoft will stop supporting Windows 7. This is done to focus more on investing in supporting newer technologies.
When released, Windows 7 focused more on basic Windows development. Where, it aims to make Windows 7 more compatible (works according to its function) with applications. Also, the computer hardware is compatible with Windows Vista (predecessor to Windows 7). Windows 7 also supports multi-touch on the screen, redesign of the taskbar, now better known as the Superbar (HomeGroup home network system) and performance improvements.
2. Microsoft Support Has Long Been Reduced
Microsoft is a multinational company founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allan. The company is based in Redmond, Washington, United States. Microsoft itself is instrumental in developing, manufacturing, licensing and supporting various products and services related to computers.
On January 13, 2015, Microsoft’s support for Windows 7 actually started to be reduced. During this period, Windows 7 was in the ‘extended support’ phase, which means that no new features were developed and the warranty claims were no longer valid. Microsoft only provides support for security updates such as the Convencience Roll up, which was the last update that Windows 7 did in May 2016.
3. Windows 7 Market Reaches 27.98 percent worldwide
Just like Windows XP which triumphed in its time, Windows 7 has also experienced the same thing. In fact, the market share of Windows 7 from around the world reached 27.98 percent in November 2019. This shows that Windows 7 still has a fairly high popularity.
4. Easier for Viruses
Microsoft reminded Windows 7 users that the system was too old to be vulnerable to attack. Windows 7 also has security limitations from cyber attacks and software and hardware bugs. Windows 7 is considered to be unable to meet the needs of modern technology, including being vulnerable to cyber harm to users.
5. System Security Located in the Windows Kernel Driver Win32k.sys
The security in Chrome has actually released a patch (repair or update of a software) some time ago. However, the security holes in Windows 7 cannot be resolved. Meanwhile, Microsoft said the Windows 7 vulnerability lies in the Windows kernel driver win32k.sysm (Blue screen on Windows XP and 7). This security vulnerability doesn’t exist in Windows 10 because the operating system includes additional mitigations that can block attacks from these kinds of bugs.
Those are 5 facts about Windows 7 that officially broke with Microsoft. For Windows 7 users, there are two ways you can choose to get updates regarding system security on Windows. First, by updating Windows 7 to Windows 10, which reportedly can still be done for free via the Installation Tool. Second, you can switch to a computer that is already based on Linux or Mac. [Mitha]