The end of an era…

It’s hard to believe that the iconic operating system Windows 7 is reaching the end of its life already. As of January 14th 2020, security fixes for the operating system will no longer be freely available. This comes as quite the shock considering how widely used Windows 7 still is. At of the end of 2018 it is still the 2nd most common operating system according to Net Marketshare. This means there will be many businesses left without support come this time next year for major security patches, etc. 

What to do?

Microsoft will be offering 3 years of paid support past this end date through their Extended Security Updates (ESU) program, with pricing for this escalating with each passing year. 

Another obvious solution is to update existing computers to Windows 10 or replace aging hardware with newer Windows 10 devices; this is the main push for this action from Microsoft. It can be a pretty scary process for most small businesses to get this all taken care of before the Microsoft’s support cycle ends.  Luckily, this is one of the many things we can help you with. 

Our typical recommendation for most small businesses is to first have someone evaluate your current hardware to see if it can just be updated to Windows 10. That is the quickest and cheapest option. Alongside that we usually suggest a couple of hardware updates if your budget allows for it. This can mean updating your HDD to a SSD or adding in another stick of RAM.  Both upgrades are relatively inexpensive but generally give you at the very least a couple more years out of your current hardware, often making the machine almost feel new! If your hardware is too old or software required for your business demands your hardware be updated then the next step is to source new hardware. 

Where do you start with new hardware? 

Well the first place to start would be with your IT department and I would try to start as early as you can. If you don’t currently have an IT department or would like assistance in sourcing hardware. That is were a company like ours comes in. We can help you with each and every part of the process; from concept and evaluation all the way to installing the computers on site, SignCast Media has you covered.

If your business is looking to update your current computer hardware, update your operating system or just needs some help understanding your options don’t hesitate to give us a call at (416-900-2233) or contact us today!

Browse our hardware selection for yourself.

Source: Microsoft