A new report suggests that Microsoft’s Windows XP operating system, which ends all support including monthly security patches in April 2014, costs 5x more to manage than Windows 7, which was released 8 years after Windows XP.
“The bottom line…[is that] businesses that migrate from Windows XP to Windows 7 will see significant return on investment. Many of the companies still running Windows XP contend that it’s a solution that still ‘works’ in their environment. ‘Works’ however, could mean these customers are missing out on the benefits of a more modern operating system including dramatic savings, higher user productivity and a more valued IT department,” Microsoft stated in an official blog post. Microsoft showcased a company-sponsored report that claims annual support costs for Windows XP are five times that of Windows 7. Windows XP, which is nearly 11 years old now, exits all support including monthly security patches, in April of 2014. The study that was conducted went as far as to say that for every 230 PCs running Windows 7 rather than Windows XP, an organization could re-structure or even eliminate one full-time IT employee. So is it time to move on or should Windows XP continue with support from Microsoft?