Apr 022014
 

XP-LogoWith Microsoft no longer releasing security updates and patches for Windows XP as of April 8, 2014, a lot of clients and friends have been asking me for my advice. They have two questions: 1) “Is it still safe to use Windows XP?” and 2) “Should I upgrade Windows XP to Windows 7 or 8?”. So partly to save time and partly because this blog is supposed to be a font of useful computer information, here is my advice:

1) Is it still safe to use Windows XP?:

It has been never been as safe to use XP as it has to use Windows 7 or later since Windows 7 came out. Research shows that XP has fewer security measures built into it than 7 and 8. As of April 8th it becomes even less secure. Until then, as soon as possible after a security hole was discovered in XP, Microsoft’s engineers would release a Windows Update patch that would plug the hole. That has been going on since the system was first introduced in 2001. Yes, it’s about 13 years old, which in computer technology time is several lifetimes. But come April 8th, no further updates will be released, according to Microsoft. So if some hack gets revealed on April 9th, any computer running Windows XP that is connected to the Internet will be vulnerable to it. Does that mean you’ll get hacked immediately? Probably not, but who wants to be the bait?

2) Should I upgrade my computer to Windows 7 or 8?:

Bottom Line: I recommend getting a new computer.

Here’s why:

There is no direct upgrade path from XP to 7 or 8. That means you cannot do the usual kind of “in-place install” upgrade where all your programs, documents and settings are still there when you finish.  Instead they MAY get deleted when you upgrade, or moved to a folder called Windows.old (see below). That means you have to first back up everything to an external drive (though you can use Windows Easy Transfer Wizard for that, it still may take up to an hour or more), do the upgrade install, then restore your documents and settings and (and this is the real time eater) REINSTALL ALL YOUR APPLICATIONS. For that you’ll need the original installer disks or downloaded the installer files from online, along with the product Activation Keys or Serial Numbers to be able to use the programs for more than a brief trial period. With all that and running all the Windows Updates it could easily be a three or four hour job, if not more. In  the end you’ll still have old hardware running a more recent operating system, inevitably slower than new hardware would. All those things considered, I recommend buying a new computer.

As long as your old computer still works, you could install Windows 7 or 8 on it and use it as a backup machine, in case your newer computer has to go out for repairs, or if you have a guest or kids that you don’t want touching your main computer. You’ll just have to buy Windows 7 or 8 and run the upgrade, which will delete your personal data*. Incidentally, that’s not a secure deletion, so this path wouldn’t make security sense if you were going to give the machine away or sell it. In that case you should do a secure wipe of the computer first, using software you boot from an external disk that will write over the data on your hard drive with random zeroes and ones. Then you can install Windows and not worry about who might wind up with the computer someday.

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*If you run the Windows 7 installer as a program while you are in Windows XP, and do not choose to format the C: drive partition, your old files and settings will be moved to a folder called Windows.old. After a couple of weeks if you are sure that you have recovered everything you need from your old Windows XP installation, you can delete this folder. Microsoft recommends deleting using the Disk Cleanup utility:

Post-install clean-up (optional)
WARNING–Before you use Disk Cleanup, make sure that all of your files and settings moved correctly to Windows 7 where you expected them to be. Deleting the Windows.old folder can’t be undone.
1. Click the Start button, and in the search box, type Disk Cleanup. In the list of results, click Disk Cleanup.
If you’re prompted to choose a drive, choose the drive you just installed Windows 7 on, and then click OK.
2. Click Clean up system files. If you’re prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
If you’re prompted again to choose a drive, choose the drive you just installed Windows 7 on, and then click OK.
3. Select Previous Windows installation(s) and any other categories of files you want to delete.
4. Click OK, and then click Delete Files.
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