Seriously, Folks – It’s Time to Replace Windows XP Machines NOW!

by

Dont_cry_just_replace_your_XPThere is real danger coming for anyone running XP computers after April 8, 2014. Too many people face the danger of security threats if they delay taking action, and we don’t want to see companies dealing with downtime, loss of revenue, needless costs and worse.

Microsoft Extended Support for Windows XP ends April 8, 2014. If your PC has the Windows XP operating system, this means that you will be extremely vulnerable to security threats beginning April 9.

In almost every case we would recommend replacing your XP computer with a new one running Windows 7 Professional. There is no cost-effective way to do an in-place upgrade of your existing PC. It almost always makes more sense to buy a new computer.

The Longer You Wait, The More It Will Cost

In a December blog I cited a report stating 30% of all PCs are still running XP. Across our client base, the number of XP machines we manage was about 20%; today, that number is only down to 15%.

Clearly, people are putting this off. In the next 30 days, we and other managed service providers expect to be inundated with requests for quotes, rush orders, and installations.

Today we’re seeing reasonable pricing and shipping times. The closer we get to April 8, the more likely hardware prices will be higher and supplies will be lower.

Demand for hundreds of PCs in the next 30 days presents a challenge to the best managed service providers. We can do it, but pushing our staffs to work after hours could add unnecessary costs. By planning ahead, clients can manage these costs more effectively.

Managed Service Plans Will No Longer Include Unlimited Support of XP Systems as Part of the Fixed Monthly Price

Managed service providers have been urging their clients to replace XP machines for months, and are notifying their clients that support of XP machines will be limited or completely excluded from their managed service plans. Hourly rates will be charged for work to fix problems on XP machines.

While MyITpros will continue to monitor XP machines and will still include work to fix problems unrelated to XP, service for problems related to XP may be charged by the hour.

It Is Not a Matter of If, But When

If you continue to operate a computer with XP, you will have problems. It will cost you more to fix than it will cost you to buy a new PC today. And you will still have to buy a new PC.

It only takes a few hours at hourly rates to equal the price of a new PC.

Making the Business Case

Consider that a basic business class desktop with Windows 7 Ultimate and 4GB RAM will cost between $400 and $600.

Assume $200 to $400 for installation and migration of data and profiles from your old PC, for a total of $600 to $1,000 to address the challenges presented by the impending XP deadline.

Wait until after April 8th and you may find yourself saddled with additional costs. Consider these scenarios:

Because XP is no longer supported and the security software is not updating for XP vulnerabilities, your PC gets a malware infection. Your managed service provider tells you the work needed to fix this will be billed at $150 per hour.

1.    Malware infections take time to fix. Some are so bad they can’t be fixed, requiring a fresh installation of the operating system. Because your operating system is outdated and unsupported, you decide to buy a new computer.

The technician still needs to spend extra time restoring the infected XP computer in order to get profiles and photos or other files that were not backed up somewhere. Let’s say he spends 4 hours total. That’s $600, plus costs for the new PC and setup, for a total of $1200 to $1600.

2.    Let’s say you have personally precious or business critical data on your old PC that must be retrieved. After 8 hours, the technician advises that the data is too corrupted to retrieve with any of the arsenal of tools at his disposal. He removes the hard drive and refers you to a data retrieval laboratory.

The lab charges $500 to assess the hard drive and provides an estimate of $1500 to take it apart and get what they can. In the end, your bill totals $5000, and you only get bits and pieces of your data.

An exaggeration? I’m sorry to say it – but we’ve seen worse. If an XP machine is compromised and allows hackers to get to network servers, applications and data…..well, we don’t even want to talk about how bad that could be.

Please Don’t Wait Any Longer

Your managed service provider wants to help you. If you’re a MyITpros client, we’ve negotiated special pricing with Dell. We can handle all the hassles of configuring the right computer for each users’ needs, creating quotes and placing orders. We’ll manage the process from beginning to end, and offer a fixed price for installations.

If you’ve been putting this off, please take a few minutes to contact us today. We have bandwidth now that we may not have in a few weeks.

Reference to (for more details about….)  and link to How Windows XP End of Life Will Affect You: Your Top 6 Questions.

If you’re planning to handle the procurement process yourself, check out Lori’s blog Windows XP End-of-Life: What Computer Should I Buy?

[include id=”13″ title=”Blog CTA How To Find The Right IT Services Provider”]

 

Chris-BoyleChris Boyle, CEO

Please subscribe to view my upcoming articles. Our goal with this blog is to answer the questions you ask. If you have any questions about technical issues or any topic please email me at [email protected].

Google

We're Integris. We're always working to empower people through technology.

Keep reading

Why Is My Laptop Draining So Fast?

Why Is My Laptop Draining So Fast?

Before You Replace Your Laptop Battery, Try These Fixes First Stuck with a laptop that’s running out way before it’s standard 8-10 hours of run time? Don't throw it out just yet.  Try these quick fixes to extend its life: Reduce your screen brightness If possible,...