Windows 7 reaches end of mainstream life

As Windows 7 reaches the end of mainstream support, Microsoft is hard at work on Windows 10 and has published a Windows 10 test platform for mobile devices.

Windows 7, which launched in 2009, reached the end of mainstream support yesterday. This means that Microsoft will no longer provide direct phone or online technical support or add any new features to the operating system, but will still be offering security updates.

Microsoft had asked OEMs not to pre-install PCs with the Home edition of Windows 7 after October 2014, but is still allowing them to sell PCs running Windows 7 Professional.

Extended support including pushing out bug fixes will last until 14 January 2020, after which time Windows 7 will join Windows XP and its predecessors on the list of no longer supported versions of Windows.

Net Applications estimates that Windows 7 is currently the most widely used OS in the world, with a 56% market share. Some consumers have refrained from upgrading to Windows 8 due to complaints about the user interface.

Microsoft meanwhile used its monthly Patch Tuesday to push out eight patches for security vulnerabilities in Windows software, including one considered critical. The critical vulnerability could allow remote code execution by using Windows Telnet Service where it is enabled. The service is not installed by default on Windows Vista or later versions.

The Patch Tuesday was the subject of contention due to a recent decision by Google to publish details of a security flaw in Windows 8.1 mere days before the fix was due to be rolled out.

Google said it has been following standard procedures by giving Microsoft 90 days to fix the issue before making it public, but Microsoft accused Google of exposing Windows 8.1 users to a threat by not waiting the extra few days.

In a blog post, Microsoft Security Response Center (MSRC) Senior Director Chris Betz said the company had asked Google to wait the extra few days before disclosing the vulnerability, but Google declined.

“Although following through keeps to Google’s announced timeline for disclosure, the decision feels less like principles and more like a ‘gotcha’, with customers the ones who may suffer as a result,” he wrote.

“What’s right for Google is not always right for customers. We urge Google to make protection of customers our collective primary goal.”

This marks the second time in less than a month that Google has disclosed a vulnerability in Windows before Microsoft has pushed out a fix.

Windows 10 is meanwhile getting closer to release and is expected to further Microsoft’s goal of developing a single version of the OS for all devices, ranging from desktops to mobile phones to IoT devices.

In line with this goal, IDG News Service reported that Microsoft has posted a pre-release OS downloader app for developers named Windows Insider. The app is expected to be designed to allow developers to test Windows 10 on mobile devices.

Microsoft is staying cagey about the details but has promised to reveal more information about the Windows Insider app next Wednesday.

The company has released details about the UI that will be used in the final version of Windows 10 for desktops, including bringing back the start menu but also integrating Metro tiles within the bar. But it remains to be seen how the UI will adapt to small form-factor devices.

Image courtesy of Robert Scoble under CC