Businesses using Windows XP don't have to move to Windows 8 once Microsoft withdraws support - they should consider other "innovative" options such as tablets, Chrome OS and virtualisation, Ovum has said.
Microsoft will stop providing security updates or patches for Windows XP from April 2014, potentially leaving the many businesses still using it more vulnerable to attacks, as well as without official support.
The research firm suggested IT managers should consider cheaper options to dodge hefty upgrade costs to Windows 7 or Windows 8.
"The cost of upgrading hundreds or thousands of desktop and laptop computers to a new operating system is significant in terms of time and money, so organisations should consider how their IT budgets might be invested in more innovative projects," said principal analyst Richard Edwards.
Ovum said IT managers could give employees Android tablets or an iPad in place of Windows XP laptops, noting that they are cheaper to service and support.
It also recommended switching to a web-based system, namely Google Chrome OS, or else desktop virtualisation to bring machines back under central control.
However, that tactic was questioned by IDC analyst Al Gillen. "Using virtualisation along with what amounts to a thin client is an acceptable strategy for replacing some ageing desktops, but it is not a universally correct answer to Windows XP replacements," he said.
"Remember that if you go to a client virtualisation scenario, you still have to run the applications that were running on the XP desktop (assuming they are still needed) somewhere, on some OS," he said. "So you are not really avoiding the OS update issue, you are really just moving it elsewhere."
Ovum’s comments may come as a blow to Microsoft, which is attempting to push its customers to newer systems ahead of XP's end of life next April. Microsoft is currently offering discounts on Windows 8 in a bid to drive up interest among SMBs, but many could be leaving it too late to migrate from the OS, with fewer than half of small firms making a start.
One in five managers are planning to keep using XP once the April deadline has passed, Ovum said.
Although XP users have only a year left of support, it is still the second most popular OS behind Windows 7, according to Net Applications, with 39% of all PCs running XP, and 45% running Windows 7, while only 3% run Windows 8.
2013年4月10日星期三
How to display the Windows 8 product key
If you have bought a PC that shipped with Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system preinstalled you may have noticed that it did not ship with a product key label that your previous PCs shipped with. The reason for this is that manufacturers have started to embed the product key of the operating system in the BIOS of the system instead. While it is no longer necessary to enter the product key during re-installations of the operating system on the same computer system, it may cause issues at times under certain circumstances.
One scenario where this is working against the user is the following: say you bought a PC with Windows 8, the standard version of the operating system. If you now try to install Windows 8 Pro on the PC you will run into issues as the original Windows 8 product key is used automatically during installation.
While there are ways around this, for instance by entering the new product key in the system control panel after clicking on "Get more features with a new edition of Windows", it does not resolve other situations where you may need the product key.
Several applications are capable of displaying the Windows 8 product key even if it is stored in the Bios of the system. Belarc Advisor can reveal the product key no matter where it is stored, but if you are looking for a straightforward simple program to do so, I suggest you check out the Windows 8 Product Key viewer that is available for download at the My Digital Life forum.
Note that you need an account to download the file from there. The latest version is 1.4.7 but since it gets regularly updated, it may change in the near future. I have uploaded the latest version to my Dropbox account. Just click on this link to download it.
To use the program, simply run it after you have unpacked it on your system. You may need to select the MSDN key option first before it becomes visible though. Note that the program works under all recent versions of Windows, not only under Windows 8. You can click on the copy button next to the product key to copy it to the clipboard.
One scenario where this is working against the user is the following: say you bought a PC with Windows 8, the standard version of the operating system. If you now try to install Windows 8 Pro on the PC you will run into issues as the original Windows 8 product key is used automatically during installation.
While there are ways around this, for instance by entering the new product key in the system control panel after clicking on "Get more features with a new edition of Windows", it does not resolve other situations where you may need the product key.
Several applications are capable of displaying the Windows 8 product key even if it is stored in the Bios of the system. Belarc Advisor can reveal the product key no matter where it is stored, but if you are looking for a straightforward simple program to do so, I suggest you check out the Windows 8 Product Key viewer that is available for download at the My Digital Life forum.
Note that you need an account to download the file from there. The latest version is 1.4.7 but since it gets regularly updated, it may change in the near future. I have uploaded the latest version to my Dropbox account. Just click on this link to download it.
To use the program, simply run it after you have unpacked it on your system. You may need to select the MSDN key option first before it becomes visible though. Note that the program works under all recent versions of Windows, not only under Windows 8. You can click on the copy button next to the product key to copy it to the clipboard.
Windows 8 PC makers should tell users how to kill UEFI, Linux group demands
Hispalinux, a Spanish Linux group pushing for a European Commission probe into Microsoft's Windows 8 Secure Boot requirements, wants all Windows 8 PC makers to outline deactivation options for the security measure.
Hispalinux, which represents 8,000 Linux users, first filed a complaint with Europe's competition commission late last month.
According to the complaint seen by ZDNet, it has demanded a preliminary injunction that forces Microsoft to remove all wording that requires hardware makers to implement UEFI Secure Boot to gain 'Windows 8 Hardware Certification'. The group accuses Microsoft of using this certification to maintain its monopoly and stifling Linux.
The European Union's competition commissioner Joaquín Almunia in January said that it appeared that Windows 8 OEMs can give end users the option to disable UEFI Secure Boot.
In an amended complaint which adds to the original, Hispalinux notes that the Microsoft certification requires manufacturers to allow users to "alter" the UEFI key and enable the deactivation of Secure Boot. However, it says the means to do so currently exceed the competence of the average user.
Hispalinux wants Europe to impose a requirement on a list of 10 Windows 8 PC manufacturers, including HP, Lenovo and Dell, to spell out for consumers exactly how to deactivate UEFI and specify their rights. Other PC manufacturers on the list include Asus, Samsung, Toshiba, Acer, Sony, Packard Bell and Medion.
It also wants the vendors to determine how many certified Windows 8 devices it has sold within Europe and for them to define how Secure Boot has been implemented.
Hispalinux, which represents 8,000 Linux users, first filed a complaint with Europe's competition commission late last month.
According to the complaint seen by ZDNet, it has demanded a preliminary injunction that forces Microsoft to remove all wording that requires hardware makers to implement UEFI Secure Boot to gain 'Windows 8 Hardware Certification'. The group accuses Microsoft of using this certification to maintain its monopoly and stifling Linux.
The European Union's competition commissioner Joaquín Almunia in January said that it appeared that Windows 8 OEMs can give end users the option to disable UEFI Secure Boot.
In an amended complaint which adds to the original, Hispalinux notes that the Microsoft certification requires manufacturers to allow users to "alter" the UEFI key and enable the deactivation of Secure Boot. However, it says the means to do so currently exceed the competence of the average user.
Hispalinux wants Europe to impose a requirement on a list of 10 Windows 8 PC manufacturers, including HP, Lenovo and Dell, to spell out for consumers exactly how to deactivate UEFI and specify their rights. Other PC manufacturers on the list include Asus, Samsung, Toshiba, Acer, Sony, Packard Bell and Medion.
It also wants the vendors to determine how many certified Windows 8 devices it has sold within Europe and for them to define how Secure Boot has been implemented.
Microsoft extends Windows 8 management features in Desktop Optimization Pack
Microsoft has released the latest version of its Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) suite of IT management tools, an upgrade that deepens its ability to manage Windows 8 PC deployments.
MDOP 2013, available now via download for the company's Software Assurance licensing program subscribers, boosts the product's BitLocker administration capabilities and group policy management features for Windows 8, Microsoft said on Wednesday.
With the product's previous upgrade, MDOP 1012, released in November of last year, Microsoft introduced Windows 8 support for three of the suite's components: Microsoft User Experience Virtualization (UE-V), Microsoft Application Virtualization (App-V) 5.0, and Diagnostics and Recovery Toolset (DaRT) 8.0.
In MDOP 2013, the Microsoft BitLocker Administration and Monitoring (MBAM) tool gets a big upgrade to Version 2.0, including Windows 8 support.
However, IDC analyst Al Gillen doesn't see the Windows 8 support as a big attraction for the mostly large enterprises that subscribe to Software Assurance and use MDOP, because they haven't widely deployed the new OS on their PCs.
"Given the adoption of Win8 in enterprise accounts, I don't think that's going to be the lead feature for a lot of customers today," Gillen said. "The Windows 8 support in MDOP is probably not super critical for them."
However, Microsoft is anticipating future demand, as it should. "Microsoft couldn't possibly say: 'We haven't updated MDOP for Windows 8 because no one is using Windows 8 yet.' They couldn't send that message out. The correct presumption is that customers will over time move to Windows 8 and to the [Windows] versions that follow it," Gillen said.
MBAM 2.0 features a new Self Service Portal for end users, integration with System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) 2007 and 2012, reporting enhancements, and simplified provisioning for Windows 8.
The integration with SCCM is particularly noteworthy, because MBAM is an encryption technology and for IT managers to apply it to their organization's PCs, they have to do it from a central management console, he said. "Having the SCCM integration makes [MBAM] a lot more consumable for larger enterprises," Gillen said.
Other enhancements to the suite include change management for Windows 8 Group Policy in the Advanced Group Policy Management (AGPM) tool and improved malware discovery in DaRT.
MDOP 2013, available now via download for the company's Software Assurance licensing program subscribers, boosts the product's BitLocker administration capabilities and group policy management features for Windows 8, Microsoft said on Wednesday.
With the product's previous upgrade, MDOP 1012, released in November of last year, Microsoft introduced Windows 8 support for three of the suite's components: Microsoft User Experience Virtualization (UE-V), Microsoft Application Virtualization (App-V) 5.0, and Diagnostics and Recovery Toolset (DaRT) 8.0.
In MDOP 2013, the Microsoft BitLocker Administration and Monitoring (MBAM) tool gets a big upgrade to Version 2.0, including Windows 8 support.
However, IDC analyst Al Gillen doesn't see the Windows 8 support as a big attraction for the mostly large enterprises that subscribe to Software Assurance and use MDOP, because they haven't widely deployed the new OS on their PCs.
"Given the adoption of Win8 in enterprise accounts, I don't think that's going to be the lead feature for a lot of customers today," Gillen said. "The Windows 8 support in MDOP is probably not super critical for them."
However, Microsoft is anticipating future demand, as it should. "Microsoft couldn't possibly say: 'We haven't updated MDOP for Windows 8 because no one is using Windows 8 yet.' They couldn't send that message out. The correct presumption is that customers will over time move to Windows 8 and to the [Windows] versions that follow it," Gillen said.
MBAM 2.0 features a new Self Service Portal for end users, integration with System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) 2007 and 2012, reporting enhancements, and simplified provisioning for Windows 8.
The integration with SCCM is particularly noteworthy, because MBAM is an encryption technology and for IT managers to apply it to their organization's PCs, they have to do it from a central management console, he said. "Having the SCCM integration makes [MBAM] a lot more consumable for larger enterprises," Gillen said.
Other enhancements to the suite include change management for Windows 8 Group Policy in the Advanced Group Policy Management (AGPM) tool and improved malware discovery in DaRT.
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