As stated well in advance by Microsoft, the end of Windows 10 is close: in fact, less than a year is left until October 14, 2025 which will mark the end of security updates for the operating system.
An announcement that has sparked concern among millions of users, given that, according to the most recent data, the OS launched in July 2015 is still installed on at least two thirds of personal computers in the world. Microsoft’s repeated invitations to update devices were to no avail Windows 11where obviously possible depending on compliance with the minimum system requirements required for its installation. The majority of users, even those who could have opted to upgrade, preferred to stay at version 10, presumably also given the repeated problems of the new version of the Microsoft operating system with the most recent updates.
We are certainly faced with a decidedly unusual situation, first of all because between the launch of the new OS (Windows 11 is available from October 2021) and the end of support for its predecessor (14 October 2025) only 4 yearscompared to the 7 that were spent on average waiting for the handover for previous versions of Windows. Another unusual element compared to usual is the fact that the new operating system being launched, in this case Windows 11, has been installed by a very small number of users compared to its predecessor.
And here a problem that is certainly not secondary emerges: many PCs still in use, especially those placed on the market before 2018, cannot be equipped with Windows 11 due to the fact that they do not meet the minimum requirements required. “If your PC meets the minimum requirements to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11, you should see an option to upgrade to Windows 11 for free in Windows Update. If your PC is not eligible to upgrade to Windows 11 or if you want to replace it, you can upgrade to Windows 11 by purchasing a new PC”we read on the page Microsoft. Apparently, therefore, there is no other way than to buy a new device, a significant expense for the millions of families who now use the old OS: the risk is that, from next October 14th, a large number of users remain exposed due to the end of updates, with a clear security problem.
It is probable, however, that the Redmond giant will propose extended updates of Windows 10, perhaps every three years, even if there is nothing official yet nor is there any mention of prices to obtain them.
Another option is to look for workarounds such as installing unsupported Windows 11 or switching to others operating systemssuch as Ubuntu, Linux, ZorinOS or ChromeOS.
We just have to wait to understand how Microsoft will decide to move, especially if systems equipped with Windows 10 continue to be overwhelmingly the most widespread in the world.