Still running Windows 8? Time to upgrade, or else

Windows 8 is only three years old, so with Microsoft's 10-year support policy, one might assume it's eligible for security updates for many years. But thanks to a quirk in that support lifecycle, the clock runs out in a matter of days. If you're still running Windows 8, it's time to upgrade.

Microsoft's support lifecycle for every Windows version is a generous 10 years from the date it was launched. That means even those still clinging to Windows Vista can count on more than a year of security updates, until April 11, 2017, and anyone running Windows 7 can do so with confidence until January 14, 2020.

So Windows 8, which was released in October of 2012, should be supported until well into the next decade, right?

Nope...


Read more: Still running Windows 8? Time to upgrade, or else


Note   Note
If you are not able to upgrade to Windows 8.1 from your activated Windows 8 using the Store method above, then you will also be able to:

Directly upgrade from Windows 8.1 to Windows 10 using a Windows 10 ISO file or Windows 10 installation USB.

OR

Directly clean install Windows 10 on the Windows 8 PC using a GenuineTicket.xml file to activate.

 
Last edited:
?

It is interesting how well a computer works when NOT connected to a network.

nt.jpg

nonetwork.jpg

noway.jpg

Go ahead and update to 8.1.1 or Windows 11082
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    server 2012
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    self assembled
    CPU
    3770k
    Motherboard
    Asrock
    Memory
    8gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    intel onboard
    Sound Card
    hdmi tv to external sound system
    Monitor(s) Displays
    led
    Hard Drives
    Addonics Quad mSATA PCIe SSD - various SSD
    Browser
    Opera
I just moved over to Windows 8 Pro x64, but I can't use Windows 8.1 because of the processor requirements. For me, x86 isn't an option. So I'm just going to keep Windows Defender updated, and be careful when browsing.

Keep in mind, I'm at work right now with an XP machine, and in the nearly two years of post-support, there's NEVER been an issue on this machine. I think I'll be OK on Windows 8. It's working absolutely great.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 x64 Professional
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP xw8600 Workstation
    CPU
    Two Intel Xeon Core2 Quad 3.2 GHz Processors
    Motherboard
    Proprietary
    Memory
    16 GB DDR2 800 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia Quadro FX 3800 PCI-E
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster 213T 21" 4x3 Flat Screen
    Screen Resolution
    1600x1200
    Hard Drives
    Two Seagate Cheetah 300 GB SAS Disks
    PSU
    Proprietary
    Case
    HP xw8600 Workstation Case
    Cooling
    Two CPU Fans and a Larger Case Fan
    Keyboard
    PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech USB Optical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    7 mbps
    Browser
    Firefox ESR 102
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Two LSI 3000 SAS Adapters
Today- 12-Jan-2015 is the last Patch Tuesday for people who cannot upgrade their Win8 devices to Win8.1 because of hardware compatibility issues.:(
I didn't have this problem, but I still think it sucks, for the people, who bought a device thinking it would be supported for 10 years.

Windows 830/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 Enterprise30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 Enterprise N30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 N30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 Pro30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 Pro N30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro in Hyper-V/Windows 10 Pro 64 bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Cliff's Black & Blue Wonder
    CPU
    Intel Core i9-9900K
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus X Hero
    Memory
    32 GB Quad Kit, G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series schwarz, DDR4-3866, 18-19-19-39-2T
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS GeForce RTX 3090 ROG Strix O24G, 24576 MB GDDR6X
    Sound Card
    (1) HD Webcam C270 (2) NVIDIA High Definition Audio (3) Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    BenQ BL2711U(4K) and a hp 27vx(1080p)
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 x 32 bits (4294967296 colors) @ 60 Hz
    Hard Drives
    C: Samsung 960 EVO NVMe M.2 SSD
    E: & O: Libraries & OneDrive-> Samsung 850 EVO 1TB
    D: Hyper-V VM's -> Samsung PM951 Client M.2 512Gb SSD
    G: System Images -> HDD Seagate Barracuda 2TB
    PSU
    Corsair HX1000i High Performance ATX Power Supply 80+ Platinum
    Case
    hanteks Enthoo Pro TG
    Cooling
    Thermaltake Floe Riing RGB TT Premium-Edition 360mm and 3 Corsair blue LED fans
    Keyboard
    Trust GTX THURA
    Mouse
    Trust GTX 148
    Internet Speed
    25+/5+ (+usually faster)
    Browser
    Edge; Chrome; IE11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender of course & Malwarebytes Anti-Exploit as a
    Other Info
    Router: FRITZ!Box 7590 AX V2
    Sound system: SHARP HT-SBW460 Dolby Atmos Soundbar
    Webcam: Logitech BRIO ULTRA HD PRO WEBCAM 4K webcam with HDR
On the other hand, I won't get telemetry updates or nags to upgrade to Windows 10.
:)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 x64 Professional
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP xw8600 Workstation
    CPU
    Two Intel Xeon Core2 Quad 3.2 GHz Processors
    Motherboard
    Proprietary
    Memory
    16 GB DDR2 800 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia Quadro FX 3800 PCI-E
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster 213T 21" 4x3 Flat Screen
    Screen Resolution
    1600x1200
    Hard Drives
    Two Seagate Cheetah 300 GB SAS Disks
    PSU
    Proprietary
    Case
    HP xw8600 Workstation Case
    Cooling
    Two CPU Fans and a Larger Case Fan
    Keyboard
    PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech USB Optical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    7 mbps
    Browser
    Firefox ESR 102
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Two LSI 3000 SAS Adapters
I don't get it..... I'm still installing Windows 8.1 on PC's that are more than ten years old. Hardware compatibility doesn't seem to be as much of a problem as has been advertised. Eh?

For anyone needing to run 'Old' software, the 32 bit version of 8.1 is a real treat.

Cheers Mates!
TechnoMage :cool:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win-8.1/Pro/64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer X-1200
    CPU
    AMD 2 Core
    Motherboard
    Acer
    Memory
    Crucial, 4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDEA GeForce 9200
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Acer
    Hard Drives
    Sandisk, SSD 500GB
    PSU
    Acer
    Case
    SFF Slimline
    Keyboard
    emachines 101 key
    Mouse
    Logitech Wireless
    Internet Speed
    5 Meg
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Using Classic Shell on Win-8.1 /pro/64
I don't get it..... I'm still installing Windows 8.1 on PC's that are more than ten years old. Hardware compatibility doesn't seem to be as much of a problem as has been advertised. Eh?

For anyone needing to run 'Old' software, the 32 bit version of 8.1 is a real treat.

Cheers Mates!

TechnoMage :cool:

Hi,

it is not that simple in some situations - I have a seven year old Asus F5V laptop which for some reason can not be upgraded to windows 8.1. It is most likely BIOS issue but as there is no update since 2008 I can not find a way to upgrade this model. There is also a thread on Microsoft community and people blame the ASUS F5 Series BIOS for not upgrading this models. So no soap for us today.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro/ Windows 8 Enterprise
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 1545/ Asus F5V
Meaning no disrespect whatsoever.......

But, I own 20 computers, and not even one is an Asus brand, and I'm glad of that, and I want to keep it that way.

I'm sorry, that you can't upgrade that little PC to Windows 8.1....it really is a great OS. I have it running on several old PC's here that date back to the latter XP days.
However on a few really OLD PC's that won't take 8.1, I install Windows 7, Pro/32 and they take it and run just fine. It's not really a far stretch from Windows 7 Pro to Windows 8.1 Pro. They are, after all, kissing cousins. ;)
All my tweaks and speed secrets that work on 7 also work on 8.1. Under the covers, they are very much alike.

Good Luck and have a great 2016

TechnoMage :cool:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win-8.1/Pro/64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer X-1200
    CPU
    AMD 2 Core
    Motherboard
    Acer
    Memory
    Crucial, 4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDEA GeForce 9200
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Acer
    Hard Drives
    Sandisk, SSD 500GB
    PSU
    Acer
    Case
    SFF Slimline
    Keyboard
    emachines 101 key
    Mouse
    Logitech Wireless
    Internet Speed
    5 Meg
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Using Classic Shell on Win-8.1 /pro/64
I actually like Windows 8 better than 7 though. And two things:

(a) I'm typing this from work on a Windows XP computer. After nearly two years of post-EOL, we have no issue with it.
(b) I've removed IE 10 (using Add/Remove Features and DISM, and I use Pale Moon. It's working great I must say.

As for the reason the CPU on my box won't run the update to Windows 8.1, here's the findings on MSFN. I'm surprised how many people just don't know about this situation:
Now That Windows 8 Classic Support Is Ending Soon ... - Page 2 - Windows 8 - MSFN Forum
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 x64 Professional
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP xw8600 Workstation
    CPU
    Two Intel Xeon Core2 Quad 3.2 GHz Processors
    Motherboard
    Proprietary
    Memory
    16 GB DDR2 800 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia Quadro FX 3800 PCI-E
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster 213T 21" 4x3 Flat Screen
    Screen Resolution
    1600x1200
    Hard Drives
    Two Seagate Cheetah 300 GB SAS Disks
    PSU
    Proprietary
    Case
    HP xw8600 Workstation Case
    Cooling
    Two CPU Fans and a Larger Case Fan
    Keyboard
    PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech USB Optical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    7 mbps
    Browser
    Firefox ESR 102
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Two LSI 3000 SAS Adapters
I don't get it..... I'm still installing Windows 8.1 on PC's that are more than ten years old. Hardware compatibility doesn't seem to be as much of a problem as has been advertised. Eh?

For anyone needing to run 'Old' software, the 32 bit version of 8.1 is a real treat.

Cheers Mates!
TechnoMage :cool:
. . .That would be a very silly thing to do if you are running a 64 bit system with over 4 gigs of ram, thus to say the least it would not be a real threat. it would be a nightmare. . .:cry:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 8, (VM win7, XP, Vista)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion p1423w
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 3330 Ivy Bridge
    Motherboard
    Foxconn - 2ADA Ivy Brige
    Memory
    16 GB 1066MHz DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 5450
    Sound Card
    HD Realteck (Onboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Mitsubishi LED TV/Montior HD, Dell 23 HD, Hanspree 25" HD
    Screen Resolution
    Mit. 1980-1080, Dell 2048-115, Hanspree 1920-10802
    Hard Drives
    1 SanDisk 240Gig SSD, 2 Samsung 512Gig SSDs
    Case
    Tower
    Cooling
    Original (Fans)
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Keyboard 2000
    Mouse
    Microsoft Optical Mouse 5000
    Internet Speed
    1.3 (350 to 1024 if lucky)
    Browser
    Firefox 19.1
    Antivirus
    MSE-Defender
Today- 12-Jan-2015 is the last Patch Tuesday for people who cannot upgrade their Win8 devices to Win8.1 because of hardware compatibility issues.:(
I didn't have this problem, but I still think it sucks, for the people, who bought a device thinking it would be supported for 10 years.

Windows 830/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 Enterprise30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 Enterprise N30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 N30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 Pro30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.
Windows 8 Pro N30/10/201209/01/201810/01/202312/01/2016Customers have 24 months to move to Windows 8.1 after General Availability in order to remain supported. See the Windows 8.1 FAQ for more information.

Appears there's no need for tears. Read On!
http://www.msfn.org/board/topic/175105-server-2012-updates-on-windows-8/#entry1117768
:)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 x64 Professional
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP xw8600 Workstation
    CPU
    Two Intel Xeon Core2 Quad 3.2 GHz Processors
    Motherboard
    Proprietary
    Memory
    16 GB DDR2 800 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia Quadro FX 3800 PCI-E
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster 213T 21" 4x3 Flat Screen
    Screen Resolution
    1600x1200
    Hard Drives
    Two Seagate Cheetah 300 GB SAS Disks
    PSU
    Proprietary
    Case
    HP xw8600 Workstation Case
    Cooling
    Two CPU Fans and a Larger Case Fan
    Keyboard
    PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech USB Optical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    7 mbps
    Browser
    Firefox ESR 102
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Two LSI 3000 SAS Adapters
I don't get it..... I'm still installing Windows 8.1 on PC's that are more than ten years old. Hardware compatibility doesn't seem to be as much of a problem as has been advertised. Eh?
For anyone needing to run 'Old' software, the 32 bit version of 8.1 is a real treat.
Cheers Mates!
TechnoMage :cool:
. . .That would be a very silly thing to do if you are running a 64 bit system with over 4 gigs of ram, thus to say the least it would not be a real threat. it would be a nightmare. . .:cry:

I've read your post, over and over and I don't get your meaning. If you're already running a 64 bit system, why would you want to install a 32 bit system?
I only install Windows 8.1/32 on old or rebuilt systems that may need to run old 32 bit or even 16 bit software. You CANNOT run old software on a 64 bit system. Or maybe you didn't know that. Eh?
Almost everyone who's been computing for 20 years or more, has at least one 32 or 16 bit program that they still want to use. I know I do!!!

My customers who have bought a new PC, with a 64 bit OS on it, really cry the blues, when I tell them it won't run their old programs.
But I guess, that if you're a Nubie who doesn't have any old 32 or 16 bit programs, you wouldn't know what I'm talking about. Eh?

happy computing!

TechnoMage :cool:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win-8.1/Pro/64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer X-1200
    CPU
    AMD 2 Core
    Motherboard
    Acer
    Memory
    Crucial, 4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDEA GeForce 9200
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Acer
    Hard Drives
    Sandisk, SSD 500GB
    PSU
    Acer
    Case
    SFF Slimline
    Keyboard
    emachines 101 key
    Mouse
    Logitech Wireless
    Internet Speed
    5 Meg
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Using Classic Shell on Win-8.1 /pro/64
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