Should your business be afraid of Windows 7?

The reality is Windows 7, albeit a great operating system in my opinion, is the business user and consumer’s only option moving forward with new computer and hardware purchases. With the resistance shown against Windows Vista and the backing of Windows 7 by major manufacturers such as Dell and HP, you will not have the option to purchase Windows XP, much longer. Eventually, all operating systems go end of life – including XP.

As a Michigan IT consulting coach to businesses, my advice is very simple. No one likes change, especially when it comes to technology in the business world. Everyone will have to upgrade eventually – so do it on your own terms. Do not be forced into it out of lack of support from a vendor or manufacturer. Integrating Windows 7 is much better received and a much smoother process when planned out and not forced on a business because a computer has crashed and “we can’t get XP from Dell anymore!”

Windows 7 includes many benefits that can help IT administrators provide layers of security on their active directory network along with some niceties built in for the users. Windows 7 is considered a more secure operating system than its predecessors just by the nature of it being the latest version and ultimately it being the forefront of Microsoft’s image to the consumer. Microsoft has always carried the burden of being the “least secure” of your choices (such as *nix, Mac, Novell, WindowsWindows 7 has proven to be stable, smooth running and an overall pleasant experience.

Some of the new features, such as DirectAccess and XP mode integration have a few prerequisites that require more of an updated networking environment or computers in order to function. DirectAccess provides remote employees a secure way to connect to a Windows Server (2008) without the use of separate connection software or VPN. It’s a much simpler way of providing remote access but has limitations as it must run within the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 platforms. The XP mode integration is nice. Useful for legacy applications or software that has problems running within Windows 7. Using Virtual PC as an engine, it allows users to install applications on the computer that run on top of a Virtual XP machine. This requires a computer that supports virtualization in its hardware BIOS (which not all systems do).

The beauty of Windows 7 is it doesn’t need a killer app. Microsoft is known for its proliferation of the most widely used computer operating system and leaves the killer apps to its partners or even competitors. Since it has such a large market share it doesn’t need a killer app to be adopted.

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+Pete Marsack