![]() ![]() Those numbers were at the root of Microsoft's recent moves to help out XP users: While the company has remained adamant that bug patches will be discontinued after April 8, some cracks in its "Death to XP" policy have appeared, including the continued availability of Security Essentials' signatures and the lifespan extension for the MSRT. Computerworld has forecast that at least 25% of all personal computers will be running the operating system at the end of April, and about 20% at the end of this year. ![]() 2 on the company's Download Center - indicating that large numbers of customers seek it out.Īlthough Microsoft has been urging customers to drop XP before the April 8 deadline for a new OS or PC, millions of machines worldwide will continue to run the aged OS for months and maybe even years to come.Īccording to metrics company Net Applications, Windows XP's user share - the percentage of all personal computer owners who went online with that OS - stood at 29% at the end of December 2013. Even so, MSRT is a very popular download - currently No. The impact of the MSRT extension would be more muted if Microsoft required users to download the tool themselves. Not only would that keep the remaining XP owners safer, but it would also reduce the number of compromised computers that could in turn be used by hackers to infect machines running the still-supported Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8 operating systems. Microsoft would be able to revise MSRT so it targets the new or suddenly aggressive malware for detection and deletion, and automatically put it on XP systems. Say a new malware family popped up, or an older one began infecting large numbers of Windows PCs, including those still running XP. If Microsoft continued to deliver the MSRT via Windows Update, the tool would be a valuable weapon in containing infections on Windows XP PCs. ![]() Microsoft did not reply Saturday to follow-up questions asking what channels it will use to distribute the malware eraser between April 8, 2014, and July 14, 2015. Microsoft will ship its final public security patches for Windows XP in less than three months, ending nearly 13 years of support for the ultra-successful OS. ![]()
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