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Termination of MS Windows XP Support on Campus

by Sunny Wong


Message from Microsoft

"After 12 years, support for Windows XP will end on April 8, 2014. There will be no more security updates or technical support for the Windows XP operating system. It is very important that customers and partners migrate to a modern operating system…” (Microsoft, 2014)

After 8th April, 2014, Windows XP operating system will no longer be supported by Microsoft and there will be no security updates or technical support for this platform. Security updates patch vulnerabilities that may be exploited by malware and help keep PCs and their data protected. Without such, PCs running XP are prone to hacking attacks.  

It is important that users migrate from Windows XP to a later operating system such as Windows 7 or Windows 8 in order to receive regular security updates to help protect their PCs from malicious attacks. Running an unsupported version of Windows after the said date will endanger not only the computers themselves but also put all other PCs and servers connected to the campus network at risks.

What is the situation in CityU?

The Computing Services Centre (CSC) will cease the support for Windows XP on Staff LANs (Note: All Windows XP on Student LANs and LT/classrooms had been removed in September 2013) in line with the terminated support from Microsoft. To give departments enough time to plan for the upgrade, the CSC had informed departments and staff via memos and multiple network messages to remind them to upgrade their Windows XP as early as March 2012.

At the time of writing this article, the CSC recorded 750 computers still running Window XP as compared to 1000 back in November 2013. Several Departmental Network Administrators (DNA) shared the difficulties they are encountering which have hindered the upgrade progress in their departments as follows:
 
  • Departments do not have the budget in the current financial year to replace old computers which are incapable of running later versions of Windows systems. Some departments have planned for the budget in the coming year (i.e. 2014-2015)
  • Users lack the time to upgrade their PCs
  • Users reluctant to upgrade, as some are still unaware of the XP security issues while others are concerned that they have to adapt to a new OS
  • Users find software compatibility problems as their software cannot run on platforms other than Windows XP

Owing to the above reasons, it is expected that many users will still use Windows XP after the April 8th deadline.

What will be done to computers still running Windows XP after the April 8th deadline? 

Computers still running Windows XP after 8th April 2014 will not receive support from the CSC on the software and OS. As usual, should there be any security issue detected on any PC (XP or any OS) by any of the campus IT security tools, the PC will be blocked from accessing the campus network at once. 

Recommended Upgrade Platforms
 
Windows XP can be upgraded to new platforms including Windows 7 32-bit, Windows 7 64-bit and Windows 8. Windows 7 is preferred over Windows 8 because:
  • Windows 7 is currently the supported Windows version for Staff LAN, i.e., it has been tested and is compatible with the campus IT systems and network environment.
  • The User Interface of Windows 7 is similar to Windows XP and easier for users to adapt to the changes in the new interface.
  • Many compatibility problems were found on Internet Explorer 11 (default browser for Windows 8) when tested with the campus IT systems.
To upgrade to Windows 7 and for productivity, the minimum computer hardware requirement is 4GHz Intel i5 CPU, 4GB RAM and 32GB free space on the hard disk.

PCs with lower configurations are either not able to upgrade to Windows 7 or will not run with satisfactory performance leading to possible loss of productivity. It is recommended that such PCs be replaced by new ones.
 
How to upgrade from Windows XP to either Windows 7 or Windows 8?
 
Users can use the Windows 7 or Windows 8 installation discs provided by the CSC to upgrade their operating systems by themselves. These installation discs were distributed to departments earlier and are obtainable through their DNA.
 
Should departments wish the CSC to assist them with the upgrade, they can submit a CSC Work Request via the DNA detailing the number of Windows XP PCs (which meet the foregoing minimal hardware requirement) to be upgraded. Upon receiving the request, the CSC will liaise with the corresponding DNA to discuss an upgrade schedule.
 
Since there is no shortcut for upgrading Windows XP to Windows 7 or Windows 8, users need to (i) format the hard drive and start a fresh installation which requires users to back-up their own data before starting the installation and (ii) re-install all software applications (compatible with the upgraded Windows) after the upgrade.
 
Reference:
 
Microsoft, (2014), “Support for Windows XP ends”, http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/enterprise/endofsupport.aspx