Windows 10 - end of support October 2025

[Primus]

Right. But we'd have all had hardware that the vendor didn't support Windows 10 on. Dell, HP, Lenovo didn't all release Windows 10 driver packs for every model and essentially said we were on our own. We still ran Windows 10 on them fine, even tho the vendor considered them "unsupported"

 

The discussion was about whether LTSC should be used - MS have been explicit in their remarks on this.

 

Hardware support for a given OS is a completely different matter - if your criticism of MS is that they weren't explicit enough for Windows 10 then they've certainly rectified that now!

 

As always (and was seen with the Chromebook issue with ones suddenly stopping working years after their EoL date), if you choose to run an unsupported configuration then don't be surprised if at some point you get issues and you're unlikely to be able to get support because it's an "unsupported configuration".

[DrCheese]

if you choose to run an unsupported configuration then don't be surprised if at some point you get issues and you're unlikely to be able to get support because it's an "unsupported configuration".

Oh no, don't get me wrong I'm not encouraging it as an option to roll out en mass - But if I'm left with say... 30/40 machines that we can't upgrade next year when the deadline hits my plan is to roll them back to either the Windows 10 LTSC (Which is supported & until 2027/2029 depending on version) or trying the Windows 11 LTSC - Knowing full well of the risks of this, as rolling them back to the Windows 10 LTSC would less than an hours work.

 

I have been screaming until I'm blue in the face about making sure we have funding to remove everything by the deadline & we are making good progress, but planning for backup options if we don't.

[Primus]

Oh no, don't get me wrong I'm not encouraging it as an option to roll out en mass - But if I'm left with say... 30/40 machines that we can't upgrade next year when the deadline hits my plan is to roll them back to either the Windows 10 LTSC (Which is supported & until 2027/2029 depending on version) or trying the Windows 11 LTSC - Knowing full well of the risks of this, as rolling them back to the Windows 10 LTSC would less than an hours work.

 

I have been screaming until I'm blue in the face about making sure we have funding to remove everything by the deadline & we are making good progress, but planning for backup options if we don't.

 

If we were in that position then we'd be using ChromeOS Flex or removing them.

 

LTSC isn't supported for general purpose machines - you may get issues with them and if you do you're in unspported configuration territory.

[DrCheese]

If we were in that position then we'd be using ChromeOS Flex or removing them.

 

LTSC isn't supported for general purpose machines - you may get issues with them and if you do you're in unspported configuration territory.

 

Yes.. and I accept that risk - We ran the LTSC build on all our machines for around 2 years after the initial release of Windows 10 while everyone else dealt with all the headaches of the forward forever builds.

 

Of course, we're missing an alternative here in that we could pay for security updates for Windows 10 until we've removed the last ones - That's probably really all our best options (If we can not remove or replace machines)

 

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/education/blog/2024/04/windows-10-end-of-support-updates-for-education/

 

$1 a machine for the first year, $2 for the second, $3 for the third (No UK pricing yet but)

 

ChromeOS Flex - Yes, but it's also only officially supported on verified hardware lists

https://support.google.com/chromeosflex/answer/11513094?hl=en

 

Outside of that, you're on your own (We have done this on a few)

[Olliedawg]

Yes.. and I accept that risk - We ran the LTSC build on all our machines for around 2 years after the initial release of Windows 10 while everyone else dealt with all the headaches of the forward forever builds.

 

Of course, we're missing an alternative here in that we could pay for security updates for Windows 10 until we've removed the last ones - That's probably really all our best options (If we can not remove or replace machines)

 

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/education/blog/2024/04/windows-10-end-of-support-updates-for-education/

 

$1 a machine for the first year, $2 for the second, $3 for the third (No UK pricing yet but)

 

ChromeOS Flex - Yes, but it's also only officially supported on verified hardware lists

https://support.google.com/chromeosflex/answer/11513094?hl=en

 

Outside of that, you're on your own (We have done this on a few)

 

Honestly i'd just pay for the extended support for the machines you can't upgrade in time, seems like the easiest option. If its only for one year, its not a big spend at 1$ per machine.

[DrCheese]

Honestly i'd just pay for the extended support for the machines you can't upgrade in time, seems like the easiest option. If its only for one year, its not a big spend at 1$ per machine.

 

Yeah I agree - Completely slipped my mind in my original posts above...

[Primus]

Honestly i'd just pay for the extended support for the machines you can't upgrade in time, seems like the easiest option. If its only for one year, its not a big spend at 1$ per machine.

 

Knowing schools you will just delay replacing already old hardware for a further 3 years and then they'll expect even more from it at that point as you effectively gave them another 3 years already so surely you can work your magic again...

[Olliedawg]

Knowing schools you will just delay replacing already old hardware for a further 3 years and then they'll expect even more from it at that point as you effectively gave them another 3 years already so surely you can work your magic again...

 

Yea i know.

 

Running old hardware, which no longer gets security updates opens up a vector for cyber attacks. SLT in some schools don't realise this, or it isn't portrayed to them. There comes a point where things just need to be replaced. I don't think some schools realise how heavily IT is relied upon nowdays. It's effectively the backbone of 95% of daily operations

 

I would be keen to show this to SLT - Would they want their school in the news for the wrong reasons? I highly doubt it

 

Cyber attacks on London's hospitals affect 800 planned operations - BBC News

 

Classes cancelled as 'sinister' school cyber-attacks rise - BBC News

 

Cyber security breaches survey 2024: education institutions annex - GOV.UK (http://www.gov.uk)

[Michael]

If you look at it from a historic point of view, how many times have you installed Windows 10 on devices that were only designed for XP, W7 or W8? We're all competent IT Professionals, so we make it work, even if it means searching for drivers manually online.

 

Remember that LTSC 1809 is built on the same code as Windows Server 2019, just without the bells or whistles.

 

Other options as mentioned already are Extended Support directly from Microsoft or of course, hardening your existing configurations with stricter software FW policies. Google Chrome will still receive continuous updates, regardless if Microsoft no longer decide to patch Edge on 22H2 for example.

[jthompson]

Between, Win11 hardware list, Win10 22H2 LTSC EOL dates and ChromeOS Flex verified hardware list, I've even in my desperation actually looked into deploying domain-joined, GPO-configured Ubuntu desktop to older hardware.

 

I got quite far with Ubuntu infairness, until I came across the design decision that users' home folders are readable by all other users by default. Which was not supposed to be a thing any more, but apparently is. So I don't fancy deploying that even though the hardware is supported for many years to come.

[DavonPotter]

I can totally relate to your situation. Planning for future upgrades can be challenging, especially with budget constraints. It's good that you're thinking ahead though, even with the announcement for Windows 10 support ending in 2025. We're in a similar boat here, trying to figure out the best approach given our current tech landscape. Hopefully, we can all share some helpful strategies on how to manage this transition smoothly.

[timbo343]

Between, Win11 hardware list, Win10 22H2 LTSC EOL dates and ChromeOS Flex verified hardware list, I've even in my desperation actually looked into deploying domain-joined, GPO-configured Ubuntu desktop to older hardware.

 

I got quite far with Ubuntu infairness, until I came across the design decision that users' home folders are readable by all other users by default. Which was not supposed to be a thing any more, but apparently is. So I don't fancy deploying that even though the hardware is supported for many years to come.

Have you thought about Windows 11 LTSC when it's released?

[jthompson]

Would that not have the same issue with regards to older hardware not being officially supported?

[timbo343]

Would that not have the same issue with regards to older hardware not being officially supported?

 

See this video:

[DrCheese]

Would that not have the same issue with regards to older hardware not being officially supported?

 

Yeah have already gone round the houses earlier in the thread - The advantage of the LTSC over the normal builds of 11 on unsupported hardware is that it's unlikely to randomly get bricked by a security update - Whereas the forward forever version may brick with a feature update.

 

Still think tho the best bet to keep older hardware kicking about for now is paying into the extended support if needed. It's not massively expensive & gives an extra 3 years to move (Long as you do actually move!)

[Olliedawg]

See this video:

 

 

Interesting.. has it only been announced for IoT so far?

[jthompson]

I appreciate the point about security updates vs feature updates, but MS have specifically warned (in the context of Win11 on unspported hardware) that monthly security updates may just stop. I'm not sure what mechanisms would be involved there, but even on LTSC it would still be a sudden death scenario of a month-by-month watch for whether CUs are getting applied.