Posted on 01/04/2006 9:59:39 AM PST by ShadowAce
Microsoft set out to adopt a formal and rigid support lifecycle in 2002, back at a time when most analysts were expecting to see Windows Vista (then, "Longhorn") within a couple of years. My own point of view was that this lifecycle business had a lot to do with Microsoft's then-new volume licensing scheme, which among other things is oriented towards selling software subscriptions. If you're buying a subscription for software, you can see how lifecycle plans become important. However, delays in Windows Vista coupled with a questionable approach to "consumer" products means that 2007 will carry a few surprises unless policy changes are made at Redmond.
XP Professional and Home are divided into two general product categories for Microsoft, namely business and consumer products. XP Professional, as a business product, will receive mainstream support for two additional years after the release of Windows Vista (whenever that may be). After that, Professional will have an additional five years of extended service (minimum), though this could be lengthened considerably if the OS update after Windows Vista does not ship within three years of Vista's debut.
Mainstream and Extended support are virtually identical, with both carrying security updates, service packs, online support, and the availability of paid support. However, the transition to the Extended Support phase means that hotfixes that are not security related will be made available by a (paid) commercial contract, warranty claims can no longer be made, and Microsoft will not entertain adding any new features or design elements to the OS.
Based on the current timeline and our own expectations for the launch of Windows Vista, we estimate Windows XP Professional Mainstream Support ending in late December 2008, with Extended Support ending in December of 2013. It could stretch out longer, but we don't expect the window to be more than two to three additional years. After the Extended Support phase is finished, online support (knowledge base, FAQ, etc.) will continue for 10 years.
Windows XP Home is another story. As a consumer product, it suffers from two policy deficiencies. First, consumer products do not qualify for Extended Support, but instead move directly into the online support phase after Mainstream Support ends. Second, whereas business products are guaranteed Mainstream Support for two years beyond the release of the next subsequent version of a product (in this case, Windows Vista), consumer products do not get this built-in transitional period. The end result is that Windows XP Home will leave Mainstream Support and enter online support on January 1, 2007in less than a year.
When that day comes, XP Home users may feel left out in the cold, because they will no longer qualify for security updates, and will not be able to purchase support from Microsoft. Finding this situation somewhat alarming, I contacted Microsoft's representation to clarify the matter. A Microsoft spokesman relayed the following to me:
"For consumer products, security updates will be available through the end of the mainstream phase. For Windows XP Home Edition, there will be no security updates after 12/31/06." Regarding paid support for problems unrelated to security patches, I was told that "Users who want to continue to receive support after the Microsoft assisted and paid support offerings have ended may visit the Retired Product Support Options Web site."
I urge Microsoft to reconsider this stance. There should be considerably more overlap in support for their consumer OS. While five years of support for XP Home may have seemed reasonable when it was expected that there would be little more than three years between major OS updates, the time it has taken to bake Windows Vista has thrown this out entirely. If Vista launches in October, it would give users a mere two months to move to the OS, or risk being unsupported.
I suspect that Microsoft will grant a stay of execution for Windows XP Home, because the alternative is to create a PR nightmare that would also leave customers fuming. Citing emerging markets in the past, Microsoft extended support for Windows 98 and ME by more than two years, and this decision was made long after Windows XP was released. Microsoft should extend support for Windows XP Home well into 2008. Otherwise users will have to hope that updates to XP Professional meet their needs, but it remains unclear if Windows Update will point XP Home users to updates to XP Professional.
Since Wolfstar said she trusted your opinion, and since I trust her judgements, I took a look at your freeper home page.
A tip of my hat to another USAF vet. I was tracking satellites (nice safe job) in Florida and Thailand in the early 70's.
Being a bit more irreverant, I term myself a "God damned atheist." But your home page says it well.
May we pass in the night again.
Thanks for the introduction, Wolfstar.
Hi, TPC. Happy New Year to you and your loved ones. Thanks for your reply. I will take your advice: "Personally, I like paying less, and getting more configuration and out of sight, fully automatic operation, so will get something like NETGEAR RP614 10/100Mbps Cable/DSL Web Safe Router , which is $42.99 at newegg.com." Sounds like the right solution for me. I'm worried about keeping the data of potential clients secure if I can land telecommuting gigs. Later this evening from home, I will send you a private message to expand further.
You are very welcome, as always TPC. MineralMan always posts good information on these tech threads, which I read and bookmark whenever I notice them.
I'm not a technical person, but do work in information systems. So I have a better than average understanding of these issues -- enough of an understanding to recognize who knows what they are talking about or not on these threads.
If I recall correctly, the actual difference between XP-Home and XP-Pro is a registry setting. At least this was the case when they first came out. After service packs, they may have diverged a little. There was a bit of a stink raised when people pointed this out at the time.
That's a joke right? I measure uptime in months on my linux boxes. I consider anything less to be unstable.
These are the features offerred by XP Pro that are not in XP Home, as described by Microsoft:
Remote Desktop remotely access your Windows XP Professional PC, from another Windows PC, so you can work with all of your data and applications while away from your office.
Offline Files and Folders - access to files & folders on a network share when disconnected from the server.
Scalable processor support up to two-way multi-processor support.
Encrypting File System - protects sensitive data in files that are stored on disk using the NTFS file system.
Access Control restrict access to selected files, applications, and other resources.
Centralized administration - join Windows XP Professional systems to a Windows Server domain to take advantage of the full range of powerful management and security tools.
Group Policy - simplifies the administration of groups of users or computers.
Software Installation and Maintenance automatically install, configure, repair, or remove software applications.
Roaming User Profiles - access to all your documents and settings no matter where you log on.
Remote Installation Service (RIS) support for remote operating system installations where desktops can be installed across the network.
Multi-lingual User Interface (MUI) add-on - change the user interface language to get localized dialog boxes, menus, help files, dictionaries, and proofing tools etc.
Above info is from here:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/howtobuy/choosing2.mspx
I've lost three Netgear routers in three years. That plus email tech support script kitties, turned me off to them. I've purchased a Linksys a few months ago and so far it's been fine.
Incentive is of course based on what you use it for now, but if you do Web serving, IIS 6 alone is worth the price over IIS 5, especially if you do any SSI or CGI (MS rewrote the previous broken and insecure handlers) or serve multiple sites (IIS 6 gives separate sites with multiple application pools, not just a bunch of virtual folders where they all go if one crashes).
No kidding. Learned the hard way: clean install.
they have one past 95?
Thanks but most of us don't want to (and that's irrelevant to OS). I find Macs to be clunky. This is a Windows thread. Not interested in propaganda.
Don't know about Dell, but I can say that Gateway is unable to supply a replacement motherboard for a four year old server. You might think servers would have a longer lifespann htan that.
(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")
Dell goes five years on servers. After that, fuggedaboudid.
But if you bought a computer with Windows 2000 installed, it probably didn't have hyperthreading as a BIOS option anyway.
Still - there might be a pattern here.
Wolfstar - perhaps I should not have recommended Netgear.
The actual firewall/router I've been using the last year or two, quite happily, is the LINKSYS BEFSX41 10/100Mbps Cable/DSL Firewall Router $(56.99):
I got it because it supported "Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI)", which means it keeps track of the packets you send out, and only allows packets back in that are in response to something you sent out. This makes for a safer firewall than the simpler rules that cheaper firewalls use.
Linksys no longer advertises that the BEFSX41 supports SPI. My guess is that they are doing this to get you to pay for their next model upscale, the LINKSYS RT042 10/100Mbps Broadband Router ($89.99):
Don't buy the above RT042 - the initial reviews I see in a quick search on the web suggest that this one has some serious bugs in its firmware that are still being worked. See for example Linksysinfo.org Forums.
For the last year or so, the best reviews have been for the D-Link Gaming Router D-Link DGL-4100 (Wired, $116.00) or D-Link DGL-4300 (Wireless, $125.00):
Gamers are definitely the most demanding users of residential routers/firewalls -- so if this one makes them happy, it is likely one of the best.
I used to use D-Link, a few years back. Maybe the next time I need a router, it will be time to go back to them. These D-Link DGL-4100 and DGL-4300 models look very nice, and get the best reviews.
So I guess it boils down to one of:
(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")
I have come to prefer D-Link stuff. For one thing, thei $20 switches don't require crossover cables or use of a special uplink port. This is cool for folks who don't like ugly surprizes.
I've bought about a dozen D-Link products for offices, including firewalls, megabit switches, and routers. I've had one RMA.
My Home Netgear firewall/router/print server ($73) failed under warranty. The replacement has lasted for two years now. It has never required configuration, and online security checks say I am invisible.
I understand this product is too slow for online gaming, but I don't do that. I wouldn't notice a tenth of a second lag. I really like the (parallel port) print server. It really beats leaving a computer on for printer sharing. But for $60 or so you can get a real print server.
I love the look and feel of Linux, but I'm from another planet. I just stare at the desktop and click on things trying to figure it out. Just changing the screen res is a hassle if you don't know where to look. I know what Roxio and ACDsee is but I don't know Gimp. What would you use to burn a disk?
I really hate Windoze, but I think all the rum in my youth hurt my neurons. I worked with DOS 3.0, wrote my own batches and Auto.exec's and config.sys files, and have only bought 1 computer from a store,(built all my own from scratch since my 286 in '84), but I swear I just can't do Linux. It makes me feel like I'm retarded or something. The only Windows program I really can't live without is Metastock. People talk about Wine, and Virtual something or other, But I need that program for my living. If I had a guru that could show me some things, maybe I could catch on, but I don't know ANYBODY that uses it.
I'm a willing candidate, but I feel trapped in a Gates prison.
(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.