# XP upgrade assist needed...



## Mooselover (May 4, 2009)

i'm running XP 2002. i was told that as of 4/8, microsoft will no longer support and system will be compromised. what do i do? many moose-thanks


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

Have you EVER called Microsoft for support? I think I might have with Windows 3.1. Your system will not be mysteriously "compromised." If anything, I'm reading more and more about back-doors for the NSA and other agencies in current software.


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## Clod Kicker (May 7, 2012)

That means MS will no longer supply security updates. You can avoid 75% of the malware out there by getting rid of Internet Explorer as a browser, and using FireFox. Along with getting a good, paid for anti-virus program (I like Avast) and not following questionable links in email, you should be okay. Make sure any AV or AntiMalware program you buy runs in real time; to block bad actions. Back up your important files weekly. I use a USB thumb drive and Synctoy to back up 'My documents' and some other stuff.
I am using Windows 7 now and like it fine. :dance:


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## sugarspinner (May 12, 2002)

Well, you could do what I did; buy a new computer - a Windows 8. However, I was told that, if your system will support it (at least 2 mg memory) you can install Windows 8 in your existing computer. It will be slow - as in s-l-o-w - but should work. Or, you can keep using XP but there will be no Windows support for anti-virus, etc. And, 7 is going away in 2019 and 8 in 2023 or so. Built-in obsolescence!


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

sugarspinner said:


> Well, you could do what I did; buy a new computer - a Windows 8. However, I was told that, if your system will support it (at least 2 mg memory) you can install Windows 8 in your existing computer. It will be slow - as in s-l-o-w - but should work. Or, you can keep using XP but there will be no Windows support for anti-virus, etc. And, 7 is going away in 2019 and 8 in 2023 or so. Built-in obsolescence!


And sure why wouldn't they? XP had the longest run of all of them so far and 14 years is a long long time for any Operating System.
Apples OS X been around since 2002, but has had many upgrades since then. And XP has had only 3 in the name of SP 2 and SP3. 
And Apple has had 5 different OS X Versions. But still is OS-X
But XP is now becoming a dinosaur for MS, and you can't even upgrade past 8 when it comes to IE. The newest version is now at IE-11. 
So you see XP is falling behind more and more each year.


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## Mooselover (May 4, 2009)

Clod Kicker said:


> That means MS will no longer supply security updates. You can avoid 75% of the malware out there by getting rid of Internet Explorer as a browser, and using FireFox. Along with getting a good, paid for anti-virus program (I like Avast) and not following questionable links in email, you should be okay. Make sure any AV or AntiMalware program you buy runs in real time; to block bad actions. Back up your important files weekly. I use a USB thumb drive and Synctoy to back up 'My documents' and some other stuff.
> I am using Windows 7 now and like it fine. :dance:


ok.....i'm gonna follow this advice. i run avast. my browser is googlecrome. honestly, i don't like google anything but i did that cause..blah,blah puter issues. it was a quick fix. my email is extra safe cause it's totally off any radar. so, do i have to purchase win 7? i know they be pushing 8 and 8.1 but i'm not going there. read that 7 is best option. and another idiot question...how to rid puter of IE. will uninstall work or will it still remain in registry and create complications? many moose-slobbers for the assist from everyone...


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## Mooselover (May 4, 2009)

Harry Chickpea said:


> Have you EVER called Microsoft for support? I think I might have with Windows 3.1. Your system will not be mysteriously "compromised." If anything, I'm reading more and more about back-doors for the NSA and other agencies in current software.


very extra special moose-slobbers/drools for this.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Mooselover said:


> ok.....i'm gonna follow this advice. i run avast. my browser is googlecrome. honestly, i don't like google anything but i did that cause..blah,blah puter issues. it was a quick fix. my email is extra safe cause it's totally off any radar. so, do i have to purchase win 7? i know they be pushing 8 and 8.1 but i'm not going there. read that 7 is best option. and another idiot question...how to rid puter of IE. will uninstall work or will it still remain in registry and create complications? many moose-slobbers for the assist from everyone...


There's more to upgrading to Windows 7 than having 2 GB memory. There's a lot of XP compatible hard ware that doesn't have Windows 7 drivers available. You could upgrade to Windows 7 only to find that your sound card doesn't work or that you have to run video at a lower resolution than you want because there is no driver support for your video adapter. You should run the Windows Upgrade Assistant before trying.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/make-older-programs-run#1TC=windows-7

If it looks ok then you have options.


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## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

Mooselover said:


> ok.....i'm gonna follow this advice. i run avast. my browser is googlecrome. honestly, i don't like google anything but i did that cause..blah,blah puter issues. it was a quick fix. my email is extra safe cause it's totally off any radar. so, do i have to purchase win 7? i know they be pushing 8 and 8.1 but i'm not going there. read that 7 is best option. and another idiot question...how to rid puter of IE. will uninstall work or will it still remain in registry and create complications? many moose-slobbers for the assist from everyone...


No, you don't have to upgrade. 
XP will still work April 9th 2014 and April 9, 2020
I wouldn't wish Windows 8 on my worst enemy but some people like it (and I'll probably get flamed for even saying it).
You can download chrome or firefox for your browser.
Have a decent anti-virus program on your machine and stay away from questionable websites and you'll be fine for years to come.
PS there are good free antivirus programs I use the free versions of AVG and malwayebytes (it removes malware after you get it.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

mnn2501 said:


> No, you don't have to upgrade.
> XP will still work April 9th 2014 and April 9, 2020
> I wouldn't wish Windows 8 on my worst enemy but some people like it (and I'll probably get flamed for even saying it).
> You can download chrome or firefox for your browser.
> ...


You're mixing concepts here. While a good antivirus/anti-malware application is essential for safe browsing, it's not a substitute for operating system security updates. If an XP vulnerability is discovered vandals might walk right past AVG without AVG even noticing.

If you stay with XP after April 8 then it will only be a matter of months before you become a sitting duck for hackers, regardless of which antivirus application you use.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

I agree this has nothing to do with keeping some virus protection up. Holes that have always showed up in XP will now not be patched, and that has nothing to do with a virus setup. Sure it will run, but you really are making yourself vulnerable to Hackers that will seek out and find the now un-patched holes. And XP, sure it is a good OS, but it is also pretty high up and many nasties that will not get fixed.


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

Nevada said:


> You're mixing concepts here. While a good antivirus/anti-malware application is essential for safe browsing, it's not a substitute for operating system security updates. If an XP vulnerability is discovered vandals might walk right past AVG without AVG even noticing.
> 
> If you stay with XP after April 8 then it will only be a matter of months before you become a sitting duck for hackers, regardless of which antivirus application you use.


I disagree. Many home computers sit behind a router firewall and aren't terribly accessible to hackers in the first place. Add antivirus, anti-malware FF with no-script and keep those up to date and prectice even a modicum of safe practices and the chances of being hacked are less than your power supply suddenly spurting out raspberry jam. Even if it were to occur, a recent backup would allow a restore, and if needed a migration to Windows 22 or whatever the current version is.

If a person is running server software and punching holes through firewalls, then the risks go up.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Harry Chickpea said:


> I disagree. Many home computers sit behind a router firewall and aren't terribly accessible to hackers in the first place. Add antivirus, anti-malware FF with no-script and keep those up to date and prectice even a modicum of safe practices and the chances of being hacked are less than your power supply suddenly spurting out raspberry jam. Even if it were to occur, a recent backup would allow a restore, and if needed a migration to Windows 22 or whatever the current version is.
> 
> If a person is running server software and punching holes through firewalls, then the risks go up.


One of my hobbies is attending DefCon conferences. It's all about network security. Most of the attendees are hackers, but it's become an annual event for IT professionals and even government agencies. I didn't attend last year because I had sticker shock to registration fee increases, but I've been going for a lot of years.

If I've learned anything by attending DefCon it's that I wouldn't give you a dime for a port-blocking firewall as a security measure. To illustrate that, here's a presentation on residential router security I attended a few years ago, where he shows you how it's done.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r13ESXEfQVE

I wouldn't count on being behind a residential router for hacking security. Getting through a residential router a decade ago was rare, but not so much today. There are measures you can take to shore-up your router security, but most people aren't going to fool with it.


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## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

Hackers go after what there are a lot of, hence Apple has not been a very big target.
Do you really think hackers will try to find XP users? People still using XP are not those at the forefront of technology or make worthwhile hacking targets.
No, hackers will be going after Win7 and Win8 users.

I have my brother on XP and have no plans to upgrade him - EVER, he reads the news and gets email - big deal if someone hacks him. Since I own and take care of his computer he'll be on XP until either he dies or the computer dies.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Nearly 30% are suing XP world wide so YES =hackers Will go after XP users. 
Don't want to to do anything that fine run a risk but Hackers are salivating at just the thought of getting into all those XP users still want to go with a dinosaur OS that is known to be at the high end of risk compared to the newer OS that have come out.
Even Apple is getting malware and warnings that they should have a good anti-virus protection on board and every one no matter what they are using should have Java Turned Off. Not Java Script as that is completely different. But Java Off. Yes even on Macs.


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

arabian knight said:


> Nearly 30% are suing XP world wide so YES =hackers Will go after XP users.


I don't know where you got the 30% number, but stats on my website are currently showing 8.6% using XP. It's been dropping pretty fast in recent months. I think XP is already below the level of being a target for malware, and it's only going to keep dropping.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

backwoodsman7 said:


> I don't know where you got the 30% number, but stats on my website are currently showing 8.6% using XP. It's been dropping pretty fast in recent months. I think XP is already below the level of being a target for malware, and it's only going to keep dropping.


That 30% figure includes commercial uses, such as ATMs. Many of those installations aren't Internet accessible, at least not in the same sense that a PC is Internet accessible. They still have security problems but they are very different.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

And here is a article just written 10 days ago that says worldwide there are 29% are still using XP.


> Microsoft isn't relenting on its plan to end security updates for Windows XP on April 8, even though *it appears that hundreds of thousands of XP PCs will be left vulnerable to hackers.*
> 
> Microsoft warned years ago that XP support would end and says it won't halt the shift.
> 
> Introduced in 2001*, Windows XP is still used by about 29 percent of all PCs in the world*, and many of them won't be replaced before the deadline.


 That says PC's.
As far as the ATM's are concerned it is 98% of them using XP, but that is not included in this 29% Cause it says PC's.~~

http://omaha.com/article/20140321/MONEY/140329978


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

arabian knight said:


> That says PC's.
> As far as the ATM's are concerned it is 98% of them using XP, but that is not included in this 29% Cause it says PC's.~~
> 
> http://omaha.com/article/20140321/MONEY/140329978


Then 30% seems pretty high to me.


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## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

I see articles stating it more like 10%

Microsoft is trying to scare the remaining XP users into dropping a few hundred $$$ on a newer operating system by putting out the bogus 30% number that others are latching on to.

http://www.w3schools.com/ report 10% as of February


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

mnn2501 said:


> Microsoft is trying to scare the remaining XP users into dropping a few hundred $$$ on a newer operating system by putting out the bogus 30% number that others are latching on to.


You hit the nail on the head right there. The hype and resulting frenzy and hysteria over this has got to be the biggest boon to both Micro$oft and new computer sales in recent memory.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

mnn2501 said:


> Hackers go after what there are a lot of, hence Apple has not been a very big target.
> Do you really think hackers will try to find XP users? People still using XP are not those at the forefront of technology or make worthwhile hacking targets.
> No, hackers will be going after Win7 and Win8 users.


Let me be clear about this; *any hacker would love to invade your computer. *They don't care what's in it. You are a worthwhile hacking target simply by virtue of your Internet connection. You aren't quite as good of a target as a commercial server because you have a residential Internet connection, so you are of limited value for spamming, but still a useful target.

Aside from the thrill to a hacker for ruining someone's day, a compromised workstation can be a terrific launching point for a denial of service attack. And who's IP address is going to be logged? Not the hacker's IP, it will be YOUR IP. You'll have some explaining to do to your Internet provider.

If all a hacker does is wipe-out your operating system to force you to do a reload then you are fortunate. They can also get you in a lot of trouble.


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## JohnP (Sep 1, 2010)

Ya see the little penguin on nevada's posts? I'm currently "upgrading" my old dell b130, which came with xp, to ubuntu. Linux based. 

Quit arguing nevada and tell em about linux.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

I like my UNIX based computer.


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## Clod Kicker (May 7, 2012)

More on switching from XP from the EU ->
http://www.net-security.org/secworld.php?id=16601

I never really like xp. It seemed sort of mushy. So I went back to using my favorite OS, get ready now.......... Windows 2000!
Even when it was unsupported, and I'm still here, relatively unscathed.
I have to admit though, hack attacks were less sophisticated back in them thar days.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

JohnP said:


> Ya see the little penguin on nevada's posts? I'm currently "upgrading" my old dell b130, which came with xp, to ubuntu. Linux based.
> 
> Quit arguing nevada and tell em about linux.


As I've said before, I haven't had a lot of exposure to Linux workstation environments. I use Windows 7 32-bit for my workstation. There are people around here who know a lot more about Linux workstation operating systems than I do, so I generally bow out of those discussions.

My signature line has an image of Tux sitting on a 2U rack-mount server because I administrate Linux servers. I use Red Hat based server products, exclusively CentOS, because that's what I'm familiar with. I don't install Linux with a graphical interface, since a bloated environment like that uses additional resources and introduces a dimension of instability. In fact my servers are located remotely in data centers, so a graphical interface wouldn't be practical to use anyway. That leaves me to do a lot of system work from the command line. It's very different from a Linux Workstation.

I like the idea of an open source workstation operating system, but I'm not ready to give up Windows just yet. I guess I'm just stubborn and set in my ways.


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## cast iron (Oct 4, 2004)

mnn2501 said:


> I have my brother on XP and have no plans to upgrade him - EVER, he reads the news and gets email - big deal if someone hacks him. Since I own and take care of his computer he'll be on XP until either he dies or the computer dies.


Much good information in this thread, thanks all.

We have 7 PC's (laptops and desktops) and two tablets (accessing the house wifi). All of the PC's are running FF. There is a mixture of hardwired internet and wireless from the verizon router. 

One desktop and one laptop still run on XP pro which works fine for me, mostly surfing discussion forums, streaming internet radio, youtube videos, etc. My email is done on the desktop in our den which is win7.

I realize the risk of a problem is minimized following the recommendations in this thread but my concern is if one of the XP machines were infected, could it spread to the other machines on the home network?


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## Shine (Feb 19, 2011)

"That leaves me to do a lot of system work from the command line" - lol - my world. Linux has just recently had a threat, I really do not know why hackers are leaving an Open Source technology alone, much like the XOS engine. But for a person to hack any OS all that is needed is an understanding of it's operation.

I recently purchased a Win7 Home Pro 64bit system for my son. Don't like the fact that the Anti-Trust Governmental suit disappeared before Win7 hit the floor but I won't go into that here.

He's a good kid, I've monitored his activity and it seems that he has not gone to questionable sites in over two years. I added Microsoft Security Suite and he has not had to once do a restore or a clean. [taught him how] So it would appear that the threat is much more where one might venture rather that the threat that is out there, I would venture.

I am personally ramped up with the latest AV and Malware/RootKit/Adware tools and haven't been hit once [knock on wood] so I am a bit surprised by my son's success - I had a seat from Kaspersky to install but he was reluctant to do so, as it was a gift and I wanted him to learn, I complied.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Shine said:


> "That leaves me to do a lot of system work from the command line" - lol - my world. Linux has just recently had a threat, I really do not know why hackers are leaving an Open Source technology alone, much like the XOS engine. But for a person to hack any OS all that is needed is an understanding of it's operation.


I generally check for CentOS & package updates every week. There's usually something that needs updating. Granted, it's not always a security update (bug fixes & feature enhancements are common) but it's a good idea to apply them anyway.

Hackers might leave Linux workstations alone, I wouldn't know. But they're always trying to get in to Linux servers. Security is most of what I do.


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