When will Microsoft stop supporting Windows 11?

 

When we talk about the duration of Microsoft support for a version of Windows, we are talking about how long the company will commit to developing its new product in terms of basic features, such as new tools, and appearance improvements, in addition to the possibility of adding new technologies, and we also talk about security patches and filling gaps that may They appear over time, ensuring that the product has the best level of performance, protection and up-to-date.

 

In addition to supporting through updates that Microsoft launches to improve Windows itself, or to make it integrated with the latest versions of its programs such as the Office application package, support may also mean the company's commitment to making its product compatible with technologies and products that may be issued at a later time from other companies or systems, in terms of its ability to operate and its compatibility with its product. Of course, such support is not mandatory, but it is important to ensure user satisfaction.

 

As for the latest versions of the system, Microsoft has not yet officially announced the full length of time that it will be committed to supporting Windows 11, but many indicators can give us some answers about the length of time that Windows 11 can have support, which appears to be in a general way. It will be one of the longest periods of support for a Microsoft product.

 

Why does Windows 11 seem eligible for the longest support period from Microsoft?

 

There are confirmed conversations that when Microsoft launched Windows 10 in the year 2015, it intended for it to be the last version of Windows and launched what is known as “Windows as a service,” meaning that it was assumed that version 11 would not be released and that Microsoft would suffice with developing the system by providing it with updates. The big one (maybe she was also thinking of issuing a completely new operating system that is not based on the Windows kernel, such as the Windows 10X project).

 

But what happened is that Microsoft will continue to support Windows 10 until October 14, 2025, that is, about ten years after the original version of the system, and the company has stated this in preparation for the launch of Windows 11, which is significantly different from Windows 10, starting from the minimum requirements for installing the system that made many devices Those that were running Windows 10 are unable to run Windows 11, which explains the big leap that Microsoft has taken regarding its new system.

 

Usually, even computers that were released more than 10 years ago in the computer hardware market were eligible to install the Windows version in the same year that Microsoft launched it. At least, this is what happened with Windows 7, 8.1, and Windows 10. As for Windows 11, only devices that were released about 6 years ago are eligible to run Windows 11, which suggests that Microsoft decided to raise the minimum specifications for its system to be well-compatible even with computer hardware. Which will be released years after its launch date.

 

There is also a basic indicator that greatly affects Microsoft's strategic plans for its products - perhaps it is the matter that has not yet prompted the company to announce the official period of its support for Windows 11 - which is the extent of reception enjoyed by its new version of Windows.

 

As we have seen, in 2013 Microsoft rushed to issue a quick upgrade to 8.1 after the poor reception of Windows 8, which it suddenly stopped supporting in 2016, less than four years before its release. Although the upgrade bore the number 8.1, meaning a sub-version, it is largely considered the next version entirely for Windows 8, which made Microsoft overlook the release of "Windows 9" to jump directly to Windows 10 in 2015.

 

Windows 11, so far, has been well received by users and technical experts, which indicates that the system may have one of the longest support periods, similar to what happened with Windows XP, which had the longest support period ever (from 2001 to 2014) or may Microsoft ends up releasing Windows 12 sometime in ten years if Windows 11 follows the path of Windows 10.

 

What form of support does Microsoft provide for its systems?

 

When we talk in detail about the support that Microsoft provides for its systems, we are talking about two forms of support that are available in the form of updates via Windows Update: The first is integrated support and feature support, or as Microsoft calls it "Feature updates". This form of support represents a new version of Windows 10, as it can carry completely new updates such as adding new tools, and modifying the appearance significantly, in addition to security updates, that is, all Microsoft's efforts to make the product up-to-date and modern. These updates come on fixed and periodic dates every six months in Windows 10, so we find that there are many versions of Windows 10 and each version has a specific support date.

 

In Windows 11, Microsoft announced that it would not launch major periodic updates every six months as it was doing with Windows 10, and announced that it would suffice with issuing one basic update per year, but that did not prevent the company from launching a major update to the system as it happened in February, i.e. Just eight months after its release.

 

The second form of support is security and quality updates, or basic support. This is what Microsoft calls a "Cumulative Update", and this update also comes periodically, and users usually receive it on the first "Tuesday" of every month and it includes fixing basic errors in the system and security and protection patches.

 

What is the support policy adopted by Microsoft with Windows 11?

 

Everyone knows that Windows 11 will get major updates once a year, unlike Windows 10, which also gets these updates, but every six months or so. And with the many updates it received, Windows 10 that we know today is completely different from what was launched in 2015, and this is often the scenario scheduled as well with Windows 11, meaning that its support will end in 2031 if the company does not intend to support it for a longer period. The initial release of Windows 11 was released on October 5, 2021, but we will see major updates every year after that. This is what Microsoft calls a "modern lifecycle policy".

 

It is true that Microsoft did not announce the period for which it will commit in total to support Windows 11, and this seems understandable because the company announced that it will issue “Feature updates” annually, meaning a new version annually that contains a different identification number, but at the same time it revealed the period that it will commit to Support for the latest available versions of Windows 11, meaning that each major update to Windows 11 will have its own support cycle.

 

It is noticeable that in all versions, the announced support period for the same versions in Windows 10 has increased by an additional six months, which is likely that Microsoft is planning the longest support period for Windows 11 compared to previous Windows versions. On most successful Windows systems, the company has committed to a minimum of five years of integrated support for "Feature updates" from the date of its release, while committing to another five years of support for "Cumulative Update" updates from the date of the release of the latest version.