Windows Vista and XP no longer supported

[alw34]

I've started to get messages from Microsoft saying virus protection updates are ending for VISTA, maybe CHROME too.

I had my VISTA based HP computer into a Microsoft retail store for cleaning and upgrades last year [I posted about that some time ago]. I was told my drivers are out of date and could not be upgraded/replaced. That prevented the store team from giving me a free upgrade to 8.1, and in turn blocks me from Windows 10, neither of which 'improvements' I give a hoot. I don't need nor want another computer.

I started using CHROME when IE got really,really slow about two years ago, before my Microsoft retail store cleaning. By shutting off all CHROME "PLUG INS" everything works fine; From time to time I turn on ADOBE FLASH PLAYER to see something. I tried IE once, and it seemed to work after the cleaning.

[For those who don't know, apparently CHROME plug ins can conflict with either IE and other Windows software; lock ups while searching and while on websites is what I experienced. ]

So I am hesitant but not opposed to returning to IE; Who knows what troubles will arise. I run Malwarebytes Anti Malware and CCleaner weekly and so far that has kept me in good condition.

Anything obvious I ought to do?
Thanks

 

[Borg]

How do you feel about Firefox?

 

[alw34]

How do you feel about Firefox?

If it is compatible with VISTA, fine with me, although I know nothing about it. What drives me nuts are 'compatible' programs, even from 'partner' companies, which are not.

 

[Mark44]

Anything obvious I ought to do?

Upgrade to a newer OS, such as Win 7 or Win 8, assuming your computer will support either of those. I like Win 7 a lot, but I don't care for the default user interface on Win 8 or Win 8.1, with all those silly boxes. I much prefer a desktop computer, and the idea of keeping track of many applications with a flat display of boxes, rather than a hierarchical display of files (as in Windows Explorer) seems braindead to me.

 

[scanvas]

Please allways post main system information: Manufacturer+Model Number (RAM size, CPU-speed if available)

My crystal ball´s broken so I have to guess...Desktop-PC with cards on mainboard? Vista is born as an inflated resource-eater - who could, avoided it and jumped directly from XP to W7. Make sure Your System could run the upgraded version before You upgrade. Avoid ballast and Gimmicks like Aero and optimize for Performance.

Unfortunately Firefox needs more resources than Chrome.
IMHO the last versions are also too inflated - so I use the firefox-fork Palemoon which needs half the time to start.

other possibilities: Vista is broken, outdated software and old plugins (reinstall) System Memory is low (increase) don´t use java.

I upgraded successfully several xp-Notebooks and Netbooks directly to Win7 (8 is nonsense, 10 is kindergarten) - even older laptops needed only some additional memory and all works fine.

 

[Evo]

Chrome has announced it will no longer send updates for XP and Vista, perhaps you could upgrade to 7?

 

[scanvas]

I was told my drivers are out of date and could not be upgraded/replaced. That prevented the store team from giving me a free upgrade .

Which driver is unavailable for upgrades? If You do not feed Your helper with details about Your HP Modell - how should I help?

 

[alw34]

Thanks for the replies; oddly most did not appear as 'alerts' from Physicsforums. ??

I don't remember what the Microsoft store team said about compatibility with Windows 7, this was last July. I bought this computer from a local retail store,used, and the store is now out of business. Alas, the dopey message from Microsoft has procedures for fixing all sorts of issues but they don't seem relevant to the message. Next time the banner pops up I'll copy the information or link to it here.

When I see "how to download XYZ" and then following :"How to resolve problems downloading XYZ" my eyes glaze over. However as far as I know I have installed all upgrades and am current.

The computer is a Hewlitt Packard tower/desktop with Vista 32 bit SP3 Home Premium, have IE#8 or #9 with SP1 & SP2, 160GB HD, Intel 4CPU 3.60 Ghz, 2.00GB RAM, 82945G express chip.

I don't know what drivers are incompatible with Windows 8; How can I identify the installed drivers if that is useful for possibly loading Windows7? I am unsure if upgrading to Windows 7 offers any support/update advantages for CHROME. I have either IE #8 or #9 installed; I doubt those are the latest.

Are there any major pros and cons to trying to upgrade IE to a later version? I am not opposed to reverting to IE now installed and that may be my course of least resistance. I just opened IE and it seemed to work fine. I am NOT a game player, don't use the cloud for storage, basically using the computer for message boards, e-mailing, viewing websites, music videos.

I do know the Microsoft retail store people tried to load Windows 8 and could not. They refunded me all my charges, and gave me a year of Microsoft Assure service. So I can get a lot of online support if I know what to ask for.

 

[alw34]

Here is the information link provided from the alert message that CHROME will no longer be supported.

https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/95346

 

[Mark44]

I do know the Microsoft retail store people tried to load Windows 8 and could not.

If they were unable to do a "clean" install (which entails formatting your hard drive first), it's probably the case that your computer is too old for that OS version. You might still be able to install Windows 7. I don't think you can buy it through Microsoft, but possibly you could get an unused copy on eBay or the like.

I think a better option is to bite the bullet and get a new computer. Vista was released to consumers 9 years ago, so your computer is getting long in the tooth. The technical specs that you listed -- Pentium 4, 160 GB HD, 2 GB RAM -- are fairly minimal these days. After 7 or 8 or 9 years, hard drives fail, power supplies fail, stuff wears out. It's not that expensive to get a new computer with the OS already installed. For example, HP has one model with Win 7 installed for just under $400 (http://store.hp.com/us/en/pdp/deskt...p-pc-m0k49av-aba-1?jumpid=Desktops_Finder_PDP).

 

[alw34]

I think a better option is to bite the bullet and get a new computer.

Sir: Bite your tongue!

.. so your computer is getting long in the tooth.

So is my wife!

Pentium 4, 160 GB HD, 2 GB RAM -- are fairly minimal these days.

You should have seen what I had before this one. 512MB RAM if I recall.
[I just checked: my daughter brought home an old office computer we keep as a spare...yep, 512MB RAM...this IS embarrassing.

After 7 or 8 or 9 years, hard drives fail, power supplies fail, stuff wears out.

Funny you mention that; My power supply had that "I am ready to burn smell" of overheated insulation about two years ago. I took the cover off the tower, vacuumed a bit here and there, but it was not bad. Then, to be sure no burning no failure actually occurred, I bought a spare power supply. Sure enough the original is still working fine. Now what where did put that spare power supply?

 

[scanvas]

your PC is not to old for an upgrade

160GB HD, Intel 4CPU 3.60 Ghz, 2.00GB RAM, 82945G express chip

this means the upgrade from vista to W7 is easy as drivers especially for Win7 for Your chipset are provided by Intel here:
https://downloadcenter.intel.com/product/81526/Graphics-Drivers-for-Intel-82945G-Express-Chipset

You tried to install firefox or palemoon as browser on vista as alternative to chrome?
good luck

 

[1oldman2]

The latest I have heard is IE versions 7 through 10 are loosing support, I myself prefer Firefox with the duckduckgo search as default. The bigger problem is what kind of support will we see a year down the road for any OS besides 10. I'm a little wary of the old standard 10 yr support policy being honored much longer. Just an opinion of mine, I encourage people to read up on current news concerning these matters. peace all

 

[alw34]

your PC is not to old for an upgrade

160GB HD, Intel 4CPU 3.60 Ghz, 2.00GB RAM, 82945G express chip

this means the upgrade from vista to W7 is easy as drivers especially for Win7 for Your chipset are provided by Intel here:
https://downloadcenter.intel.com/product/81526/Graphics-Drivers-for-Intel-82945G-Express-Chipset

Interesting information...thanks...Unsure if that will actually work based on Microsoft retail store feedback.

I'll have to investigate a number of things...here is what initially comes to mind.

I don't need answers on all the following, I can do the research, but I am not skilled enough to know what order I should proceed...See if I can download a driver update first? [Is the driver update free/] Or download a Win7 version first? And what issues have I missed?. I don't mind spending $50 or $75 on my old machine, but I'd hate to spend that and end up ruining it and THEN having to buy another machine...

How does one read the download chart for the chipsets?

First, which one of the driver updates is the one appropriate for me? I know my machine is 32 bit and maybe I can hunt for my 82945G chipset. "Windows 7, 32 bit" for compatable chipsets, mine is not listed. [Under VISTA, 32 bit I find "945G" Is that the same as my 82945G?] Seems like I can't upgrade??

Then, if I download one of these drivers will it be compatible with VISTA that I have currently or must I immediately install Win7? Or should I install windows7 first. What happens if the download fails? Can it be erased/reversed?

Windows7: Says here 6 versions were released...
http://www.ebay.com/bhp/windows-7-home-premium

Should I care which?
5127 people bought this: $58
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium - 32 Bit Full Version & Upgrade
Only 91 bought this $50
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Microsoft-Windows-7-Home-Premium-32-Bit-SP1-Full-Version-Service-Pack-1-DVD-Key-/222008962943

I wonder if I should try and get Microsoft Assure service to answer all the above? maybe they'll even do the work??

 

[Feeble Wonk]

My concern is the pending discontinuation of security updates for Vista. I've got an old computer running Vista and I'm afraid it won't handle an upgrade of operating systems. It's using a dual core 1.9 GHz processor and 32 bit OS with only 2 GB of RAM. Any opinions on whether that will run 7 or 8 (or 10)?

 

[1oldman2]

My concern is the pending discontinuation of security updates for Vista. I've got an old computer running Vista and I'm afraid it won't handle an upgrade of operating systems. It's using a dual core 1.9 GHz processor and 32 bit OS with only 2 GB of RAM. Any opinions on whether that will run 7 or 8 (or 10)?

I have a lap top with similar hardware, my experience is it will run 7 but you won't be happy

 

[Feeble Wonk]

I'm not "happy" now. I'm guessing I'll be even less happy if I change. [emoji21] Any idea how long it really will be before the security updates cease?

 

[1oldman2]

I'm not "happy" now. I'm guessing I'll be even less happy if I change. [emoji21] Any idea how long it really will be before the security updates cease?

5 yrs. tops for 7

 

[rcgldr]

ydrivers especially for Win7 for Your chipset are provided by Intel here:
https://downloadcenter.intel.com/product/81526/Graphics-Drivers-for-Intel-82945G-Express-Chipset

Those are graphics drivers, and win 7 has an * after it. Also needed are the other motherboard chipset drivers for SATA controller, sound controller, USB controller, ... .

You could check if Win 7 will work using the information provided here:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/help/upgrading-from-windows-vista-to-windows-7#T1=tab01

If interested, you could download a .ISO file for Windows 10 from Microsoft for a clean install. You'll need some type of dvd-burner software to create a DVD using the Windows 10 ISO image. I'd recommend buying a new hard drive to test Win 10 clean install. You can try Win 10 via clean install for free. I'm not sure how much time you have before you need to purchase Win 10 to get an activation key.

If Win 7 / Win 10 doesn't have drivers for your system, it might be possible to put them on a floppy disk, assuming there's still an option to get drivers from a floppy during a clean install.

 

[alw34]

It just occurred to me I run "Malware anti bytes" weekly...So what if Microsoft doesn't continue THEIR security updates? Maybe I should run it daily??

 

[1oldman2]

My concern is the pending discontinuation of security updates for Vista. I've got an old computer running Vista and I'm afraid it won't handle an upgrade of operating systems. It's using a dual core 1.9 GHz processor and 32 bit OS with only 2 GB of RAM. Any opinions on whether that will run 7 or 8 (or 10)?

Interestingly enough my oldest "clunker" happens to be an HP notebook That I bought just as 7 was being released, it had Vista premium factory installed but I was given a 7 upgrade disc as part of the deal. Over the years I have formatted/reinstalled it several times with no issues what so ever, now it won't let me do any updates besides Win10. I'm familiar with MS's big push for their new OS (having already sacrificed my two newer machines to the upgrade) and wanted to hang on to at least one 7 machine for old times sake. I'm wondering if in spite of my

It just occurred to me I run "Malware anti bytes" weekly...So what if Microsoft doesn't continue THEIR security updates? Maybe I should run it daily??

Mal-Bytes is great but I believe when MS stops updates its game over, I'm not sure so I'm open to facts.

 

[alw34]

Over the years I have formatted/reinstalled it several times with no issues what so ever, now it won't let me do any updates besides Win10.

Such corporate behavior infuriates me if that's what's happening here.

Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.

 

[1oldman2]

Such corporate behavior infuriates me if that's what's happening here.

Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.

Thats why I'm learning the idiosyncrasies of 10, MS seems to be changing support policy on older OS's regularly so "biting the bullet" and getting to know my 10. It's a great system once you learn to control the telemetry.

 

[alw34]

It's a great system once you learn to control the telemetry.

The guys in the Microsoft retail store were pretty candid...saying things like "Windows 10 is a reversion back to what people want."..."It's a step back in the right direction..' pretty funny all told...

 

[Feeble Wonk]

What are the resource demands of 10?

 

[1oldman2]

What are the resource demands of 10?

Seems to be surprisingly light but that could be deceptive, the thread "win10 discussions" in this section has a lot of good info and links.

 

[Feeble Wonk]

Seems to be surprisingly light but that could be deceptive, the thread "win10 discussions" in this section has a lot of good info and links.

Thanks

 

[alw34]

Thanks for the suggestions.
After reading all the snafu's associated with Windows 10, I'm going to stick with what I have until it stops working.

I have a Toshiba external hard drive as back up so hopefully I'll have a good record of my own files, pictures,etc.
I don't mind following a sequence of 'cookie cutter' steps leading to the proper outcome, but my experience with software is that the proper outcome is a rarity.

I do better with mechanical and hardware changes.

This morning I decided to remove the mower deck on my 42" Murray riding lawn mower...11 steps with pictures, no problems, could easily have done it in ten minutes but I stopped along the way as I found a dual bolt deck hanger was missing one fastening bolt and the other was loose. So I replaced the missing bolt and tightened the loose one. Greased the spindles, checked them for proper rotation w/o wobble, removed and sharpened the blades, and inspected the drive belt. All was 'test ok' and I'll proceed with repainting a few rusty spots on the underside after scrubbing, drying.

Season 12 coming, and going just fine. Software, not so much.

 

[1oldman2]

Thanks for the suggestions.
After reading all the snafu's associated with Windows 10, I'm going to stick with what I have until it stops working.

I have a Toshiba external hard drive as back up so hopefully I'll have a good record of my own files, pictures,etc.
I don't mind following a sequence of 'cookie cutter' steps leading to the proper outcome, but my experience with software is that the proper outcome is a rarity.

I do better with mechanical and hardware changes.

This morning I decided to remove the mower deck on my 42" Murray riding lawn mower...11 steps with pictures, no problems, could easily have done it in ten minutes but I stopped along the way as I found a dual bolt deck hanger was missing one fastening bolt and the other was loose. So I replaced the missing bolt and tightened the loose one. Greased the spindles, checked them for proper rotation w/o wobble, removed and sharpened the blades, and inspected the drive belt. All was 'test ok' and I'll proceed with repainting a few rusty spots on the underside after scrubbing, drying.

Season 12 coming, and going just fine. Software, not so much.

Point taken, . The main thing is your backed up, that is a parachute/life raft you will be glad to have someday. (I like the mower analogy by the way)

 

[rcgldr]

was given a 7 upgrade disc as part of the deal. Over the years I have formatted/reinstalled it several times with no issues what so ever, now it won't let me do any updates besides Win10.

I don't understand, if you have an upgrade disc, it should be able to install Win 7, assuming it's actually Win 7 install on that disc and not just a link to some Microsoft update side. Doing a web search, it seems you can still download a Win 7 ISO file from Microsoft, then you could install from that. I assume the activation key is the same as the Vista key, or that you can get an activation key using your Vista key. I see a Vista SP1 update ISO (for CD), but I don't know if there's a Vista ISO image at Microsoft download center.

Back to the original poster, assuming your hard drive is getting old enough to worry about, you may want to buy a new hard drive and clone the old one. If it's an IDE drive, I'm not sure where you could buy one. Most of the brand name desktops and lap tops have a hidden partition used to restore the main partition back to it's original state, and some of them don't include a full install disk. As mentioned above, I don't know about getting a Vista ISO file, but it seems you can get Win 7 and Win 10 ISO files. Again, I recommend backing up your data to an external hard drive, then replacing your existing hard drive with a new hard drive before doing a clean install of either Win 7 or Win 10.

Currently I have a multi-boot system with components just old enough for Win XP, Win XP X64, and just new enough for Win 7 / Win 10 (Intel DP67BG chipset, 2600K CPU 3.4 ghz, GeForce 780 Ti video card, Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fat1lty sound card). I backed up everything and did a clean install of Win 10 to a spare partition, and it runs OK, but it adds about 30 seconds to the time it takes to multi-boot into one of the older systems, so I restored my system to it's pre Win 10 install state. Win 7 is good enough for now.

 

[1oldman2]

I don't understand, if you have an upgrade disc, it should be able to install Win 7, assuming it's actually Win 7 install on that disc and not just a link to some Microsoft update side. Doing a web search, it seems you can still download a Win 7 ISO file from Microsoft, then you could install from that. I assume the activation key is the same as the Vista key, or that you can get an activation key using your Vista key. I see a Vista SP1 update ISO (for CD), but I don't know if there's a Vista ISO image at Microsoft download center.

I have to apologize for the confusion I must have caused with the post you were quoting from. Somehow I managed to post an incomplete paragraph so there was noway for anyone to get the full context of what I was saying , once again sorry about that. The 7 upgrade disc came with the machine but wasn't available to me until 7 was released several months after purchase of the notebook. The upgrade installed and reinstalled through several formatting's over the years working great each time. Where I was going with the post was that being an upgrade from Vista I always had the earlier OS as the core with 7 layered over it. (not quite the same as full version of 7). Lately I have found the only updates it will let me install is the win10 and I'm wondering if that's because of my original Vista OS and its current borderline status in the update support fiasco. I have been taking great pains to avoid loosing my beloved Win7 OS but I am afraid I'm soon going to end up with 10 on all three machines I currently run (Feels like ). I guess the post was really a "please say it ain't so" cry for help and I'm hoping there is someway to continue updating my 7 system but our friends at MS seem bound and determined to have everyone using 10 ASAP. On a side note I wonder what would happen if I were to format and reinstall again since Vista has to be fully up to date before the 7 upgrade will install?. My hunch is I would be down to 2 machines, anyone have any thoughts on that?.

 

[rcgldr]

On a side note I wonder what would happen if I were to format and reinstall again since Vista has to be fully up to date before the 7 upgrade will install?. My hunch is I would be down to 2 machines, anyone have any thoughts on that?.

You should be able to do a custom (clean) install of Windows 7 from the disk.

What's annoying is apparently you can't simply install Win 7 and use your Vista activation key, as Microsoft wants to make sure your existing version of Vista is wiped out during the process.

First backup all of your files to an external hard drive, and make sure you can re-install the programs you use.

Next, since your system is a branded (HP) system, there's most likely a hidden partition that can restore the primary partition back to it's "factory" state, which means all your files and any programs you installed will be gone. This is enabled during the BIOS boot process, usually by pressing F11 for HP systems. The choose to restore to original state. The end result is the original image without all the stuff you changed or later added.

Then do a windows 7 custom install, which should format the Vista partition and end up with a clean install of Win 7.

It may be possible to add a new hard drive to your system, and do a custom (clean) install Win 7 to the new hard drive. While running from Vista, for the second drive, create one extended partition, and then create and quick format one or more logical partitions within the extended partition. If you don't want Win 7 to reletter it's partition to C, then before installing, boot into Vista, and start the Win 7 install from Vista, selecting the partition to install on by letter. This will preserve the current partition lettering of your system.

After that, you may want to clone your primary hard drive. If you can burn cd-roms on Vista, there are freeware utilities to do this from a website like "ultimate boot cd". Some of these let you clone partitions instead of entire drives, in which case you could make use of a hard drive with more than 160GB of space.

Another possiblity would be to do an upgrade install to the second hard drive, then replace the primary hard drive with a new hard drive, and then boot from the Win 7 dvd and do a repair to partition and format the first hard drive with a primary C: partition so that the system can boot. You can then add extended and logical drives to the primary hard drive after the repair.

 

[Pianorak]

I don't care for the default user interface on Win 8 or Win 8.1, with all those silly boxes.

I didn't either. My computer expert installed Classic Shell which made it look more like the old XP interface.

 

[pyroartist]

Don't bother with Win 8 or 10. They are made for touch-screen tablets more so than old desktops.
Your computer will accept Windows 7. The MS store probably just wanted to sell you something as usual.
When preparing for the switch search Google for any questions you may have. Don't bother with Microsoft help.
They write such poor help info I wonder how they are staying afloat. I always find much better explanations elsewhere.
So my suggestion for a list is
1. Back up all your files on a small Toshiba USB harddrive or large capacity memory stick.
2. Load Win7.
3. Load Firefox or Chrome as your browser. I prefer Firefox.
4. Forget Malware Bytes. I use AVG Free version. (Google that and load it.) You don't need any of those
constant Microsoft updates if you have a quality anti-virus program like AVG. It scans everything that comes into
your system and silently updates it at least once a day. I never accepted any MS updates for the 10 years I owned my
Windows XP machine and AVG caught everything bad for me. All those thousands of updates suck up memory
and processing time.
Best of luck.

 

[rude man]

I still run my two xp laptops. I refuse to buckle under uSoft's tyranny of dumping it in favor of mickey-mouse 7, 8 or 10. I run firefox fine. updates are still pouring in. I liked IE a LOT better than firefox but had to abandon it since many websites won't run on it at all. I would urge using good anti-virus though, I like my webroot a whole lot after trying several alternatives, all bogging down my pc to high-viscosity molasses.

 

[alw34]

I would urge using good anti-virus though

How many anti virus do we need.

FIOS, my IP, says it has one.
Windows has one.
I also run Malware Bytes...
good grief.

I can one GPS system to find my location.
I don't need three types of oil in my car.
I don't need multiple voltages to run my fridge.

Can't PC software designers do better?

 

[rude man]

They probably can, but they make more money making our lives difficult!
Seriously, if you plan on maintaining XP or vista, realize that uSoft no longer supports them, meaning you can't depend on their firewall, updates (mostly nonexistent) etc. Also, if your ISP anti-virus is as crummy as mine (McAfee), ditch it in favor of Webroot secureAnywhere. Yeah, costs $40/year but unless you go to W7 you need good protection.
Malwarebytes is not anti-virus but don't expect me to explain the difference. Have no clue myself. Basically I have Malwarebytes but never run it. I have had great luck with webroot which has caught a number of latent malware.

 

[krater]

How many anti virus do we need.
...
I don't need three types of oil in my car.
I don't need multiple voltages to run my fridge.
...

I can almost guarantee there are at least three types of petroleum lubricant somewhere in your car.
If one were to pick enough nits I bet you could easily find a dozen or more.

If your fridge is old enough there may only exist one voltage inside the case. But most every modern kitchen appliance has some mix of microprocessors and/or sensors operating maybe in ranges of millivolts to a couple dozen volts in addition to any components running mains voltage.

You didn't need antivirus or even a battery with your first solar calculator either. Well, it probably DID have a battery in it somewhere, too. Might still work too.

One thing you have to consider is that with a rapidly diminishing user base of a depreciated software comes a diminishing incentive to develop or deploy new exploits to hack into the shrinking number of outdated computers. When do you suppose the last WinNuke95 packets have floated through many routers?

 

[rude man]

One thing you have to consider is that with a rapidly diminishing user base of a depreciated software comes a diminishing incentive to develop or deploy new exploits to hack into the shrinking number of outdated computers. When do you suppose the last WinNuke95 packets have floated through many routers?

I think this is a good point. Folks have dissuaded me from continuing to use XP, claiming it will become increasingly vulnerable to malware since it's no longer supported. But the above is an equally, or I think more than equally, persuasive argument why it's OK to continue to use XP. Anyway, I am, and boo to the 7, 8 & 10 gang.

 

[krater]

I realize that I should probably qualify my previous remark.

A decision to go forward with an unsupported OS should not be taken lightly. This thread helps to point that out. Sticking with XP can to a degree paint a bullseye on you. As user base goes so does development of countermeasures to any new widespread attacks.

If you are worried about up-to-date security you should probably consider an up-to-date OS. Windows or otherwise there is also functionality to be considered as well.

XP might actually be strong enough in its dedicated user base that threat protection could concieveably go "open source" maybe even to the point of writing MS-hotfix style solutions if enough effort manages to get put behind it. Pure speculation of course but its a big world.