В каком году windows xp перестала поддерживаться - Доктор Windows

Что означает окончание поддержки Windows XP?

Корпорация Майкрософт в течение 12 лет предоставляла поддержку для Windows XP. Теперь для нас и наших партнеров настало время инвестировать в более современные технологии, которые позволят нам и дальше разрабатывать и развивать новые эффективные способы работы. В результате техническая поддержка по Windows XP больше не доступна. Это относится и к автоматическим обновлениям, которые повышают защиту компьютера.

Также корпорация Майкрософт прекратила предоставлять Microsoft Security Essentials для загрузки в Windows XP. Если у вас уже установлены эти компоненты, в течение некоторого времени вы будете получать обновления антивредоносных сигнатур. Однако помните, что эффективность Microsoft Security Essentials (или любых других антивирусных программ) будет ограничена на компьютерах без последних обновлений для системы безопасности. Это значит, что компьютеры под управлением Windows XP будут незащищенными и находиться под угрозой заражения.

Что произойдет, если я продолжу использовать Windows XP?

Если вы продолжите использовать Windows XP после окончания поддержки, ваш компьютер по-прежнему будет работать, но может стать уязвимым для вирусов и других угроз безопасности. Кроме того, прекращена поддержка Internet Explorer 8, поэтому использование этого браузера на компьютере с Windows XP связано с дополнительным риском. Так как большинство производителей продолжает оптимизировать свое оборудование и программы для последних версий Windows, вы также можете обнаружить, что многие приложения и устройства не работают с Windows XP.

Моя версия Windows больше не поддерживается. Что это значит?

Как узнать свою версию Windows?

Как защитить себя?

У вас есть два способа обеспечить защиту компьютера после окончания поддержки:

Обновите текущую операционную систему

Далеко не все устаревшие компьютеры поддерживают Windows 10, новейшую версию операционной системы Windows. Мы рекомендуем вам просмотреть страницу характеристик Windows 10, чтобы узнать, соответствует ли ваш ПК системным требованиям для Windows 10. Более подробные сведения приведены на странице вопросов и ответов.

Купите новый компьютер

Если ваш компьютер не поддерживает Windows 10, возможно, стоит приобрести новый? Обязательно ознакомьтесь с нашей подборкой лучших современных компьютеров. Новые компьютеры — мощные, легкие и стильные. Кроме того, средняя цена таких устройств существенно ниже, чем 14 лет назад.

Найдите свой идеальный ПК

Нужна дополнительная помощь?

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Поддержка самой популярной ОС Microsoft завершается 8 апреля 2014 года. Вспомним взлеты и падения XP, и поразмыслим, что ждет тех, кто до сих пор ее использует.

8 апреля 2014

25 октября 2001 года на прилавках магазинов появилась новейшая, революционная разработка Microsoft — Windows XP. Всего за три дня Microsoft продала 300 тысяч коробок с XP. Неудивительно. Операционная система отличалась множеством привлекательных новшеств: значительно измененный графический интерфейс, встроенная функция записи на CD, сглаживание шрифтов ClearType специально для новых ЖК-мониторов, программа просмотра изображений и факсов, возможность быстрого переключения между пользователями системы и тысячи других. Впрочем, самое главное произошло «под капотом» — ядро системы было основано не на наработках Windows 95/98, а на «корпоративной» линейке NT, которая отличалась большей стабильностью и безопасностью. Этот крутой коктейль из надежного ядра и улучшенного интерфейса с современными функциями стал самой популярной разработкой Microsoft на целое десятилетие. Microsoft продлила срок поддержки XP до 12 лет со стандартных 10 и успела выпустить три больших сервис-пака, в которых значительно обновила и улучшила ОС. Но всему хорошему когда-нибудь приходит конец, и в случае с XP это произойдет сегодня, 8 апреля 2014 года.

Конец… всему?

«Конец расширенной технической поддержки», как официально называется сегодняшнее событие, звучит, конечно, внушительно, но что стоит за этими словами? Уже несколько лет Microsoft не добавляет в XP новых функций, а сегодня выйдет последнее обновление, устраняющее найденные уязвимости и проблемы безопасности. В дальнейшем такие обновления выходить не будут, поэтому, хотя вы можете продолжать пользоваться Windows XP, любые бреши в ее защите останутся незакрытыми. Это повышает риск заражения компьютера.

Windows XP не перестанет работать, но никто не будет устранять в ней проблемы безопасности

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XP-апокалипсис

XP-апокалипсис, или XPocalypse, он же XPiration, как его неформально сокращают в английском языке, — это ожидаемый некоторыми экспертами вал неприятностей, связанный с тем, что во многих корпоративных системах и специализированных устройствах до сих пор используется Windows XP. Например, по оценке производителя банкоматов NCR, XP применялась в 95% банкоматов мира, и менее трети из них уже переведены на более новые версии ОС.

Дальнейшая судьба подобных аппаратов вызывает тревогу — их безопасность окажется под угрозой. Когда Microsoft закроет новую пачку уязвимостей в следующем, майском обновлении Windows 7 и 8, злоумышленники могут проанализировать это обновление, и очень возможно, что часть ошибок присутствует и в XP. За одним важным отличием — для XP обновления не будет. Таким образом, в арсенале хакеров ежемесячно будут появляться все новые способы проникновения на компьютеры с XP. Учитывая, что многие машины на базе XP контролируют банкоматы, медицинские приборы, системы управления светом и тому подобную технику, ущерб от злоумышленников может выйти пусть не апокалиптический, но довольно весомый.

Годовая техподдержка XP для организаций стоит до $5 млн!

Избежать печальной участи могут компании, заключившие с Microsoft договор о дальнейшей технической поддержке XP. Стандартного ценника здесь нет, но, по разным сведениям, годовая техподдержка организации стоит от 600 тысяч до $5 млн. Для частных компаний эта опция не предусмотрена.

Неизбежный конец

Всего в Windows XP было найдено 726 уязвимостей, с рекордом в 101 в 2011 году.

Можно, конечно, пожаловаться на Microsoft, которая не хочет еще лет пять бесплатно обновлять ОС десятилетней давности. Но поддерживать XP в безопасном состоянии очень трудно. Дело даже не в каких-то конкретных ошибках и уязвимостях — при создании XP не соблюдались принципы программирования, которые помогли бы создать защищенную от современных угроз ОС. Именно поэтому эту ОС гораздо чаще поражают угрозы. По данным самой Microsoft, на тысячу просканированных фирменным антивирусом компьютеров приходится примерно 9 зараженных машин с XP — показатель вдвое больший, чем у «семерки», и вчетверо больший, чем у Windows 8. Неудивительно — две последние создавались уже в XXI веке, когда злонамеренные хакеры, работающие за большие деньги, уже были суровой реальностью, учтенной в продукте. Windows XP даже с учетом сервис-паков, усиливающих защиту, всегда оставалась под ударом. За годы существования в ней было устранено 726 уязвимостей, причем в год выпуска их было всего 10, а в 2011 году этот показатель достиг 101.
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Жизнь с XP

Не стоит думать, что на XP сегодня остались только банкоматы и луддиты, опасающиеся всего нового. По свежим данным NetMarketshare, добрых 27% компьютеров в Интернете все еще работают под XP. Конечно, это на 10% меньше, чем год назад, но все равно те, кто по любым причинам еще не расстался с XP, находятся в одной лодке — очень большой лодке. О чем им стоит задуматься?

Несмотря на окончание поддержки Microsoft, почти треть компьютеров в мире все еще работает на Windows XP.

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Лучше обновления ничего нет. Если обновление на поддерживаемую ОС все же возможно, сейчас самое время им заняться.
Тем, кто из-за слабого компьютера, нужных программ или других причин остается на XP, необходимо установить полный пакет обновлений через Windows Update.
Наибольшие угрозы исходят из Сети. Компьютерам с XP отныне рекомендуется офлайновое существование. Или как минимум изолированное от Интернета.
Фирменные приложения Microsoft для работы в Интернете — Internet Explorer, Windows Mail и т.п. — должны уступить место сторонним, регулярно обновляемым приложениям. Например, Google Chrome или Mozilla Firefox.
Необходимо отключить Java и Flash. Если они критически важны, отключить автозапуск этих плагинов. То же касается Adobe Reader, поскольку PDF-файлы также являются популярной лазейкой в систему.

Раз Microsoft больше не занимается безопасностью XP,
вам придется уделить этому дополнительное внимание.
Но мы поможем!

Критичным становится наличие не просто антивируса, а мощной защиты компьютера от всех видов угроз. Без ложной скромности порекомендуем Kaspersky Internet Security, поскольку кроме отличного качества поиска и блокировки угроз наш продукт обладает еще одним свойством, особенно важным для пользователей XP. Это технология автоматической защиты от эксплойтов, которая находит уязвимые приложения и защищает их в тот момент, когда уязвимостью пытается воспользоваться вредонос. Вторая часть умной защиты — технология МЕТА-сканера (в английской версии ZETA Shield), которая умеет находить подозрительный код в несвойственных местах, например в графическом файле или офисном документе.
Для дополнительной защиты можно ограничить запуск приложений только доверенным, «белым» списком. Все, что в него не входит, будет заблокировано. Эта функция есть как в корпоративной, так и в домашней версии нашей защиты.

Немаловажный факт для пользователей XP — в отличие от Microsoft, «Лаборатория Касперского» не прекращает поддержку ОС. Еще минимум два года текущие и будущие продукты компании будут работать под XP, защищая пользователей от актуальных угроз.

Еще минимум два года текущие и будущие продукты «Лаборатории Касперского» будут поддерживать Windows XP.

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P.S. В Microsoft сняли милое прощальное видео для XP. В нем есть небольшие хронологические нестыковки в самом начале (ну, правда, двенадцать лет назад «Проблема-2000» была уже позади), но оно все равно стоит пары минут времени.

Дайджест инцидентов, 20.03 — 04.04

В связи с «плотностью обстрела» мы приняли решение увеличить частоту выхода наших дайджестов безопасности, поэтому теперь они будут публиковаться каждые две недели. С 20 марта по сегодняшний день произошло несколько

Советы

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Проблемы безопасности и возможности обновления

Чем отличаются русские гости от английских?
Английские гости уходят, не прощаясь.
А русские прощаются, но не уходят.

Операционная система Windows XP появилась на рынке целых 13 лет назад. На самом деле, если задуматься, факт удивительный — большинство событий того времени воспринимается нами уже как древняя история, особенно в настолько быстро меняющейся отрасли, как информационные технологии. А ХР, между тем, все еще с нами.

В свое время ее выпуск стал важнейшим событием для индустрии. Хотя бы потому, что она стала первой универсальной операционной системой для домашних и корпоративных пользователей, в которой простота работы и внешняя привлекательность были реализованы на мощной и надежной платформе Windows NT. И хотя у Windows XP были свои проблемы и недостатки, для своего времени она была отличной операционной системой. В результате уровень предоставляемых возможностей, скорости и комфорта стал для многих пользователей достаточным — настолько достаточным, что даже 13 лет спустя они не видят для себя оснований переходить на новые версии операционных систем Microsoft.

Правда, на сегодня она уже не удовлетворяет никаким требованиям и плохо вписывается в наши реалии, а ее поддержка отвлекает много времени и сил, что заставляет Microsoft активно агитировать за переход на более новые версии ОС Windows. И главная причина тут — не только и не столько желание заставить пользователей заплатить за эти новые версии, как объясняют многие пользователи. Это подход излишне упрощенный, а значит — уже неверный. Впрочем, давайте сначала дадим слово представителям Microsoft, а потом уже будем делать выводы.

Убедить в необходимости перейти на более современные системы нас пытались:

Мила Шилина, менеджер по продвижению Windows в малом и среднем бизнесе
Андрей Бешков, менеджер программ информационной безопасности. Андрей Бешков мне лично запомнился по его интересным лекциям на конференциях TechEd, которые неизменно собирают множество положительных отзывов участников

Окончание поддержки

Ровно через шесть месяцев, 8 апреля 2014 года, полностью завершится поддержка операционной системы Microsoft Windows XP и офисного пакета Microsoft Office 2003. Это влечет за собой следующие последствия:

Прекращение выпуска обновлений. Развитие Windows XP остановилось уже довольно давно, в систему не добавляют новые возможности и поддержку новых технологий. Сейчас же перестанут выходить и обновления безопасности, которые устраняют уязвимости в ядре, позволяющие злоумышленнику попасть в систему в обход защиты и без ведома пользователя. Таким образом, компьютеры с Windows XP, выходящие в сеть, будут находиться под постоянной неустранимой угрозой. Плюс, эта ОС перестанет удовлетворять требованиям сертификации по безопасности.

Потеря совместимости. Уже сейчас под Windows XP нет драйверов для многих современных устройств, включая иногда даже клавиатуры и мышки. После окончания поддержки логично ожидать, что вообще все производители ПО и оборудования начнут отказываться от поддержки этой ОС.

Прекращение поддержки пользователей. Помимо выпуска обновлений, прекратится любая поддержка пользователей Windows XP, и все возникающие проблемы с ее работой придется решать самостоятельно.

Стоимость поддержки. Поддерживать старый компьютер с Windows XP становится все дороже. Представители Microsoft ссылались на специально проведенное исследование компании IDC, в соответствии с которым поддержание работоспособности компьютера с Windows XP за пятый год обходится вдвое дороже, чем за второй (324 против 177 долларов). Общие затраты, включая замену выходящих из строя частей, затраты времени специалиста и пр., тоже существенно выше.

Угрозы информационной безопасности

Однако основной проблемой, которая встанет перед пользователями, остающимися на Windows XP, является безопасность, а точнее — ее отсутствие. В те времена, когда Windows XP выходила на рынок, отношение к безопасности системы было совершенно другим, и многое из того, что сегодня кажется нам естественным и общеобязательным требованием, тогда просто не приходило разработчикам в голову. Даже отношение к уязвимостям системы было гораздо более легкомысленным, чем сейчас. Для примера, ведущая аналитическая компания Secunia, которая специализируется на анализе уязвимостей ПО и предоставлении консультаций по их устранению и защите, начала собирать информацию о них только с 2003 года.

Во многом это объясняется тем, что всемирная сеть Интернет занимала тогда совсем не то положение, что сейчас. Она была относительно небольшой, имела низкую скорость связи и предоставляла пользователям довольно ограниченный набор возможностей. А сценарии работы были гораздо проще и ограниченнее.

Соответственно, совершенно по-другому выглядела картина деятельности злоумышленников. Тогда это было некое сообщество бунтарей, а основной мотивацией атак был либо вандализм, либо желание отдельных личностей прославиться. Массовых атак и корыстных действий практически не существовало. Да и инструменты взлома и атаки тоже были относительно простые. То ли дело сейчас!

На сегодняшний день интернет — это огромный рынок, место для ведения бизнеса. Его финансовая составляющая уже довольно велика и все время растет. В интернете активно действуют все: и компании, включая крупнейшие мировые корпорации и банки, и государства, и частные лица. А на большой рынок с большими деньгами всегда обращают внимание злоумышленники. Сейчас вредоносная активность в интернете выросла многократно, а ее приоритеты, формы и методы существенно изменились.

Если раньше случаи атак по экономическим или политическим мотивам были единичными, а их объектами становились в основном ведущие мировые корпорации, то сейчас объектом такой атаки может стать абсолютно любое предприятие. Цели могут быть самые разные — от нарушения работы с последующим шантажом до кражи ценных данных. Существенно выросли риски — нарушение работы ИТ-инфраструктуры предприятия может обойтись в суммы от 100 тыс. до 1,5 млн. долларов (корпоративное подразделение Hewlett-Packard по другому поводу приводило данные, что в среднем ущерб составляет на сегодня около 5 млн. долларов, но он может варьироваться в очень широких пределах). Наконец, вредоносная активность в сети крайне высока. По словам Андрея Бешкова, если сейчас выставить в интернет незащищенную машину, то до того момента, когда ее начнут «прощупывать», пройдет в среднем 20 минут. А если машина при этом не обновлена, то взломают ее довольно быстро.

Поэтому за 12 лет восприятие защищенных систем изменилось радикально. Сейчас уже на этапе разработки огромное внимание уделяется безопасности и защищенности системы, алгоритмы и код проходят специальные проверки, системы оценивают на сопротивляемость проникновению извне, внедряется все больше защитных технологий. Проблема в том, что на момент разработки Windows XP большинства таких технологий просто не существовало. Например:

Все вместе это позволило добиться существенного снижения количества уязвимостей системы. Например, вот сравнение XP и Vista (в которой анализ стали проводить сразу при разработке) по количеству уязвимостей, выявленных в период первоначального распространения системы на рынке.

Ну и общая устойчивость к заражению:

Как видите, защищенность систем существенно выросла. Однако и злоумышленники не дремлют, придумывая все новые и новые атаки. Но главный вывод, который из этого можно сделать: к сожалению, в Windows XP будут обнаруживаться все новые и новые уязвимости — просто потому, что разрабатывалась она очень давно, и при ее разработке защищенности ядра системы не уделялось такого внимания, какое требуется сейчас.

Тут стоит кратко напомнить о таком моменте, как активная защита системы, в том числе от атак из сети. Это направление тоже шагнуло далеко вперед за последние 12 лет. В принципе, первый межсетевой экран (firewall) появился еще в Windows XP. Воспринимался он тогда примерно так.

В первых редакциях Windows XP он был по умолчанию отключен, и его надо было включать специально. Правда, в Service Pack 2 его все же включили, но многие пользователи, увидев после его включения, как что-то перестало работать, вместо настройки просто отключали брандмауэр целиком. В современных системах уже изначально идет неплохой межсетевой экран и антивирус (которые отключаются при установке сторонних приложений с нужной функциональностью). Важным шагом в развитии защищенности системы стал фильтр Smartscreen, появившийся в новейших редакциях ОС Windows. Он проверяет вообще все файлы, которые пользователь получил из интернета и пытается запустить. Этот фильтр не анализирует их, как антивирус, но может оценить, происходит ли такой файл из доверенного источника, насколько он распространен (сколько пользователей его уже устанавливали), и на основании этого выводит рекомендации — стоит его запускать или нет.

Тем не менее, Андрей Бешков призвал не слишком доверять антивирусам. Их основная стратегия — опознание вируса. Поэтому сейчас среднее время жизни вредоносной программы — около 8 часов после появления. За это время она попадет в поле зрения антивирусного ПО, пройдет анализ и будет добавлена в базу, а дальше антивирусы начинают засекать новую угрозу. Но современные вирусы умеют изменять свой код (мутировать), антивирусы перестают их опознавать, что дает им дополнительное время. Таким образом, наличие антивируса вовсе не всегда способно защитить систему с незакрытыми дырами в безопасности ядра: вирус может успеть внедриться в систему до того, как его начнут обнаруживать. Кроме того, после окончания поддержки ОС предприятия сферы безопасности тоже должны начать снижать инвестиции в защиту Windows XP.

Таким образом, в Windows XP может оставаться еще немало уязвимостей на уровне ядра системы, которые после окончания поддержки будут оставаться открытыми, позволяя вторгнуться в систему и либо украсть/испортить данные, либо взять систему под контроль. Возможно, это не так страшно для домашних пользователей, но предприятиям в любом случае грозит серьезными убытками.

Переход на современные системы

Если попробовать суммировать все факторы, из-за которых предприятия и пользователи не хотят переходить на новую систему, то мы получим примерно следующую картину.

Во-первых, это ценовой фактор: апгрейд все-таки платный, да и многие компоненты ИТ-инфраструктуры придется менять. С другой стороны, на поддержку старого оборудования с каждым годом тратится все больше денег (например, оно банально выходит из строя) при отсутствии поддержки производителя, да и огромные дыры в безопасности в любой момент могут привести к отказу инфраструктуры, который обойдется гораздо дороже. Сейчас Microsoft предлагает скидки на обновление ПО до последних версий:

Воспользовавшиеся программой апгрейда, разумеется, получат бесплатное обновление до Windows 8.1, а в дальнейшем — бесплатное обновление операционной системы в рамках программы Windows Software Assurance. Пользователи облачного сервиса Office 365 также получают всегда последнюю версию MS Office. Провести обновление можно, в частности, через сеть партнеров Microsoft (список доступен здесь).

Во-вторых, это необходимость переучивать персонал для работы с новым интерфейсом. Здесь можно упомянуть, что у Microsoft есть специальные программы обучения, которые позволяют быстрее адаптироваться к новому интерфейсу.

Наконец, третий часто встречающийся аргумент — наличие специализированного ПО, разработанного под Windows XP и учитывающего особенности системы, из-за чего такое ПО не работает под более современными ОС. Для решения этой проблемы можно запускать Windows XP в виртуальной машине с помощью встроенного клиента Hyper-V — это снимает большинство угроз безопасности системы и данных. Кроме того, существует Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V). Наконец, в Windows 7 профессиональных редакций есть режим XP Mode, позволяющий запускать приложения, написанные для XP, в режиме совместимости. Это тоже дает неплохой шанс получить новые технологии и сохранить совместимость с ПО, требующим уникальных особенностей XP.

Раз уж разговор зашел об обновлении, то хочу напомнить всем, что современные лицензии Microsoft допускают даунгрейд вплоть до двух поколений назад, т. е. если у вас есть лицензия на Windows 8 профессиональной серии (Windows 8 Pro), то можно без проблем установить Windows 7. Причем эта возможность должна распространяться на любые системы, в т. ч. ОЕМ с версией Windows 8 Pro, купленные частными пользователями.

Мнения и выводы

На сегодня обновление с Windows XP на более современные системы — действительно назревшая необходимость. Поэтому по ходу статьи я как мог старался удержаться от контраргументов. Разумеется, они есть. Проблема в том, что любое возражение будет сводиться к частностям и никак не сможет отменить главного посыла: Windows XP устарела и не обеспечивает соответствия современным требованиям совместимости, надежности и безопасности.

У нас перед глазами есть прекрасный пример с браузером Internet Explorer. В свое время, когда IE6 безраздельно властвовал на рынке браузеров, а конкурентам доставались лишь крохи, практически все корпоративные ресурсы оптимизировались под правильную работу только с этим браузером. Со временем, когда IE6 бесповоротно устарел, эта совместимость стала приносить куда больше вреда, чем пользы: она заставляла держать устаревшую версию браузера с проблемами безопасности, сдерживала развитие самого IE, не позволяла пользоваться более удобными, быстрыми и безопасными альтернативными продуктами. Дошло до того, что Microsoft самой пришлось развертывать очень крупную глобальную программу по вытеснению IE6 и оптимизированных под него ресурсов с рынка и по переходу на более современные технологии.

С Windows XP примерно та же ситуация. В свое время это была очень хорошая система, которая отвечала всем тогдашним требованиям и давала пользователям очень хороший уровень производительности, надежности и комфорта. Но ее время прошло, технологии ушли далеко вперед. И сейчас сохранение этой системы на рынке тоже приносит больше вреда, чем пользы. И поэтому от нее нужно отказываться, переходя на более современные решения.

Прощай, Windows XP. С тобой было хорошо, но надо двигаться дальше.

Источник

Windows XP

Support status
Version of the Windows NT operating system

Screenshot of Windows XP running the Luna visual style, showing the start menu, taskbar, and My Computer window
Developer	Microsoft
Source model	Closed-source Source-available (through Shared Source Initiative)^[1]
Released to manufacturing	August 24, 2001; 21 years ago^[2]
General availability	October 25, 2001; 21 years ago^[2]
Final release	Service Pack 3 (5.1.2600.5512) / April 21, 2008; 14 years ago^[3]
Marketing target	Consumer and Business
Update method	Windows Update Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM)
Platforms	IA-32, x86-64, and Itanium
Kernel type	Hybrid (NT)
Userland	Windows API NTVDM (IA-32 only) SFU
License	Proprietary commercial software
Preceded by	Windows 2000 (1999) Windows Me (2000)
Succeeded by	Windows Vista (2007)
Official website	Windows XP (archived at Wayback Machine)
All editions (except Windows XP Embedded, Windows XP 64-bit Edition, Windows Embedded for Point of Service, Windows Embedded Standard 2009, and Windows Embedded POSReady 2009): Mainstream support ended on April 14, 2009.^[4] Extended support ended on April 8, 2014.^[4] Windows XP 64-bit Edition: Unsupported as of June 30, 2005^[5] Windows XP Embedded: Mainstream support ended on January 11, 2011.^[4] Extended support ended on January 12, 2016.^[4] Windows Embedded for Point of Service: Mainstream support ended on April 12, 2011.^[6] Extended support ended on April 12, 2016.^[6] Windows Embedded Standard 2009: Mainstream support ended on January 14, 2014.^[7] Extended support ended on January 8, 2019.^[7] Windows Embedded POSReady 2009: Mainstream support ended on April 8, 2014.^[8] Extended support ended on April 9, 2019.^[8]

Windows XP is a major release of Microsoft’s Windows NT operating system. It was released to manufacturing on August 24, 2001, and later to retail on October 25, 2001. It is a direct upgrade to its predecessors, Windows 2000 for high-end and business users and Windows Me for home users, and is available for any devices running Windows NT 4.0, Windows 98, Windows 2000, or Windows Me that meet the new Windows XP system requirements.

Development of Windows XP began in the late 1990s under the codename «Neptune», built on the Windows NT kernel and explicitly intended for mainstream consumer use. An updated version of Windows 2000 was also initially planned for the business market. However, in January 2000, both projects were scrapped in favor of a single OS codenamed «Whistler», which would serve as a single platform for both consumer and business markets. As a result, Windows XP is the first consumer edition of Windows not based on the Windows 95 kernel or MS-DOS. Windows XP removed support for PC-98, i486 and SGI Visual Workstation 320 and 540 and will only run on 32-bit x86 CPUs and devices that use BIOS firmware.

Upon its release, Windows XP received critical acclaim, noting increased performance and stability (especially compared to Windows Me), a more intuitive user interface, improved hardware support, and expanded multimedia capabilities. Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 were succeeded by Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008, released in 2007 and 2008, respectively.

Mainstream support for Windows XP ended on April 14, 2009, and extended support ended on April 8, 2014. Windows Embedded POSReady 2009, based on Windows XP Professional, received security updates until April 2019. After that, unofficial methods were made available to apply the updates to other editions of Windows XP. Still, Microsoft discouraged this practice, citing compatibility issues.^[9] However, over eight years from the end of life date (September 2022), the majority of PCs in some countries (such as Armenia) still appeared to be running on Windows XP.^[10] As of September 2022, globally, just 0.39% of Windows PCs^[11] and 0.1% of all devices across all platforms continued to run Windows XP.

Development

In the late 1990s, initial development of what would become Windows XP was focused on two individual products: «Odyssey», which was reportedly intended to succeed the future Windows 2000 and «Neptune», which was reportedly a consumer-oriented operating system using the Windows NT architecture, succeeding the MS-DOS-based Windows 98.^[12]

However, the projects proved to be too ambitious. In January 2000, shortly prior to the official release of Windows 2000, technology writer Paul Thurrott reported that Microsoft had shelved both Neptune and Odyssey in favor of a new product codenamed «Whistler», named after Whistler, British Columbia, as many Microsoft employees skied at the Whistler-Blackcomb ski resort.^[13] The goal of Whistler was to unify both the consumer and business-oriented Windows lines under a single, Windows NT platform. Thurrott stated that Neptune had become «a black hole when all the features that were cut from Windows Me were simply re-tagged as Neptune features. And since Neptune and Odyssey would be based on the same code-base anyway, it made sense to combine them into a single project».^[14]

At PDC on July 13, 2000, Microsoft announced that Whistler would be released during the second half of 2001, and also unveiled the first preview build, 2250, which featured an early implementation of Windows XP’s visual styles system and interface changes to Windows Explorer and the Control Panel.^[15]

Microsoft released the first public beta build of Whistler, build 2296, on October 31, 2000. Subsequent builds gradually introduced features that users of the release version of Windows XP would recognize, such as Internet Explorer 6.0, the Microsoft Product Activation system and the Bliss desktop background.^[16]

Whistler was officially unveiled during a media event on February 5, 2001, under the name Windows XP, where XP stands for «eXPerience».^[17]

Release

In June 2001, Microsoft indicated that it was planning to spend at least US$1 billion on marketing and promoting Windows XP, in conjunction with Intel and other PC makers.^[18] The theme of the campaign, «Yes You Can», was designed to emphasize the platform’s overall capabilities. Microsoft had originally planned to use the slogan «Prepare to Fly», but it was replaced because of sensitivity issues in the wake of the September 11 attacks.^[19]

On August 24, 2001, Windows XP build 2600 was released to manufacturing (RTM). During a ceremonial media event at Microsoft Redmond Campus, copies of the RTM build were given to representatives of several major PC manufacturers in briefcases, who then flew off on decorated helicopters. While PC manufacturers would be able to release devices running XP beginning on September 24, 2001, XP was expected to reach general, retail availability on October 25, 2001. On the same day, Microsoft also announced the final retail pricing of XP’s two main editions, «Home» (as a replacement for Windows Me for home computing) and «Professional» (as a replacement for Windows 2000 for high-end users).^[20]

New and updated features

User interface

While retaining some similarities to previous versions, Windows XP’s interface was overhauled with a new visual appearance, with an increased use of alpha compositing effects, drop shadows, and «visual styles», which completely changed the appearance of the operating system. The number of effects enabled are determined by the operating system based on the computer’s processing power, and can be enabled or disabled on a case-by-case basis. XP also added ClearType, a new subpixel rendering system designed to improve the appearance of fonts on liquid-crystal displays.^[21] A new set of system icons was also introduced.^[22] The default wallpaper, Bliss, is a photo of a landscape in the Napa Valley outside Napa, California, with rolling green hills and a blue sky with stratocumulus and cirrus clouds.^[23]

The Start menu received its first major overhaul in XP, switching to a two-column layout with the ability to list, pin, and display frequently used applications, recently opened documents, and the traditional cascading «All Programs» menu. The taskbar can now group windows opened by a single application into one taskbar button, with a popup menu listing the individual windows. The notification area also hides «inactive» icons by default. A «common tasks» list was added, and Windows Explorer’s sidebar was updated to use a new task-based design with lists of common actions; the tasks displayed are contextually relevant to the type of content in a folder (e.g. a folder with music displays offers to play all the files in the folder, or burn them to a CD).^[24]

The «task grouping» feature introduced in Windows XP showing both grouped and individual items

Fast user switching allows additional users to log into a Windows XP machine without existing users having to close their programs and log out. Although only one user at the time can use the console (i.e. monitor, keyboard, and mouse), previous users can resume their session once they regain control of the console.^[25] Service Pack 2 and Service Pack 3 also introduced new features to Windows XP post-release, including the Windows Security Center, Bluetooth support, the executable space protection, Windows Firewall, and support for SDHC cards that are larger than 4 GB and smaller than 32 GB.^[26]^[27]^[28]^[29]

Infrastructure

Windows XP uses prefetching to improve startup and application launch times.^[30] It also became possible to revert the installation of an updated device driver, should the updated driver produce undesirable results.^[31]

A copy protection system known as Windows Product Activation was introduced with Windows XP and its server counterpart, Windows Server 2003. All Windows licenses must be tied to a unique ID generated using information from the computer hardware, transmitted either via the internet or a telephone hotline. If Windows is not activated within 30 days of installation, the OS will cease to function until it is activated. Windows also periodically verifies the hardware to check for changes. If significant hardware changes are detected, the activation is voided, and Windows must be re-activated.^[32]

Networking and internet functionality

Windows XP was originally bundled with Internet Explorer 6, Outlook Express 6, Windows Messenger, and MSN Explorer. New networking features were also added, including Internet Connection Firewall, Internet Connection Sharing integration with UPnP, NAT traversal APIs, Quality of Service features, IPv6 and Teredo tunneling, Background Intelligent Transfer Service, extended fax features, network bridging, peer to peer networking, support for most DSL modems, IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi) connections with auto configuration and roaming, TAPI 3.1, and networking over FireWire.^[33] Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop were also added, which allow users to connect to a computer running Windows XP from across a network or the Internet and access their applications, files, printers, and devices or request help.^[34] Improvements were also made to IntelliMirror features such as Offline Files, Roaming user profiles and Folder redirection.^[35]

Backwards compatibility

To enable running software that targets or locks out specific versions of Windows, «Compatibility mode» was added. The feature allows pretending a selected earlier version of Windows to software, starting at Windows 95.^[36]

While this ability was first introduced in Windows 2000 Service Pack 2, it had to be activated through the «register server» and was only available to administrator users, whereas Windows XP has it activated out of the box and also grants it to regular users.^[37]

Other features

Improved application compatibility and shims compared to Windows 2000.^[38]
DirectX 8.1, upgradeable to DirectX 9.0c.^[39]
A number of new features in Windows Explorer including task panes, thumbnails, and the option to view photos as a slideshow.^[40]
Improved imaging features such as Windows Picture and Fax Viewer.^[41]
Faster start-up, (because of improved Prefetch functions) logon, logoff, hibernation, and application launch sequences.^[30]
Numerous improvements to increase the system reliability such as improved System Restore,^[42] Automated System Recovery,^[43] and driver reliability improvements through Device Driver Rollback.^[44]
Hardware support improvements such as FireWire 800,^[45] and improvements to multi-monitor support under the name «DualView».^[46]
Fast user switching.^[47]
The ClearType font rendering mechanism, which is designed to improve text readability on liquid-crystal display (LCD) and similar monitors, especially laptops.^[21]
Side-by-side assemblies^[48] and registration-free COM.^[49]
General improvements to international support such as more locales, languages and scripts, MUI support in Terminal Services, improved Input Method Editors, and National Language Support.^[50]

Removed features

Some of the programs and features that were part of the previous versions of Windows did not make it to Windows XP. Various MS-DOS commands available in its Windows 9x predecessor were removed,^[51] as were the POSIX and OS/2 subsystems.^[52]

In networking, NetBEUI, NWLink and NetDDE were deprecated and not installed by default.^[53] Plug-and-play–incompatible communication devices (like modems and network interface cards) were no longer supported.^[54]

Service Pack 2 and Service Pack 3 also removed features from Windows XP, including support for TCP half-open connections^[55] and the address bar on the taskbar.^[56]

Editions

Diagram representing the main editions of Windows XP. It is based on the category of the edition (grey) and codebase (black arrow).

Windows XP was released in two major editions on launch: Home Edition and Professional Edition. Both editions were made available at retail as pre-loaded software on new computers and as boxed copies. Boxed copies were sold as «Upgrade» or «Full» licenses; the «Upgrade» versions were slightly cheaper, but require an existing version of Windows to install. The «Full» version can be installed on systems without an operating system or existing version of Windows.^[18] The two editions of XP were aimed at different markets: Home Edition is explicitly intended for consumer use and disables or removes certain advanced and enterprise-oriented features present on Professional, such as the ability to join a Windows domain, Internet Information Services, and Multilingual User Interface. Windows 98 or Me can be upgraded to either edition, but Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000 can only be upgraded to Professional.^[57] Windows’ software license agreement for pre-loaded licenses allows the software to be «returned» to the OEM for a refund if the user does not wish to use it.^[58] Despite the refusal of some manufacturers to honor the entitlement, it has been enforced by courts in some countries.^[59]

Two specialized variants of XP were introduced in 2002 for certain types of hardware, exclusively through OEM channels as pre-loaded software. Windows XP Media Center Edition was initially designed for high-end home theater PCs with TV tuners (marketed under the term «Media Center PC»), offering expanded multimedia functionality, an electronic program guide, and digital video recorder (DVR) support through the Windows Media Center application.^[60] Microsoft also unveiled Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, which contains additional pen input features, and is optimized for mobile devices meeting its Tablet PC specifications.^[61] Two different 64-bit editions of XP were made available. The first, Windows XP 64-Bit Edition, was intended for IA-64 (Itanium) systems; as IA-64 usage declined on workstations in favor of AMD’s x86-64 architecture, the Itanium edition was discontinued in January 2005.^[62] A new 64-bit edition supporting the x86-64 architecture, called Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, was released in April of the same year.^[63]

Microsoft also targeted emerging markets with the 2004 introduction of Windows XP Starter Edition, a special variant of Home Edition intended for low-cost PCs. The OS is primarily aimed at first-time computer owners, containing heavy localization (including wallpapers and screen savers incorporating images of local landmarks), and a «My Support» area which contains video tutorials on basic computing tasks. It also removes certain «complex» features, and does not allow users to run more than three applications at a time. After a pilot program in India and Thailand, Starter was released in other emerging markets throughout 2005.^[64] In 2006, Microsoft also unveiled the FlexGo initiative, which would also target emerging markets with subsidized PCs on a pre-paid, subscription basis.^[65]

As a result of unfair competition lawsuits in Europe and South Korea, which both alleged that Microsoft had improperly leveraged its status in the PC market to favor its own bundled software, Microsoft was ordered to release special editions of XP in these markets that excluded certain applications. In March 2004, after the European Commission fined Microsoft €497 million (US$603 million), Microsoft was ordered to release «N» editions of XP that excluded Windows Media Player, encouraging users to pick and download their own media player software.^[66] As it was sold at the same price as the edition with Windows Media Player included, certain OEMs (such as Dell, who offered it for a short period, along with Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo and Fujitsu Siemens) chose not to offer it. Consumer interest was minuscule, with roughly 1,500 units shipped to OEMs, and no reported sales to consumers.^[67] In December 2005, the Korean Fair Trade Commission ordered Microsoft to make available editions of Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 that do not contain Windows Media Player or Windows Messenger.^[68] The «K» and «KN» editions of Windows XP were released in August 2006, and are only available in English and Korean, and also contain links to third-party instant messenger and media player software.^[69]

Service packs

A service pack is a cumulative update package that is a superset of all updates, and even service packs, that have been released before it.^[70] Three service packs have been released for Windows XP. Service Pack 3 is slightly different, in that it needs at least Service Pack 1 to have been installed, in order to update a live OS.^[71] However, Service Pack 3 can still be embedded into a Windows installation disc; SP1 is not reported as a prerequisite for doing so.^[72]

The unique boot screens from the RTM to Service Pack 1 versions of Windows XP that identified the edition of Windows XP currently running, including a green progress bar for Home Edition and a blue progress bar for Professional, Embedded, Tablet PC Edition, and Media Center Edition were removed in Service Pack 2 of Windows XP and was replaced with a generic «Windows XP» boot screen with a blue progress bar.

Service Pack 1

Service Pack 1 (SP1) for Windows XP was released on September 9, 2002. It contained over 300 minor, post-RTM bug fixes, along with all security patches released since the original release of XP. SP1 also added USB 2.0 support, the Microsoft Java Virtual Machine, .NET Framework support, and support for technologies used by the then-upcoming Media Center and Tablet PC editions of XP.^[73] The most significant change on SP1 was the addition of Set Program Access and Defaults, a settings page which allows programs to be set as default for certain types of activities (such as media players or web browsers) and for access to bundled, Microsoft programs (such as Internet Explorer or Windows Media Player) to be disabled. This feature was added to comply with the settlement of United States v. Microsoft Corp., which required Microsoft to offer the ability for OEMs to bundle third-party competitors to software it bundles with Windows (such as Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player), and give them the same level of prominence as those normally bundled with the OS.^[74]

On February 3, 2003, Microsoft released Service Pack 1a (SP1a). It was the same as SP1, except, the Microsoft Java Virtual Machine was excluded.^[75]

Service Pack 2

Service Pack 2 (SP2) for Windows XP Home edition and Professional edition was released on August 25, 2004.^[76] Headline features included WPA encryption compatibility for Wi-Fi and usability improvements to the Wi-Fi networking user interface,^[77] partial Bluetooth support,^[78] and various improvements to security systems.

Headed by former computer hacker Window Snyder,^[79]^[80] the service pack’s security improvements (codenamed «Springboard»,^[81] as these features were intended to underpin additional changes in Longhorn) included a major revision to the included firewall (renamed Windows Firewall, and now enabled by default), and an update to Data Execution Prevention, which gained hardware support in the NX bit that can stop some forms of buffer overflow attacks. Raw socket support is removed (which supposedly limits the damage done by zombie machines) and the Windows Messenger service (which had been abused to cause pop-up advertisements to be displayed as system messages without a web browser or any additional software) became disabled by default. Additionally, security-related improvements were made to e-mail and web browsing. Service Pack 2 also added Security Center, an interface that provides a general overview of the system’s security status, including the state of the firewall and automatic updates. Third-party firewall and antivirus software can also be monitored from Security Center.^[82]

In August 2006, Microsoft released updated installation media for Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 SP2 (SP2b), in order to incorporate a patch requiring ActiveX controls in Internet Explorer to be manually activated before a user may interact with them. This was done so that the browser would not violate a patent owned by Eolas.^[83] Microsoft has since licensed the patent, and released a patch reverting the change in April 2008.^[84] In September 2007, another minor revision known as SP2c was released for XP Professional, extending the number of available product keys for the operating system to «support the continued availability of Windows XP Professional through the scheduled system builder channel end-of-life (EOL) date of January 31, 2009.»^[85]

Windows XP Service Pack 2 was later included in Windows Embedded for Point of Service and Windows Fundamentals for Legacy PCs.

Service Pack 3

The third and final Service Pack, SP3, was released through different channels between April^[3] and June 2008,^[86] about a year after the release of Windows Vista, and about a year before the release of Windows 7. Service Pack 3 was not available for Windows XP x64 Edition, which was based on the Windows Server 2003 kernel and, as a result, used its service packs^[87] rather than the ones for the other editions.^[88]

It began being automatically pushed out to Automatic Updates users on July 10, 2008.^[89] A feature set overview which detailed new features available separately as stand-alone updates to Windows XP, as well as backported features from Windows Vista, was posted by Microsoft.^[90] A total of 1,174 fixes are included in SP3.^[91] Service Pack 3 could be installed on systems with Internet Explorer up to and including version 8; Internet Explorer 7 was not included as part of SP3.^[92] It also did not include Internet Explorer 8, but instead was included in Windows 7, which was released one year after XP SP3.

Service Pack 3 included security enhancements over and above those of SP2, including APIs allowing developers to enable Data Execution Prevention for their code, independent of system-wide compatibility enforcement settings,^[93] the Security Support Provider Interface,^[94] improvements to WPA2 security,^[95] and an updated version of the Microsoft Enhanced Cryptographic Provider Module that is FIPS 140-2 certified.^[96]

In incorporating all previously released updates not included in SP2, Service Pack 3 included many other key features. Windows Imaging Component allowed camera vendors to integrate their own proprietary image codecs with the operating system’s features, such as thumbnails and slideshows.^[97] In enterprise features, Remote Desktop Protocol 6.1 included support for ClearType and 32-bit color depth over RDP,^[98] while improvements made to Windows Management Instrumentation in Windows Vista to reduce the possibility of corruption of the WMI repository were backported to XP SP3.^[99]

In addition, SP3 contains updates to the operating system components of Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE) and Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, and security updates for .NET Framework version 1.0, which is included in these editions. However, it does not include update rollups for the Windows Media Center application in Windows XP MCE 2005.^[100] SP3 also omits security updates for Windows Media Player 10, although the player is included in Windows XP MCE 2005.^[100] The Address Bar DeskBand on the Taskbar is no longer included because of antitrust violation concerns.^[101]

Unofficial SP3 ZIP download packages were released on a now-defunct website called The Hotfix from 2005 to 2007.^[102]^[103] The owner of the website, Ethan C. Allen, was a former Microsoft employee in Software Quality Assurance and would comb through the Microsoft Knowledge Base articles daily and download new hotfixes Microsoft would put online within the articles. The articles would have a «kbwinxppresp3fix» and/or «kbwinxpsp3fix» tag, thus allowing Allen to easily find and determine which fixes were planned for the official SP3 release to come. Microsoft publicly stated at the time that the SP3 pack was unofficial and advised users to not install it.^[104]^[105] Allen also released a Vista SP1 package in 2007, for which Allen received a cease-and-desist email from Microsoft.^[106]

Windows XP Service Pack 3 was later included in Windows Embedded Standard 2009 and Windows Embedded POSReady 2009.

System requirements

System requirements for Windows XP are as follows:

System requirements

	Minimum	Recommended
Home/Professional Edition^[A]
CPU	Pentium or compatible, 233 MHz^[B]^[C] BIOS or compatible firmware^[D]	Pentium or compatible, 300 MHz BIOS or compatible firmware^[D]
Memory	64 MB^[E]^[F]	128 MB
Free space	1.5 GB Master boot record used^[D]	+661 MB for Service Pack 1 and 1a^[G] +1.8 GB for Service Pack 2^[H] +900 MB for Service Pack 3^[I]
Media	CD-ROM drive or compatible
Display	Super VGA (800 × 600)
Sound hardware	N/A	Sound card plus speakers/headphones
Input device(s)	Keyboard, mouse
Professional x64 Edition^[J]
CPU	x86-64 or compatible BIOS or compatible firmware^[D]
Memory	256 MB
Free space	1.5 GB Master boot record used^[D]
Media	CD-ROM drive or compatible
Display	Super VGA (800 × 600)
Sound hardware	N/A	Sound card plus speakers/headphones
Input device(s)	Keyboard, mouse
64-Bit Edition^[K]
CPU	Itanium 733 MHz	Itanium 800 MHz
Memory	1 GB
Free space	6 GB
Media	CD-ROM drive or compatible
Display	Super VGA (800 × 600)
Input device(s)	Keyboard, mouse

Notes

^ «System requirements for Windows XP operating systems». April 28, 2005. Archived from the original on August 6, 2011. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
^ Even though this is Microsoft’s stated minimum processor speed for Windows XP, it is possible to install and run the operating system on early IA-32 processors such as a P5 Pentium without MMX instructions. Windows XP is not compatible with processors older than Pentium (such as 486) or the Cyrix 6×86 because it requires CMPXCHG8B (see Pentium F00F bug) instructions.
^ «Windows XP Minimal Requirement Test». Winhistory.de. September 9, 2011. Archived from the original on December 21, 2011. Retrieved January 1, 2012.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e «Windows XP: Required firmware and partition mapping scheme of hard disk drive». Support.microsoft.com. June 26, 2013. Archived from the original on April 27, 2017. Retrieved June 16, 2014.
^ A Microsoft TechNet paper from Summer 2001 (before Windows XP’s actual release), states that: «A computer with 64 MB of RAM will have sufficient resources to run Windows XP and a few applications with moderate memory requirements.» (Emphasis added.) These were said to be office productivity applications, e-mail programs, and web browsers (of the time). With such a configuration, user interface enhancements and fast user switching are turned off by default. For comparable workloads, 64 MB of RAM was then regarded as providing an equal or better user experience on Windows XP with similar settings than it would with Windows Me on the same hardware. In a later section of the paper, superior performance over Windows Me was noted with 128 MB of RAM or more, and with computers that exceed the minimum hardware requirements.
^ Sechrest, Stuart; Fortin, Michael (June 1, 2001). «Windows XP Performance». Microsoft TechNet. Archived from the original on July 27, 2010. Retrieved April 8, 2008.
^ «Hard disk space requirements for Windows XP Service Pack 1». Microsoft. October 29, 2007. Archived from the original on April 21, 2012. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
^ «The hard disk space requirements for Windows XP Service Pack 2». Microsoft. April 18, 2005. Archived from the original on November 24, 2010. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
^ «Windows XP – End of Support, Migration Guide, Download – TechNet». technet.microsoft.com. 2007. Archived from the original on May 13, 2008.
^ «Windows XP Professional x64 Edition SP2 VL EN (MSDN-TechNet)». Programmer Stuffs. March 23, 2011. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
^ «Microsoft Windows XP 64-Bit Edition». Microsoft TechNet. Microsoft. August 15, 2001. Archived from the original on April 19, 2012. Retrieved May 2, 2012.

Physical memory limits

The maximum amount of RAM that Windows XP can support varies depending on the product edition and the processor architecture. All 32-bit editions of XP support up to 4 GB, except the Windows XP Starter edition, which supports up to 512 MB of RAM.^[107] 64-bit editions support up to 128 GB.^[108]

Processor limits

Windows XP Professional supports up to two physical processors;^[109]
Windows XP Home Edition supports only one.^[110]

However, XP supports a greater number of logical processors:
32-bit editions support up to 32 logical processors,^[111] and 64-bit editions support up to 64 logical processors.^[112]

Upgradeability

Several Windows XP components are upgradable to the latest versions, which include new versions introduced in later versions of Windows, and other major Microsoft applications are available. These latest versions for Windows XP include:

ActiveSync 4.5
DirectX 9.0c (June 7, 2010, Redistributable)
Internet Explorer 8 on Windows XP Service Packs 2 and 3 (Internet Explorer 6 SP1 and Outlook Express 6 SP1 on Windows XP before SP2.)
Windows Media Format Runtime and Windows Media Player 11 on Windows XP Service Packs 2 and 3 (and Windows Media Player 10 on Windows XP original release.)
Microsoft Virtual PC 2004 and 2007
.NET Framework up to and including version 4.0 (4.5 and higher versions are not supported.)
Visual Studio 2005 on Windows XP versions below SP2, Visual Studio 2008 on Windows XP SP2 and Visual Studio 2010 on Windows XP SP3
Windows Script Host 5.7
Windows Installer 4.5
Microsoft NetMeeting 3.02
Office 2010 was the last version of Microsoft Office to be compatible with Windows XP.
The Windows Services for UNIX subsystem can be installed to allow certain Unix-based applications to run on the operating system.

Support lifecycle

Support status summary

Expiration date
Mainstream support	April 14, 2009^[4]
Extended support	April 8, 2014^[4] The official exceptions ended in April 2019.
Applicable XP editions:
Home Edition, Professional Edition, Professional x64 Edition, Professional for Embedded Systems, Media Center Editions (all), Starter Edition, Tablet PC Edition and Tablet PC Edition 2005,^[4] as well as Windows Fundamentals for Legacy PCs.^[113]
Exceptions
Windows XP 64-Bit Edition (Itanium edition, including Version 2003)	Unsupported as of June 30, 2005^[5]
Windows XP Embedded	Mainstream support ended on January 11, 2011^[4] Extended support ended on January 12, 2016^[4]
Windows Embedded for Point of Service	Mainstream support ended on April 12, 2011^[6] Extended support ended on April 12, 2016^[6]
Windows Embedded Standard 2009	Mainstream support ended on January 14, 2014 Extended support ended on January 8, 2019^[7]
Windows Embedded POSReady 2009	Mainstream support ended on April 8, 2014 Extended support ended on April 9, 2019^[8]

Support for the original release of Windows XP (without a service pack) ended on August 30, 2005.^[4] Both Windows XP Service Pack 1 and 1a were retired on October 10, 2006,^[4] and both Windows 2000 and Windows XP SP2 reached their end of support on July 13, 2010, about 24 months after the launch of Windows XP Service Pack 3.^[4] The company stopped general licensing of Windows XP to OEMs and terminated retail sales of the operating system on June 30, 2008, 17 months after the release of Windows Vista.^[114] However, an exception was announced on April 3, 2008, for OEMs producing what it defined as «ultra low-cost personal computers», particularly netbooks, until one year after the availability of Windows 7 on October 22, 2009. Analysts felt that the move was primarily intended to compete against Linux-based netbooks, although Microsoft’s Kevin Hutz stated that the decision was due to apparent market demand for low-end computers with Windows.^[115]

Variants of Windows XP for embedded systems have different support policies: Windows XP Embedded SP3 and Windows Embedded for Point of Service SP3 were supported until January and April 2016, respectively. Windows Embedded Standard 2009, which was succeeded by Windows Embedded Standard 7, and Windows Embedded POSReady 2009, which was succeeded by Windows Embedded POSReady 7, were supported until January and April 2019, respectively.^[116] These updates, while intended for the embedded editions, could also be downloaded on standard Windows XP with a registry hack, which enabled unofficial patches until April 2019. However, Microsoft advised Windows XP users against installing these fixes, citing incompatibility issues.^[9]^[117]

End of support

On April 14, 2009, Windows XP exited mainstream support and entered the extended support phase; Microsoft continued to provide security updates every month for Windows XP, however, free technical support, warranty claims, and design changes were no longer being offered. Extended support ended on April 8, 2014, over 12 years after the release of Windows XP; normally Microsoft products have a support life cycle of only 10 years.^[118] Beyond the final security updates released on April 8, no more security patches or support information are provided for XP free-of-charge; «critical patches» will still be created, and made available only to customers subscribing to a paid «Custom Support» plan.^[119] As it is a Windows component, all versions of Internet Explorer for Windows XP also became unsupported.^[120]

In January 2014, it was estimated that more than 95% of the 3 million automated teller machines in the world were still running Windows XP (which largely replaced IBM’s OS/2 as the predominant operating system on ATMs); ATMs have an average lifecycle of between seven and ten years, but some have had lifecycles as long as 15. Plans were being made by several ATM vendors and their customers to migrate to Windows 7-based systems over the course of 2014, while vendors have also considered the possibility of using Linux-based platforms in the future to give them more flexibility for support lifecycles, and the ATM Industry Association (ATMIA) has since endorsed Windows 10 as a further replacement.^[121] However, ATMs typically run the embedded variant of Windows XP, which was supported through January 2016.^[122] As of May 2017, around 60% of the 220,000 ATMs in India still run Windows XP.^[123]

Furthermore, at least 49% of all computers in China still ran XP at the beginning of 2014. These holdouts were influenced by several factors; prices of genuine copies of later versions of Windows in the country are high, while Ni Guangnan of the Chinese Academy of Sciences warned that Windows 8 could allegedly expose users to surveillance by the United States government,^[124] and the Chinese government banned the purchase of Windows 8 products for government use in May 2014 in protest of Microsoft’s inability to provide «guaranteed» support.^[125] The government also had concerns that the impending end of support could affect their anti-piracy initiatives with Microsoft, as users would simply pirate newer versions rather than purchasing them legally. As such, government officials formally requested that Microsoft extend the support period for XP for these reasons. While Microsoft did not comply with their requests, a number of major Chinese software developers, such as Lenovo, Kingsoft and Tencent, will provide free support and resources for Chinese users migrating from XP.^[126] Several governments, in particular those of the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, elected to negotiate «Custom Support» plans with Microsoft for their continued, internal use of Windows XP; the British government’s deal lasted for a year, and also covered support for Office 2003 (which reached end-of-life the same day) and cost £5.5 million.^[127]

On March 8, 2014, Microsoft deployed an update for XP that, on the 8th of each month, displays a pop-up notification to remind users about the end of support; however, these notifications may be disabled by the user.^[128] Microsoft also partnered with Laplink to provide a special «express» version of its PCmover software to help users migrate files and settings from XP to a computer with a newer version of Windows.^[129]

An electroencephalograph running on Windows XP. The medical industry’s continued use of Windows XP is partly due to medical applications being incompatible with later versions of Windows.

Despite the approaching end of support, there were still notable holdouts that had not migrated past XP; many users elected to remain on XP because of the poor reception of Windows Vista, sales of newer PCs with newer versions of Windows declined because of the Great Recession and the effects of Vista, and deployments of new versions of Windows in enterprise environments require a large amount of planning, which includes testing applications for compatibility (especially those that are dependent on Internet Explorer 6, which is not compatible with newer versions of Windows).^[130] Major security software vendors (including Microsoft itself) planned to continue offering support and definitions for Windows XP past the end of support to varying extents, along with the developers of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Opera web browsers;^[120] despite these measures, critics similarly argued that users should eventually migrate from XP to a supported platform.^[131] The United States’ Computer Emergency Readiness Team released an alert in March 2014 advising users of the impending end of support, and informing them that using XP after April 8 may prevent them from meeting US government information security requirements.^[132]
Microsoft continued to provide Security Essentials virus definitions and updates for its Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT) for XP until July 14, 2015.^[133] As the end of extended support approached, Microsoft began to increasingly urge XP customers to migrate to newer versions such as Windows 7 or 8 in the interest of security, suggesting that attackers could reverse engineer security patches for newer versions of Windows and use them to target equivalent vulnerabilities in XP.^[134] Windows XP is remotely exploitable by numerous security holes that were discovered after Microsoft stopped supporting it.^[135]^[136]

Similarly, specialized devices that run XP, particularly medical devices, must have any revisions to their software—even security updates for the underlying operating system—approved by relevant regulators before they can be released. For this reason, manufacturers often did not allow any updates to devices’ operating systems, leaving them open to security exploits and malware.^[137]

Despite the end of support for Windows XP, Microsoft has released three emergency security updates for the operating system to patch major security vulnerabilities:

A patch released in May 2014 to address recently discovered vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer 6 through 11 on all versions of Windows.^[138]
A patch released in May 2017 to address a vulnerability that was being leveraged by the WannaCry ransomware attack.^[139]
A patch released in May 2019 to address a critical code execution vulnerability in Remote Desktop Services which can be exploited in a similar way as the WannaCry vulnerability.^[140]^[141]

Researchers reported in August 2019 that Windows 10 users may be at risk for «critical» system compromise because of design flaws of hardware device drivers from multiple providers.^[142] In the same month, computer experts reported that the BlueKeep security vulnerability, CVE-2019-0708, that potentially affects older unpatched Microsoft Windows versions via the program’s Remote Desktop Protocol, allowing for the possibility of remote code execution, may now include related flaws, collectively named DejaBlue, affecting newer Windows versions (i.e., Windows 7 and all recent versions) as well.^[143] In addition, experts reported a Microsoft security vulnerability, CVE-2019-1162, based on legacy code involving Microsoft CTF and ctfmon (ctfmon.exe), that affects all Windows versions from the older Windows XP version to the most recent Windows 10 versions; a patch to correct the flaw is currently available.^[144]

Microsoft announced in July 2019 that the Microsoft Internet Games services on Windows XP and Windows Me would end on July 31, 2019 (and for Windows 7 on January 22, 2020).^[145] Others, such as Steam, had done the same, ending support for Windows XP and Windows Vista in January 2019.^[146]

In 2020, Microsoft announced that it would disable the Windows Update service for SHA-1 endpoints; since Windows XP did not get an update for SHA-2, Windows Update Services are no longer available on the OS as of late July 2020.^[147] However, as of October 2021, the old updates for Windows XP are still available on the Microsoft Update Catalog,^[148] or through Legacy Update, a community-driven third party replacement for the Windows XP update servers.

Reception

On release, Windows XP received critical acclaim. CNET described the operating system as being «worth the hype», considering the new interface to be «spiffier» and more intuitive than previous versions, but feeling that it may «annoy» experienced users with its «hand-holding». XP’s expanded multimedia support and CD burning functionality were also noted, along with its streamlined networking tools. The performance improvements of XP in comparison to 2000 and Me were also praised, along with its increased number of built-in device drivers in comparison to 2000. The software compatibility tools were also praised, although it was noted that some programs, particularly older MS-DOS software, may not work correctly on XP because of its differing architecture. They panned Windows XP’s new licensing model and product activation system, considering it to be a «slightly annoying roadblock», but acknowledged Microsoft’s intent for the changes.^[149] PC Magazine provided similar praise, although noting that a number of its online features were designed to promote Microsoft-owned services, and that aside from quicker boot times, XP’s overall performance showed little difference over Windows 2000.^[150] Windows XP’s default theme, Luna, was criticized by some users for its childish look.^[151]^[152]

Despite extended support for Windows XP ending in 2014, many users – including some enterprises – were reluctant to move away from an operating system they viewed as a stable known quantity despite the many security and functionality improvements in subsequent releases of Windows. Windows XP’s longevity was viewed as testament to its stability and Microsoft’s successful attempts to keep it up to date, but also as an indictment of its direct successor’s perceived failings.^[153]

According to web analytics data generated by Net Applications, Windows XP was the most widely used operating system until August 2012, when Windows 7 overtook it (later overtaken by Windows 10),^[154] while StatCounter indicates it happening almost a year earlier.^[155] In January 2014, Net Applications reported a market share of 29.23%^[156] of «desktop operating systems» for XP (when XP was introduced there was not a separate mobile category to track), while W3Schools reported a share of 11.0%.^[157]

As of September 2022, in most regions or continents, Windows XP market share on PCs, as a fraction of the total Windows share, has gone below 1% (0.5% in Africa^[158]). XP still has a double-digit market share in a few countries, such as Armenia at over 50%,^[159]^[160]^[161]^[162] at 57%, where Windows 7 was highest ranked, and with it being replaced by Windows 10, Windows XP got highest ranked for the longest time, and had over 60% share on some weekends in the summer of 2019.^[163]^[164]

Source code leak

On September 23, 2020, source code for Windows XP with Service Pack 1 and Windows Server 2003 was leaked onto the imageboard 4chan by an unknown user. Anonymous users managed to compile the code, as well as a Twitter user who posted videos of the process on YouTube proving that the code was genuine.^[165] The videos were later removed on copyright grounds by Microsoft. The leak was incomplete as it was missing the Winlogon source code and some other components.^[166]^[167] The original leak itself was spread using magnet links and torrent files whose payload originally included Server 2003 and XP source code and which was later updated with additional files, among which were previous leaks of Microsoft products, its patents, media about conspiracy theories on Bill Gates by anti-vaccination movements and an assortment of PDF files on different topics.^[168]

Microsoft issued a statement stating that it was investigating the leaks.^[167]^[169]^[170]

References

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^ ^a ^b Kelly, Gordon (April 16, 2008). «Windows XP SP3 Release Date(s) Confirmed». Trusted Reviews. Trusted Reviews. Archived from the original on June 23, 2018. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
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External links

Windows XP End of Support
Security Update for Windows XP SP3 (KB4012598)

Источник

Windows XP

Support status
Version of the Windows NT operating system

Screenshot of Windows XP running the Luna visual style, showing the start menu, taskbar, and My Computer window
Developer	Microsoft
Source model	Closed-source Source-available (through Shared Source Initiative)^[1]
Released to manufacturing	August 24, 2001; 21 years ago^[2]
General availability	October 25, 2001; 21 years ago^[2]
Final release	Service Pack 3 (5.1.2600.5512) / April 21, 2008; 14 years ago^[3]
Marketing target	Consumer and Business
Update method	Windows Update Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM)
Platforms	IA-32, x86-64, and Itanium
Kernel type	Hybrid (NT)
Userland	Windows API NTVDM (IA-32 only) SFU
License	Proprietary commercial software
Preceded by	Windows 2000 (1999) Windows Me (2000)
Succeeded by	Windows Vista (2007)
Official website	Windows XP (archived at Wayback Machine)
All editions (except Windows XP Embedded, Windows XP 64-bit Edition, Windows Embedded for Point of Service, Windows Embedded Standard 2009, and Windows Embedded POSReady 2009): Mainstream support ended on April 14, 2009.^[4] Extended support ended on April 8, 2014.^[4] Windows XP 64-bit Edition: Unsupported as of June 30, 2005^[5] Windows XP Embedded: Mainstream support ended on January 11, 2011.^[4] Extended support ended on January 12, 2016.^[4] Windows Embedded for Point of Service: Mainstream support ended on April 12, 2011.^[6] Extended support ended on April 12, 2016.^[6] Windows Embedded Standard 2009: Mainstream support ended on January 14, 2014.^[7] Extended support ended on January 8, 2019.^[7] Windows Embedded POSReady 2009: Mainstream support ended on April 8, 2014.^[8] Extended support ended on April 9, 2019.^[8]