By J. Mesa
Microsoft ends support for Windows 10 on October 14, 2025. That date sits four months away. After it, Windows 10 computers stop receiving security fixes. If your office still runs Windows 10, you have one summer to decide what to do with each machine.
What happens when Windows 10 support ends?
Your computers keep working. They turn on, your software opens, and nothing on the screen announces a change. That quiet is the danger.
After October 14, 2025, Microsoft stops releasing three things for Windows 10:
- Security updates
- Bug fixes
- Technical support
Attackers keep finding flaws in Windows every month. Windows 11 will receive the fixes. Windows 10 will not. Each published Windows 11 fix also tells criminals where to look for the same flaw in Windows 10.
Is it safe to keep using Windows 10 after October 2025?
No, unless you pay for extended updates. An unpatched computer that reads email and browses the web becomes easier to break into with each passing month. The WannaCry ransomware outbreak in 2017 showed the pattern: it tore through machines missing a patch, and unsupported Windows versions took heavy damage.
One unsupported computer also endangers the others. An attacker who lands on the old front-desk PC uses it as a base to reach the server and the accounting system.
What are my options?
You have four.
- Upgrade the computer to Windows 11. Free, if the hardware qualifies.
- Replace the computer. Required when the hardware fails the Windows 11 requirements.
- Buy Extended Security Updates. A paid bridge that keeps security fixes coming for a limited time.
- Retire or isolate the computer. Take it off the network, or replace Windows with another operating system.
Most offices will use a mix: upgrade the newer machines, replace the older ones, and buy a year of extended updates for the one PC that runs a stubborn piece of software.
Can my computer run Windows 11?
Windows 11 requires:
- A supported 64-bit processor, which in practice means Intel 8th generation or newer, or AMD Ryzen 2000 series or newer
- TPM 2.0, a security chip
- UEFI firmware with Secure Boot
- 4 GB of memory and 64 GB of storage at minimum
As a rough guide, computers sold from 2018 onward qualify, and computers from 2017 and earlier often fail on the processor. To check a machine, run Microsoft’s free PC Health Check app, or open Settings, then Update and Security, then Windows Update, and read the Windows 11 message.
Some computers fail the check only because someone turned TPM or Secure Boot off in the firmware settings. Your IT provider can turn them on in a few minutes.
Is the Windows 11 upgrade free?
Yes. Microsoft charges nothing to upgrade an eligible, licensed Windows 10 computer. The upgrade keeps your files and most of your applications in place. Back up the computer first, and expect the process to take one to two hours per machine.
What are Extended Security Updates, and what do they cost?
Extended Security Updates, or ESU, is a paid Microsoft program that continues critical and important security patches for Windows 10 after the deadline. It adds no new features and no general support.
For businesses, Microsoft set the price at $61 per device for the first year. The price doubles each year, and the program runs for a maximum of three years. Three years on one PC costs $427, which approaches the price of a new computer. For individuals, Microsoft announced a one-year option at $30.
Treat ESU as a bridge for the machines you can’t replace on time. It makes a poor long-term plan.
Should I bypass the Windows 11 hardware requirements?
No. Guides online show how to force Windows 11 onto unsupported hardware. Microsoft does not support those installations and does not promise them updates. A business that depends on an unsupported workaround has traded one unsupported system for another. Replace the hardware.
What about my software and equipment?
Check three categories before you upgrade anything.
- Line-of-business software. Confirm with each vendor that your version runs on Windows 11. Dental imaging, legal practice, older accounting releases, and industry-specific tools cause the most trouble.
- Equipment that runs on a PC. X-ray sensors, CNC machines, label printers, lab instruments, and point-of-sale terminals often depend on old drivers. Ask the manufacturer for a Windows 11 driver in writing.
- Microsoft 365. Microsoft says the Microsoft 365 apps will keep receiving security updates on Windows 10 for three more years, but it ends support for those apps on Windows 10 at the same October deadline. Expect problems to go unfixed.
If a machine must stay on Windows 10 to run equipment, buy ESU for it and isolate it. Put it on its own network segment, block it from email and web browsing, and limit who can log in.
Does Windows 10 end of support affect compliance?
Yes. Running an unsupported operating system on a computer that touches regulated data creates a finding.
- PCI DSS requires you to protect systems from known vulnerabilities by installing security patches. An unpatched Windows 10 PC in the card environment fails that requirement.
- HIPAA requires a risk analysis and reasonable safeguards for patient information. Regulators have cited unsupported software in enforcement actions.
- The FTC Safeguards Rule expects financial businesses, including tax preparers and auto dealers, to keep systems current.
- Cyber insurance applications ask about end-of-life software. A wrong answer can jeopardize a claim.
How do I plan the migration?
Use the four months.
- Inventory this week. List each computer: user, age, processor, Windows version, and the result of the PC Health Check.
- Sort the list. Mark each machine as upgrade, replace, ESU, or retire.
- Call your software vendors. Confirm Windows 11 support for each critical application.
- Budget and order early. Many businesses will buy computers in the same quarter. Prices and delivery times get worse near a deadline.
- Back up, then test. Upgrade one computer per department first. Have that person work on it for a week.
- Roll out in waves. Schedule the rest in groups, away from payroll week and month-end.
- Train the staff. Windows 11 moves the Start menu and changes some settings. Fifteen minutes of orientation prevents a week of help requests.
- Finish by the end of September. Leave two weeks of slack for the machine that surprises you.
What should I do with the old computers?
Do not put them in a closet with customer data on the drives, and do not hand them to an employee’s nephew as they are.
Wipe each drive with a secure erase tool, or remove the drive and have a certified vendor destroy it. Get a certificate of destruction for any computer that held patient, payment, or financial records. Record the serial number and the disposal date in your asset inventory. After that, donate or recycle the hardware through a certified electronics recycler.
What are the benefits of Windows 11 for security?
The hardware requirements exist for a reason. TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot support protections that Windows 11 turns on by default: drive encryption on many devices, defenses against tampering during startup, stronger protection of stored credentials, and passkey sign-in through Windows Hello. You get a harder target without buying another product.
Your next step
Count your Windows 10 computers today. The count takes an hour and tells you the size of the project. Cerberus Cybersecurity includes operating system and patch status in our risk and compliance assessments, and we help you write the asset and patch policies that prevent the next deadline scramble. Contact us to get on the calendar before fall.