Microsoft Windows XP users have been warned by pop-up alerts and Web pages in the Internet that Microsoft will end its support for the venerable operating system by April 8. Also, there will be no security patches, bug fixes and software updates for the OS.

Ending its support for Windows XP is something that Microsoft has been warning users and businesses for months. This was something that has been anticipated by thieves as digital protections start to diminish.

With this, Microsoft encourages users to shift to the more contemporary Windows' versions. The company has created a Web site that checks if users may be running the software. On March 8, it will pop-up a warning in the computer screens for those who are still using the system.

The software giant is also working with some software companies to help in working out to upgrade and update the users' systems. It will develop tools which can transfer settings and data to new Windows version so that the shift will not be so bloody.

'Long Life'

Windows XP ("eXPerience") was out in October 2001 and from then on it has proven itself to be admiringly resilient. Research company Net Applications suggested Windows XP is the most widely used operating system of Microsoft until August 2012 when Windows 7 replaced it.

Gartner Research Vice-President Michael Silver estimated 20 to 25 percent of enterprise PCs will still be running XP on April 9 as the OS is popular in many government departments.

Earlier reports implied many cash machines worldwide are still running it. Silver said the longevity is due to the support life cycle, which Microsoft laid in 2004, not in anything extraordinary nor it has something to do with XP.

In that life cycle, Microsoft commits to provide various levels of support for its software products based on age and of those that succeed them.

Windows versions that followed after XP were delayed, and the support life for XP has been continuously extended. All the hard work takes firms to secure applications that run on the new versions. It is no surprise for companies to stick to it. Silver added people and firms should go ahead with switching to newer versions.

Security Issues

One of Microsoft's fears is security for those who will keep on using XP. When the security updates stop, vulnerable XP users will be tempting targets of sophisticated thieves.

According to James Lyne, security firm Sophos director of technology strategy, this is true even with Microsoft's past efforts to protect XP against attacks.

Windows 7 and 8 have ways to hide their internal workings from attackers, thus exploits have less chances with these new and updated versions. For those who will still use Windows XP, Microsoft cannot protect them any longer. The same holds true for those who are running pirated copies.

Windows XP is still widely popular and used in mainland China and the Chinese authorities have been known to meet Microsoft for an extension of XP support.

The software firm reportedly refused to give the country special case. Chinese local security firms got together to help offer security fixes and updates of the OS on their own. It seems that Windows XP will still be haunting Microsoft for a long time.