Image : David Ramos ( Getty )

Windows 7 users, prepare yourselves for the aggressive, full-screen notifications informing users their operating system is out of date. It’s happening soon.


Microsoft said this week that beginning on January 15th , “a full-screen notification will appear that describes the risk of continuing to use Windows 7 Service Pack 1.” Extended security updates end the day prior, and the company is prepared to scream this at them if users have not updated before that time.

According to ZDNet, Microsoft has been warning Windows 7 users about upcoming security changes for the majority of the year in pop-up windows. But the company said that these monster notices “will remain on the screen until you interact with it.” Fun!


The change is pegged to the end of a 10-year period of support for Windows 7 after it was initially released in 2009, the company said in a November notice on its support site. Microsoft argues that without these updates, user’s machines are more vulnerable to malware and viruses.

“When this 10-year period ends, Microsoft will discontinue Windows 7 support so that we can focus our investment on supporting newer technologies and great new experiences,” the company said at the time. “After that, technical assistance and software updates from Windows Update that help protect your PC will no longer be available for the product. Microsoft strongly recommends that you move to Windows 10 sometime before January 2020 to avoid a situation where you need service or support that is no longer available.”

If for whatever reason you forget that these changes are happening shortly after the start of the new year, rest assured there’s no way Microsoft will let it stay that way.