#windows-11-lifecycle

#windows-11-lifecycle

Microsoft is removing trust for kernel drivers that haven't been through the Windows Hardware Compatibility Program, targeting those signed by the long-deprecated cross-signed root program. This change will take effect with the April 2026 Windows Update.

When Windows 10 was released in 2015, it was immediately controversial, with critics zeroing in on one feature in particular: telemetry. I spent many months in those early days reading one article after another on the subject that read, in retrospect, like entries from the diary of a mad conspiracy theorist.

I don't think any organization wants to pay for ESU licenses. Many organizations will migrate, but a non-trivial subset will rely on ESU as a safety net because their constraints are less about 'deciding to upgrade' and more about validating dependencies and coordinating operational downtime.

There are a couple of conditions to keep in mind. Using Recovery Drive resets Windows back to its initial factory state. Specifically, the recovery stores all built-in Windows files, any updates installed when you set up the drive, and any customizations from the PC maker. Your customizations, personal files, and any apps you've installed are not included, so you'll want to make sure you have separate backups of those items.

Microsoft is warning organizations about the impending end of support for several Windows products from 2016. These include Windows Server 2016, Windows 10 Enterprise 2016 LTSB, and Windows IoT Enterprise LTSB 2016. According to Microsoft, these products are approaching the final stage of their lifecycle, which has direct consequences for organizations that still depend on this software. The lifecycle documentation on Microsoft Learn shows that Windows Server 2016 has not received regular support since January 2022 and is now fully in the extended support phase.

January 13 marked another milestone for legacy systems, as support for the software - codenamed Longhorn Server - expired for customers that bought Microsoft Premium Assurance (PA). Extended support ended for Windows Server 2008 on January 14, 2020. It was possible to keep the lights on until January 10, 2023, via Extended Security Updates. A fourth year came courtesy of Azure, which took the code to January 9, 2024, but that was it for anyone without PA.

Releasing a new version of Windows that just covers new Arm PCs is another signal of Microsoft's commitment to Arm processors and the Arm version of Windows, after decades of near-exclusive focus on the x86 version of the OS that ran on Intel and AMD's chips. Microsoft offered multiple versions of both Windows 10 and Windows 11 in both x86 and Arm editions, but the 24H2 update was a major milestone for Arm PCs.

But are things getting worse? According to Register readers, and the company's own release health dashboard, the answer has to be yes. It isn't just you. The frequency of emergency out-of-band releases for the company's operating systems has been rapidly increasing to the point where, for every Patch Tuesday update, there'll likely be at least one out-of-band patch to fix whatever got broken.