Europe's largest independent services and solutions provider is offering organisations a free online testing facility (register at http://www.scc.com/
“With Microsoft announcing the end of support for Windows XP, hardware vendors are scaling back available support on new devices. Moreover, many customers skipped a refresh cycle not least due to the economic downturn, resulting in lower levels of take up of Microsoft’s Vista and a significant number of desktop devices being used past their normal lifespan negatively impacting performance. The move, therefore, to Windows 7 has become a perceived and accepted necessity amongst the IT Director community,” said Mark Murrin, General Manager for Software Solutions at SCC.
"Although it's fair to say that similar migrations of the scale required for Windows 7 have not been without their problems in the past, CIO's shouldn't allow this to obscure the fact that there are many compelling operational and commercial imperatives driving the need to deploy the new OS. Not least, it would be counterproductive if misplaced concerns that the process might interrupt day-to-day operations delayed the decision to migrate."
Pointing to the opportunities for major performance improvements, including new security options, streamlined PC management and enhanced wireless and remote working features, SCC believes the increased and more varied demands being placed on enterprise computing today mean that the controlled phase-out of XP is long overdue.
Equally compelling are the environmental drivers. With increasing pressure on companies to implement Green IT policies wherever possible there are estimates that Windows 7's power saving features could cut the C02 emissions of a 5 year old XP desktop environment by 10%. By simultaneously replacing hardware, the combined energy cost saving rises to as much as 50%, making a powerful argument for Windows 7 deployment alongside a desktop upgrade.
To remove uncertainty over whether legacy applications will function on Windows 7, SCC can test their compatibility. The first 100 organisations to register with SCC - currently using 50 or more applications - can have one application tested for its Windows 7 readiness free of charge. SCC’s online testing facility helps to instantly establish whether organisations are likely to experience compatibility issues prior to the migration process beginning. Further testing and remediation services, utilising specialist tools from ChangeBASE are also available to facilitate the process. This enables customers to significantly reduce application preparation time in advance of deploying Windows 7.
"More collaborative working, energy cost savings, a mobile workforce and a greatly reduced carbon footprint are in demand and this means that an upgrade to a new operating system that can deliver against these expectations is long overdue. Moreover, many organisations are telling us that XP has had its day with a move to Windows 7 being on the cards. If a business wants to work faster, smarter and better, then its IT systems must evolve to cope with the changing demands placed upon it and every indication is that Windows 7 looks set to address these very issues," said SCC’s Murrin.
For a free online testing facility to check whether existing applications will be compatible with the new operating system (OS) register at http://www.scc.com/
