New research has revealed that the vast majority of IT professionals are looking to switch to Windows 7, with many expecting to make the move before the first service pack is released.
The research, from Dell KACE, found that 87% of IT bosses said they had plans in place to migrate to Microsoft’s newest operating system. A survey on potential Vista adoption, carried out at a comparable point after its release, found that just 47% planned on upgrading.
Nearly half (46%) of those plan to have Windows 7 in place before the first service pack is released, which is expected to be towards the end of 2010. The positive reception of Windows 7 has also forced some companies to reconsider moving away from the Windows operating systems altogether. When KACE carried out a similar survey in November 2007, 50% of respondents said they were considering deploying an alternative OS, such as the open source Linux. That figure has dropped to 32% this year.
“What a difference a year makes. Windows 7 is looking like it will be the biggest inflection point in Windows OS adoption since XP,” said Rob Meinhardt, president, Dell KACE. “But because there isn’t a direct upgrade path from XP, migrating to Windows 7 could be challenging and costly for many organisations.”
The majority (86%) of respondents voiced concerns about software compatibility when migrating to Windows 7, while just 25% said that they had concerns about the performance of the new operating system.
“These results reinforce what we are hearing from the customers we talk to everyday,” said Meinhardt. “Productivity gains associated with working in two windows at the same time, having an OS that works with proprietary technology, powerful encryption to protect credit card numbers and employee data, and connecting PCs quickly and easily to wired and wireless networks are among the big wins over Windows XP most often cited by our customers.”
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