Windows Vista is Dead: Why You Need to Upgrade

Do you remember 2007? Apple launched the first iPhone, the Spurs swept the Cavs in the NBA Finals and future U.S. president Donald J. Trump took a Stone Cold Stunner at WrestleMania 23. It's also the year we met Windows Vista, which Microsoft officially dropped all support of this week.

So, if you're one of the few, the proud and the obstinate users still clinging onto Microsoft's Vista, your time is up. Microsoft dropping support for Vista means the operating system will no longer receive any security updates. That means every time Vista users open their web browser, they put their system at risk of attack.

So, where do Vista users go from here?

First, confirm your suspicion that you're running Vista. Click the Start button, type 'winver' in the search box and double-click it in your results. Now you're looking at the About Windows menu, which will show your version of Windows.

So now, it's time to meet your new operating system: Windows 10. Your choices for moving to Windows 10 are simple, either buy a license for it (to retain your PC) or buy a new PC altogether. While it may be easier to buy a new PC (and check out our Laptop Buying Guide if you do), you might not want to, especially if your machine is somehow still fast enough for your needs.

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Windows 10 System Requirements

You can upgrade your Vista PC to Windows 10 if its CPU is 1GHz or faster, and you've also got at least 1GB of RAM and 16GB of hard drive space. You'll also need a graphics card that supports DirectX 9 or later, and a display that's at least 800 x 600 pixels.

If you've got 2GB of memory and 20GB of space, you can install the 64-bit version of Windows 10. Why would you want the 64-bit version? 32-bit PCs can't utilize more than 4GB of memory (including your video card) so you're putting your PC to waste.