Windows XP and the Afterlife

[Airborne]

When Microsoft pulls the plug on supporting Windows XP in April 2014 with over 40% of businesses and 40%+ of the non-Western world heavily committed to XP and resistant to change, Sandboxie for the ordinary home user will be the saving grace. China for example has Windows XP as their top browser and the rest of the world come in at around 40% - see http://www.neowin.net/news/statcounter-windows-xp-is-the-most-used-os-in-eight-countries-including-china

 

Much of Western industry and commerce will be reluctant to upgrade to Win 7 or 8 due to the excessive financial investment and disruption involved and will have to rely on their main security systems. The other two thirds of the world do not have the money to throw away on the luxury of upgrading and will continue for many years to come with XP.

 

I use Sandboxie all the time to open my browser. Being a virtual environment, I do not need any more of MS`s incessant Windows security updates, they are simply cosmetic. Although technically an AV is not necessary with Sandboxie, I do have AVG 2014 and a good Firewall to protect against outgoing threats. All bugs and other nasties in the sandbox are automatically exterminated on browser closure.

 

So as for April 2014 and MS`s withdrawal of support ? Who cares, I certainly don`t and expect to be using my XP trouble free for many years to come. All due to Sandboxie and the unique genius and generosity of Tzuk the designer and owner.

 

XP will not be the deciding factor for me to upgrade to Win 7, it will be when my computer dies of old age, with my grateful thanks to Tzuk and his wonderful Sandboxie.

[Starbuck]

Hi Airborne,

 

Whilst i do agree that Sandboxie is a great addition to the system protection (for now! ) ..... don't rely on it after M$ stop updates for XP.

Even Sandboxie themselves basically point this out.

 

Q. Is Sandboxie 100% fool-proof?

 

A. No, but it tries to be as close as possible to 100%. At the same time, it is important to remember that Sandboxie is never the only software in your computer. Your other software, including your Windows operating system, might have security holes that could be abused by viruses in ways that no security software can prevent. Therefore it is always important to keep up with software updates. As the saying goes: "The only truly secure computer is one buried in concrete, with the power turned off and the network cable cut."

 

 

Q. Will viruses remain in the sandbox after I close all programs in the sandbox?

 

A. Yes and no:

1. No, if your sandbox is set to automatically delete;

2. Yes, in the default configuration, but only until you manually delete the contents of the sandbox.

It is important to note that a virus file in the sandbox is just that -- a file, not much different from your average text file. Unless you move the file out of the sandbox and invoke it, there is little cause for alarm.

 

Plus....

What if the system is already infected (but the user doesn't know) in this case Sandboxie is of no use.

 

Q. My computer is already infected with a virus, will Sandboxie protect against that virus?

 

A. No. Sandboxie can only protect your computer from the programs that run under the supervision of Sandboxie. The virus which has already infected your computer is running unencumbered outside the supervision of Sandboxie. It might also serve as an infection channel and assist other viruses in the sandbox to break out of the sandbox and infect your computer. It is strongly recommended that you dis-infect your computer as soon as possible, then install Sandboxie to protect against future threats.

http://www.sandboxie.com/index.php?FAQ_Virus

 

All i'm saying is...... this is not the answer to protection after Microsoft pulls the plug on supporting Windows XP.

After all, Win XP won't be the only software on the system.

Other software vendors may soon stop updating their software for XP systems.

Edited December 9, 2013 by Starbuck

[Airborne]

Hello Starbuck.

 

Nothing is perfect in this world of ours, even MS Windows XP updates. I have simply given you a solution that is as close as you can get, take it or leave it.

 

You are of course stating the words of caution, but with half the world committed to XP for a long time to come, what have I said that is not practically true for the home user ?

 

Are we all supposed to commit ritual PC suicide just because MS stop sending us those irrelevant and annoying updates ? Of course not.

 

Whilst the Western MS fan club dance around in Win 7 and 8 ecstasy at the prospect of the best OS that ever lived being killed off, ordinary users and the rest of the world will simply continue.

 

I respect your comments of course Starbuck, but they are highly pessimistic, uneconomic and impractical. You poke at Sandboxie not being perfect, but Sandboxie + a good AV and FW will as I have already said will not miss those XP updates one jot. In fact I personally will be glad to see the back of them.

 

All my OP is intended to do is show the reader and users of XP that life can and will go on after April 2014 and with care, nobody will notice any difference. I am honored to be one of the 40% plus world XP users and am confident that my XP operations will outlast the creaking joints of my old computer.

 

Our PC will not turn into a Pumpkin or us into a frog at mid-night on that fateful day in April 2014.

 

I sincerely wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy XP New Year.

Airborne

 

Edited December 9, 2013 by Airborne

[Starbuck]

Hi Airborne,

 

I have simply given you a solution that is as close as you can get, take it or leave it.

 

You poke at Sandboxie not being perfect, but Sandboxie + a good AV and FW will as I have already said will not miss those XP updates one jot

If you expect a civilized debate, i suggest you calm down and read my previous post fully.

I did not poke at Sandboxie for not being perfect ( albiet that NO program is anyway)

I was just pointing out what Sandboxie themselves say:

Your other software, including your Windows operating system, might have security holes that could be abused by viruses in ways that no security software can prevent. Therefore it is always important to keep up with software updates

which seems to go against what you are saying:

I use Sandboxie all the time to open my browser. Being a virtual environment, I do not need any more of MS`s incessant Windows security updates, they are simply cosmetic.

Not all malware comes through your browser.

Eventually software vendors will also stop updates for their XP programs...... this will then start to place vulnerabilities on the system.

It may take awhile, but Win XP will be forced to die.

You are of course stating the words of caution, but with half the world committed to XP for a long time to come, what have I said that is not practically true for the home user ?

I'm only trying to state the obvious..... that your method will help but it's not the answer.

Also members reading this should have both sides of the story.

 

I respect your comments of course Starbuck, but they are highly pessimistic, uneconomic and impractical.

Certainly not pessimistic ..... only pointing out the facts.

Where 'uneconomic and impractical' come into it, i have no idea.

You really do need to read my post again.

 

All my OP is intended to do is show the reader and users of XP that life can and will go on after April 2014 and with care, nobody will notice any difference

Of course XP will continue ( but NOT indefinitely ) and after awhile people will notice a difference.

[jake99]

Agree with Starbuck. XP whilst it still works, and so does my old 95 system for that matter, going to go, it has to. The nature of progression, which is not always a bad thing.

[Synapse]

Much of Western industry and commerce will be reluctant to upgrade to Win 7 or 8 due to the excessive financial investment and disruption involved

 

Indeed they will be reluctant, spending money they see as wasteful does nothing for business profits. However, that does not mean business will stay with XP, most if not all will migrate, perhaps the only caveats being those systems running legacy software, especially bespoke and engineering software that have no need for Internet access.

 

Remember the potential of the Y2K bug? Business splashed the cash to ensure their computing platforms remained online and running. Once news gets out of even one high profile company running XP after April 2014, and getting in to some kind of security difficulty, you can put your money on it that most others will be migrating to Win 7 for fear of similar embarrassment.

 

All my OP is intended to do is show the reader and users of XP that life can and will go on after April 2014 and with care, nobody will notice any difference. I am honored to be one of the 40% plus world XP users and am confident that my XP operations will outlast the creaking joints of my old computer.

 

To my mind, many home PC users do not have the knowledge or the expertise to notice the workings of a virus, or piece of underhand spyware, and nor do business users. Home PC users rely on the security of the OS plus AV add ons, programs updates (eg Adobe Reader, Java), and Windows security updates to fend off the majority of intrusions. Business end users rely of a team of IT professionals (even if the team is only one person) to maintain their systems, and those end users are mostly interested in their applications rather than security. Both groups rely on outside sources to maintain security. What a job that would be, if the security risks were unknown due to the home PC users and IT experts not being security experts. It is a risky business, most will opt for using the collective knowledge of Microsoft security experts, in conjunction with well rounded AV systems. A wise choice I would say.

 

Also consider neither XP nor Vista support Microsoft´s latest incarnation of the Office suite. Perhaps not a problem in the short term, but as the years go by, more recent versions of Office will become the standard, and older XP based versions of Office will also become a security risk. Not acceptable in the business arena.

 

It is a few years since I regularly maintained XP systems, and once in while I rebuild XP for someone. What a hassle, SATA floppy drivers, base system, updates, drivers, updated drivers, networking add on´s. Drop a Win 7 or 8 DVD in the slot, and off you go, I should think my kids could just about install Win 8.

 

Sandboxie is not a catch all security system for outdated OS´s, it is just another security tool.

[Airborne]

@ Synapse

 

Many users in the world still use Windpws 95, 98 and ME with no problems and they are yonks unsupported by MS.

Windows XP will still be highly popular 10 years from now. And ME ? I have already made it clear about my situation.

 

Many users only know how to use the Internet for online shopping, my comments are for those who know a little more about how the system works and how to prevent threats and intrusions once MS updates for Windows XP have galloped into the sunset.

 

I have absolutely no fears about April 2014 and am getting a little bored with the matter.

 

And so endeth the lesson.

AMEN

Edited December 10, 2013 by Airborne

[Synapse]

Many users in the world still use Windpws 95, 98 and ME with no problems and they are yonks unsupported by MS.

 

Indeed they do, and what do they use old versions of Windows for? Certainly not for me to answer. Users of legacy versions of Windows will not be everyday people, browsing, shopping, using social media.

 

Why? Well, try using a browser on Windows 95 in todays online environment. Up to date browsers just do not run on legacy systems, nor do media rich plugins. Never mind issues with security, the hardware platforms are not powerful enough, and the software just will not run.

 

Many users only know how to use the Internet for online shopping, my comments are for those who know a little more about how the system works and how to prevent threats and intrusions once MS updates for Windows XP have galloped into the sunset.

 

Your comments related to Windows XP, and explained how you think owners of these systems can continue running them securely after the April 2014 update deadline set out by Microsoft.

 

Starbuck summed it up nicely....

 

Not all malware comes through your browser.

Eventually software vendors will also stop updates for their XP programs...... this will then start to place vulnerabilities on the system.

It may take awhile, but Win XP will be forced to die.

[Airborne]

My apologies for raising a rather knotty and contemporary matter. I never intended to create a rambling diatribe between "them" and "us", although it was probably to be expected from the prophets of doom.

 

I must just clarify the enthusiasm expressed by the optimistic statement "Starbuck summed it up nicely...."

Well, did he ? I don`t think he summed up anything at all.

 

1."Not all malware comes through your browser."

We all know that - so what`s news ?

2."Eventually software vendors will also stop updates for their XP programs...... this will then start to place vulnerabilities on the system."

The word "eventually" is indeterminate and means nothing. The rest of the comment is relative to an unknown period of time. Weeks, Months, Years ? Who knows ?

 

3."It may take awhile, but Win XP will be forced to die."

Again an indeterminate statement. Everything in life takes "a while", which is the same as "how long is a piece of string"

 

The entire statement is a thoroughly logical, commendable and positive expression of the indeterminate and sums up nothing at all except the probability of an indefinite situation.

Edited December 10, 2013 by Airborne

[Starbuck]

am getting a little bored with the matter

Ditto

 

And so endeth the thread.

AMEN