On the 14th of October, Microsoft will end support for Windows 10, marking one of the most significant enterprise IT migrations in recent memory. While many organizations are already well underway with their move to Windows 11, others are only just beginning to map out the journey.
Despite the looming deadline, the good news is that there is still time for businesses to act with purpose. Starting now gives IT leaders the chance to shape the transition on their own terms, minimize disruption, and transform the process into a springboard for long-term improvements in security, efficiency, and resilience.
Senior Security Advisor for EMEA at Tanium.
When support officially ends on October 14th, any devices still running on Windows 10 will no longer receive security updates.
For organizations, this is a natural inflection point. It’s the perfect opportunity to strengthen defenses, modernize systems, and ensure every device is aligned with future-ready standards.
Acting early not only reduces risk but also helps avoid the pressures of last-minute change, turning what might appear to be a challenge into a clear strategic advantage.
Of course, an end-of-life (EOL) operating system migration is rarely as simple as clicking “update.” It often requires hardware upgrades or replacements, application compatibility testing, and coordinated change management across multiple business units.
Even highly resourced IT teams can encounter bottlenecks, unexpected costs, and unforeseen delays – challenges that only intensify as the deadline draws closer.
But a Windows migration is far more than a compliance exercise. With foresight, it can be a moment to modernize infrastructure, streamline operations, and raise the bar on security in ways that deliver lasting value.
Organizations have a real opportunity to re-evaluate, adapt, and create a more resilient environment for the long term.
High stakes for critical services
When it comes to moving away from Windows 10, no sector is immune from the risks of a delayed exit, but the public sector often faces the steepest hurdles.
IT environments here are highly fragmented, combining modern Windows 10 systems with legacy hardware and many have applications still in use long past their intended lifespan.
That makes the exit slower: device refreshes, application re-certification, supplier approvals and governance sign-offs all take time. Add to that fixed public procurement cycles and strict compliance rules and progress can be slowed even further.
The stakes, however, could not be higher. Public services – from clinical systems to benefits portals and local authority platforms – cannot afford even the shortest of outages without financial, operational and reputational fallout.
With healthcare in particular, where the risk extends to patient safety, prolonged periods of downtime can have a devastating impact. These environments also hold sensitive personal data and sit close to critical infrastructure, making them high-value targets for attackers.
We’ve seen how quickly unpatched exposure can ripple outwards. The NHS’s experience during the 2017 WannaCry ransomware outbreak remains a vivid reminder of how known vulnerabilities can halt critical services at scale, endanger patients and drive remediation bills into the millions.
If you’re behind the curve when it comes to Windows 10 EOL, don’t panic just yet. There is a safety net available to businesses that have not yet prepared for the migration. Microsoft’s Extended Security Updates (ESU) program offers a temporary backstop by providing three additional years of patches.
For certain specialist systems, this may be the only viable option in the short term. But it isn’t a long-term strategy, used selectively, ESU buys time; relied on too heavily, it simply defers the problem and inflates long-term risk.
The hurdles to watch for
Whether in the public or private sector, the obstacles to a timely Windows 10 exit are familiar. Hardware compatibility is a common blind spot for businesses: many Windows 10 machines will not meet the minimum requirements for Windows 11.
Without an accurate view of the IT estate, organizations risk discovering too late that they need to buy additional hardware, forcing rushed decisions, hasty procurement and spiraling costs.
Even with a solid plan in place, procurement itself can become another stumbling block. Lengthy approval processes or slow vendor responses can hold back progress, pushing migration timelines dangerously close to the support cut-off.
Seasonal peaks or regulatory change freezes can squeeze the available safe window even further. And unresolved software dependencies – where a critical application hasn’t been validated for Windows 11 – can derail entire projects if discovered too late.
It may sound bleak, but the good news is these risks are all avoidable. With complete and real-time visibility of devices and applications, early supplier engagement, and rigorous compatibility testing, organizations can keep projects on track and avoid expensive last-minute workarounds.
Closing the window of exposure before it’s too late
The security profile of every single unpatched device will change overnight the moment Windows 10 reaches end-of-life. Put simply, by losing support, fixes stop, and yesterday’s flaws become entry points.
Cybercriminals are adept at exploiting these moments: ransomware groups and malware campaigns routinely scan for newly unsupported systems and exploit them. Once inside, attackers can move laterally, disrupt operations, and extract sensitive data. This leaves organizations facing downtime, regulatory fines, and extensive recovery bills.
Yet this is also why the migration, especially when you get ahead of the deadline, represents a valuable opportunity. By acting early, organizations can do more than simply close a security gap or distribute a patch.
By using this as such they can elevate their overall defenses. Migrating to Windows 11 enables tighter endpoint security baselines, stronger identity and access controls, and improved patch management. It’s also the perfect moment to reduce shadow IT, retire legacy apps, and enforce consistent policies across the entire estate.
For IT teams, real-time visibility of endpoints is especially critical here. With a live view of unpatched devices and software, including what’s vulnerable, what’s compliant and what’s out of date, allows teams to close exposures before they become entry points for attackers and keep momentum through the transition. Taken together, these steps strengthen resilience and make environments far harder to compromise.
When approached this way, the Windows 10 deadline is a springboard for building lasting cyber resilience. And by acting now, you set the pace, rather than the attackers setting it for you.
Automation = The key to success
Ready or not, the retirement of Windows 10 is fast approaching. But while the risks of delay or inactivity are real, there are certain steps to making it a success. Beyond security, automation provides organizations with the ability to move from insight to action at speed and scale.
Automation ensures migrations don’t get siloed by manual effort. Instead of relying on teams to update devices one by one, automation allows organizations to orchestrate updates, enforce consistent security settings, and roll out new configurations across thousands of endpoints simultaneously.
This consistency reduces the risk of error, accelerates timelines, and gives IT leaders the confidence that no device has been overlooked.
Combine this with full visibility of the IT estate, and automation transforms migrations from reactive projects into proactive programs. Leaders can plan deployments in phases, minimize disruption to users, and keep costs under control.
Ultimately, automation is what turns the migrations from Windows 10 into a manageable, efficient process rather than a last-minute scramble.
Building readiness for the future
While automation is essential for managing today’s Windows 10 migration, its value goes far beyond this immediate project.
The same orchestration tools and processes can be applied to every major IT change that follows – from operating system upgrades and hardware refreshes to urgent patch cycles.
By embedding automation into IT operations now, organizations create a repeatable model for managing change at scale. That means fewer fire-drills, faster response to new vulnerabilities, and a more consistent experience for users whenever updates are rolled out.
For IT leaders, this isn’t just about meeting the October deadline. It’s about leaving behind reactive, resource-intensive ways of working and building a foundation that makes the entire IT estate more resilient, agile, and cost-effective.
The cost of doing nothing
Windows 10 support is ending soon, but organizations can still move decisively to keep control of their migration.
Businesses that delay this move risk piling on unnecessary expenses – from emergency procurement and inflated hardware prices to unplanned downtime and paid security extensions.
Acting while there’s still time avoids those pressures and ensures the transition happens in a structured, cost-effective way.
Crucially, taking action now gives teams the breathing space to treat the migration as more than a compliance checkbox.
Instead, it becomes a chance to streamline estates, retire outdated hardware, and introduce automation that will make future upgrades faster and less disruptive.
For IT leaders, that means turning a fixed deadline into a foundation for long-term efficiency and resilience.
The hidden costs of waiting are real, but so are the benefits of moving early. By investing time now in planning, testing, and phased deployments, organizations can spread costs more evenly, reduce strain on IT teams, and strengthen overall security.
Whether in government, healthcare, or the private sector, the lesson is the same: proactive preparation – powered by automation – transforms the arrival of Windows 11 from a mandatory transition into an opportunity to modernize, safeguard operations, and set the stage for growth.
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