Windows 8.1

Windows 8.1 is a Windows NT operating system manufactured by Microsoft, following the release time for Windows 8 and before Windows 10. Designed for workstations, personal computers and portable devices; the version designed to solve server problems - Windows Server 2012 R2.

2022

End of Windows 8.1 support

On December 10, 2022, the corporation Microsoft ceases support for 8.1 OS Windows. An official statement about this was published on the company's website. Thus, users computers running Windows 8.1 will no longer receive updates for the system. safety Additionally, Microsoft Customer Support will no longer be available to provide Windows 8.1 technical support.

On January 10, 2023, support for Windows 8.1 will end, after which technical assistance and software updates will no longer be provided. If you have devices running Windows 8.1, it is recommended that you upgrade to a more current, supported, and supported edition of Windows. If the devices do not meet the technical requirements to run more than the current release of Windows, it is recommended to replace the device with a device that supports Windows 11, Microsoft said in a statement.

According to the developers, continued use of Windows 8.1 after January 10, 2023 may increase the exposure of the organization to security risks or affect its ability to fulfill compliance obligations.

The corporation also clarified that they will not offer an advanced security update (ESU) program for Windows 8.1.

We do not currently offer free upgrade paths from Windows 8.1 to Windows 10 or Windows 11, Microsoft said.[1]

Microsoft 365 Cloud Support Shutdown Plan

On July 12, 2022, it became known that Microsoft had found a way to force users to switch to its modern versions of Windows as soon as possible. To do this, it uses Microsoft 365 - the cloud analogue of the classic Office. All this applies to users who prefer to work in operating systems Windows 7, Windows 8.1. The first was released in 2009, and Microsoft stopped supporting it in January 2020. Windows 8.1 appeared in 2013. The innovation will also affect those who work for Windows Server 2008 R2. Windows 8.1 will stop receiving updates on January 10, 2023. The release of updates for Microsoft 365 applications will stop on the same day. Read more here.

2021: Updating Windows 8.1 to Windows 11 is possible only after a complete reinstallation of the OS

In mid-July 2021, Microsoft announced that Windows 7 and 8.1 users will be able to switch to Windows 11, but this will require a complete reinstallation of the OS. Therefore, users will have to back up their data before installing Windows 11 on a PC. Read more here.

2018

There will be no new applications for Windows 8 after October 31

At the end of August 2018, Microsoft announced a deadline for third-party developers to accept applications for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8. The publication of software (XAP or APPX packages) created for these and older versions of operating systems in the Microsoft Store will end on October 31, 2018. Read more here.

End basic support and free Windows 10 migration

In January 2018, the company Microsoft completed core 8.1 support operating system Windows and disabled the free upgrade feature to. Windows 10

After the termination of basic support, Microsoft withdrew its warranty and stopped accepting requests to add new features to Windows 8.1.

Microsoft completes support for Windows 8.1 and disables free update to Windows 10

The extended support phase has begun, which will last until January 10, 2023. Until that time, Windows 8.1 users will receive free security updates, but will have to pay to fix bugs that occurred in the work.

Within a year of the release of Windows 10, Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users could switch to a more recent computer platform for free. However, Microsoft has left this opportunity for accessibility users, such as an announcer or Braille keyboard. It is noteworthy that the company does not check this in any way: it is enough to indicate that the user is working or is going to use auxiliary technologies.

Until January 16, 2018, for a free transition from Windows 8.1 to Windows 10, a special tool could be downloaded from the official website by clicking on the Upgrade Now button. Then you had to run the program and follow the instructions.

Microsoft was going to keep the "loophole" of the free transition from Windows 8.1 to Windows 10 until December 31, 2017, but turned it off a little more than two weeks later.

According to the NetMarketShare service (which takes into account the data of 160 million unique users viewing more than 40 thousand web resources around the world) for December 2017, Windows 8.1 is installed on 5.7% of desktops and laptops in the world against the 33% rate of Windows 10. The most popular computer OS remains Windows 7, which has about 43% of the market.^[2]

2014

Cancel Windows 8.1 Update 2

On August 12, 2014, it became known that Microsoft decided not to release Windows 8.1 Update 2. Unofficial information circulated about this for a long time.

The corporation noted that instead of updating Update 2, they want to concentrate on monthly system updates. The August 2014 update of the company failed to release the first time.

Windows 8.1 Update

On March 3, 2014, Microsoft introduced Windows 8.1 with the update.

As part of the main upgrade options:

• Improved keyboard and mouse usability
• the ability to access the taskbar from any screen,
• the ability to pin apps from the Windows Store along with desktop apps and favorite websites to the taskbar
• Improve performance and compatibility in Internet Explorer 11.

All of them provide users with faster and more accurate access to those events, units of information, its aspects that are most important to users. Turning off, searching the Internet or switching between applications has become, according to the developers, incredibly simple. Keyboard and mouse navigation is made even more intuitive and natural by more uniform placement of controls and how they work. For the enterprise segment, Windows 8.1 with the update offers improved compatibility with Internet Explorer 8 in Internet Explorer 11, enhances mobile device management and simplifies the deployment of business applications with familiar management tools.

Since April 8, 2014, Windows 8.1 users can download Windows 8.1 for free with an update in the Windows Update Center, and Windows 8 users - in the Windows Store.

Windows Development Platform

At the same time, the company announced new developer capabilities in the field of creating applications available for the entire range of devices on the Windows platform through Visual Studio 2013 with a second update (Release Candidate). With the advent of "universal projects," developers can create applications that can take full advantage of Windows devices. Developers will be able, using existing skills, to create common solutions for Windows Phone 8.1 and Windows 8.1 with the update. Universal projects enable developers to use up to 90% of the total code, a single package creation system and a common user interface for applications for smartphones, tablets and PCs.

To improve the development experience for Windows, Microsoft announced updates for the Windows Store that will increase the ease of users finding applications and monetizing them, as well as simplify the process of buying applications, thanks to improved search, more personal recommendations and improved promotion. In addition, this week Microsoft will release a new version of Windows App Studio, a web tool for people with no development experience that allows you to create universal Windows applications in a single project.

Microsoft has revealed details of the second version of Kinect for Windows with a new sensor coming this summer. The new version will help developers create innovative applications for Windows with a natural user interface (NUI). For the first time, thanks to the new SDK, developers will be able to create Kinect-based Windows Store apps. The Kinect Windows 2 sensor is even more accurate, responsive, and intuitive. Developers and partner companies like Reflexion Health and Freak'n Genius are already building amazing solutions, thanks to the Kinect Windows Developer Version 2 pre-access program.

2013

Innovations and criticism for the lack of a Start button

On October 17, 2013, the first major update of the Windows 8 operating system, Windows 8.1, became available for download.

Against the expectation, in Windows 8.1, Microsoft did not return the Start menu, the return of which was expected by many users.

• Two new screen tile sizes are available - large or small squares - a new more convenient way to view all installed applications, with the ability to sort by name, installation date, launch frequency and category, as well as the ability to perform operations on several tiles at once on the Start screen.

• The lock screen can be turned into a digital frame for showing slideshows of files from local memory and SkyDrive storage.

Windows 8.1 innovations

SkyDrive has improved file viewing. Updated: Internet Explorer web browser - Windows 8.1 comes with its eleventh version, and the Windows Store application. The Windows Store has improved the display of programs and tips.

• The search function similar to Google Graph has been updated: if the user enters the name of a famous person in the search bar, he will instantly receive his biography, photos and other information in a structured form. And if, for example, you search for a city, then information about the weather and the next events in this city will appear on the screen. The search function is available in the right slide-out panel, there is no need to start the browser.

• It became possible to arbitrarily move the separator between the windows of two simultaneously running applications. Depending on the size of the screen, the user can divide it into a maximum of four applications.

For Windows 8 owners, the update is free. Windows 7 users will have to pay $120 to upgrade to Windows 8.1 or $200 to upgrade to Windows 8.1 Pro.

Sales of systems preinstalled with Windows 8.1 began on October 18, 2013, as did retail sales of DVDs from this OS.

Microsoft begins shipping boxes with Windows 8.1 in Russia

On October 8, 2013 , Microsoft begins shipping Windows 8.1 boxes to Russian distributors, local partners of the corporation said in September. Officially, a fully functional version of this OS, both in retail and in electronic form, should become available on October 18.

Windows 8 users will be able to upgrade to Windows 8.1 for free by downloading it from the Microsoft website , and Windows 7 users will be able to upgrade to it using a boxed or electronic version.

Those who plan to switch from Windows XP SP3 and Windows Vista will be able to do this only through the purchase of a full version of Windows 8.1 and a complete reinstallation of Windows - there will be no special update offer for them.

The estimated price of boxed Windows 8.1, according to some Russian partners, will be 5.990 thousand rubles, and the same is the price of a boxed upgrade program from Windows 8.1 to Windows 8.1 Pro, which has a number of functions for business users. The estimated cost of the full version of Windows 8.1 Pro in the box is expected to be 9.99 thousand rubles.

Russian partners Microsoft also report that together with the launch of sales of a new version of the OS in October 2013, the corporation completes shipments of Windows 7 to local distributors. Boxes already delivered to the country with this OS version will be sold until the end of the warehouse stock.

According to Microsoft's definitions regarding the Windows lifecycle, the end of sales of a specific OS version occurs when it ceases to be delivered to retailers or OEMs. At the same time, after the end of retail sales of software, it can still be purchased through the channels of computer manufacturers until the end of sales of PCs with pre-installed Windows comes. The latter, as of the end of September 2013, has not yet been determined.

The end of the main phase of support for Windows 7, according to Microsoft, is scheduled for January 13, 2015, and extended support until January 14, 2020. This period is five years longer than originally planned: the corporation announced its decision to extend it in February 2012.

Windows 8.1 Enterprise preview available in Russian

At the end of July 2013 , Microsoft announced on its blog the availability of a download of a preliminary version of Windows 8.1 Enterprise Preview (Windows 8.1. At the time of release, it became available in 13 languages, including Russian. The preliminary version will be valid until January 14, 2013, and after this period it will be possible to upgrade to a licensed working version of Windows 8.1 Enterprise.

Windows 8.1 Enterprise Preview is based on the pre-release version of Windows 8.1 released a month earlier, intended for a wide range of users, but at the same time contains additional mobility, security, management and virtualization capabilities for the enterprise environment.

Among the key features added to Windows 8.1 Enterprise Preview, Microsoft names:

• Creating Windows To Go: The ability to create a fully managed enterprise version of Windows Desktop 8.1 on an external bootable USB drive.

• Start Screen Management: The ability for administrators to control the location of the device start screen for easy availability of key applications, and to prevent users from setting up their start screen to ensure consistency between individual workgroups or the entire company.

• DirectAccess: The ability for users to freely access their corporate network resources remotely, without the need to start a separate VPN connection. For administrators, this feature allows users to apply the latest policies and software updates to remote computers.

• BranchCache: Takes over the caching of files, websites, and other content from central servers on hosted cache servers or PCs, so that branch office employees do not have to repeatedly upload content to the WAN.

• Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI): The user will be able to use all the features of the desktop, play 3D graphics, use USB peripherals and touch devices in any type of network (LAN or WAN) for VDI scripts. This became possible due to improvements in Microsoft RemoteFX and Windows Server 2012.

• AppLocker: Enables enterprises to create a more secure environment by limiting access to files and applications that users or groups can run on a PC, creating increased security for the device and the data stored in it.

• Windows Enterprise Side-Loading: Windows internal applications can be downloaded to domain PCs or tablets running Windows 8.1 Enterprise.

Windows 8.1 Preview Exit

On June 26, 2013, at the Build 2013 developer conference, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced the release of the Windows 8.1 Preview update.

The company's experts have demonstrated new capabilities to create and promote a variety of touch applications for the Windows platform, including new development tools and improved user support.

Windows 8 at the time of launch was more focused on ordinary users, and not on use in an enterprise environment. Unlike the original version of this OS, Windows 8.1 contains a number of features for business.

Among them, Microsoft calls:

Set Access: This feature restricts a device user's ability to access only one application from the Windows Store and block access to system files and other applications.

Built-in VPN Clients: Windows 8.1 has enhanced support for third-party VPN providers to include their own versions of VPN clients. This means that on both the x86 platform and ARM (RT), vendors, in collaboration with Microsoft, can include the functionality of their VPN clients in Windows 8.1.

Open MDM: Windows 8.1 implements new standards for mobile device management in the Open Mobile Device Community (OMA-DM), allowing you to manage devices using third-party MDM solutions such as MobileIron and AirWatch without using an additional agent. Advanced policies allow administrators to manage a large number of settings using Windows Intune or third-party MDM solutions in both Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1.

Workplace Connection: Trusted devices running Windows 8.1 are given access to secure corporate data.

Remote Destruction of Enterprise Data: This feature allows devices to connect, access, and store enterprise data that may later be deleted by an administrator, while keeping personal information on the device intact.

Include Skype in the core suite of apps

Immediately after turning on the computer for the first time, Windows 8.1 users will see the Skype icon on their start screen . Skype has become part of the basic set of applications and services of the Windows 8.1 platform .

Acting as the basic communication application for the Windows 8.1 platform, Skype will help Windows users gain access to the latest telecommunications technologies. Including Skype in Windows 8.1 will greatly simplify the process of communication between people and help them more effectively solve their tasks.

Announcing software support for working with payment and ID-cards

The version of Windows - Windows Blue (or Windows 8.1), released to replace the consumer-complaining Windows 8, will contain extended software support for working with payment and ID cards.

According to this information, among the new features of Windows 8.1 will be an optional ability to erase critical data from cards by remote command from readers (probably, we are talking about cases of blocking cards in case of theft or loss and similar cases).

In addition, the new version of Windows includes the ClaimedBarcodeScanner.DataReceived API, which, according to experts, supports work with both bar and QR code scanners and magnetic stripe card readers.

Notes