Last December, a Microsoft executive apologized for the aggressive and sometimes questionable tactics the company employed to get users to upgrade from previous operating systems to Windows 10. Now the company gives its Windows 10 initiative another push by claiming that Windows 7 is already a relic and is therefore unsafe to use.

Windows 7 Countdown

The latest salvo was fired from Microsoft's German subsidiary, which released a statement this week, marking Jan. 14 the beginning of what the company calls a milestone. The date has begun the three-year countdown to Jan. 14, 2020 when Microsoft said it will stop developing security updates for Windows 7.

"Today, it [Windows 7] does not meet the requirements of modern technology, nor the high security requirements of IT departments," Markus Nitschke, head of Windows at Microsoft Germany, said. "As early as in Windows XP, we saw that companies should take early steps to avoid future risks or costs."

The Case Against The Old OS

Microsoft has disparaged Windows 7, arguing that it is based on old security architecture. One would probably recall that this has been the convention on the part of the Redmond company when exhorting Windows users to update their operating systems. Upon Windows 7's release, the Windows XP were treated to the same type of abuse. This also happened for Windows 7 when Windows 8 was released.

This Windows version, however, proved to be quite tenacious. Windows 8 failed to significantly chip away at its user base, and with the advent of Windows 10, Microsoft had to employ unprecedentedly aggressive tactics to get users jumping into the Windows 10 train.

As of December 2016, Windows 7 still roundly trounces Windows 10 in terms of usage, claiming 48 percent to the latter's 24 percent share in desktop OS market.

On Windows 10 Adoption

If there has been slow Windows 10 adoption, Microsoft only has itself to blame. Users have complained that the company has been very persistent with the requirement to update, turning them off in the process.

The system is also riddled with notifications and advertisements such as the way Windows 10 has been employed to shamelessly promote the Edge browser in a clear effort to undermine Chrome's popularity.

Some sources argue that Microsoft has been uncharacteristically persistent about getting everyone upgrade to Windows 10 for multiple reasons. First, there is the claim that the company genuinely wants better and more secure computing experience for its users. The Redmond company could also fear a repeat of its Windows XP experience wherein it had to provide support extensions lest a significant chunk of its users got left behind.

But there is also the proposition that Microsoft intends to begin monetizing Windows 10, as it is built as a software-service model.