Few IT directors have plans to deployWindows
Vistathis year and some are seriously
considering skipping it until Microsoft's next desktop operating
system is released.
A survey of 78 IT managers responsible for desktop operating
systems in FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 firms by TIF, a user group for IT
managers, found that businesses were reluctant to upgrade to
Vista.
More than 40% of IT managers said they had no plans to deploy
the operating system. Some said they could not see a driver for
Vista, and others were concerned that the size and complexity of
Vista would mean an expensive PC upgrade programme.
TIF found that IT managers were concerned their existing
applications would be
incompatible with Vista.
One IT manager said he was uncertain whether Vista would work
with the company's existing NetWare infrastructure. Another said
that a fifth of its applications would not be compatible with
Vista.
"Many IT departments have only just upgraded to Windows XP - and
are considering skipping Vista altogether," said Ollie Ross, head
of research at TIF.
Just as businesses took a long time to upgrade from Windows 2000
to Windows XP, they may delay moving from XP to Vista. Microsoft's
announcement that it would continue to provide support for XP until
2011 makes this more likely, said Ross.
Industry experts say support for Windows XP could continue until
2014, which makes it even less time-critical for users to upgrade
to Windows Vista now.
"Windows Vista people are telling me they can find no compelling
reason to upgrade," said Richard Edwards, information management
practice director at analyst Butler Group.
Users often put off a Windows migration if it clashes with major
changes in the business. "Often when a business runs a major
business or IT project such as an SAP roll-out, it will clash with
any Windows upgrade plans," Edwards said.
But there are risks in delaying an upgrade. Michael Silver, a
research vice-president at Gartner, said, "The problem is that
trying to skip an operating system entirely relies on Microsoft
being able to deliver the next version on time and your software
and hardware suppliers being willing to support their new products
on XP long enough."
This could be a risky strategy, Silver warned, since suppliers
may be reluctant to continue producing XP software and hardware up
to 2014, when Microsoft ends support for the operating system.
Businesses that skip the Vista release may find that their
software supplier will stop supporting XP, Silver said.
Furthermore, third-party software providers may not have products
ready by the time the next version of Windows comes out in January
2012.
"We suggest to most of them that they do not [skip Windows
releases]. Organisations should bring in new PCs on Vista, probably
starting early in 2009, after testing with SP1 and building images,
and then leave the old ones at XP till they are replaced," he
said.
Nevertheless some IT managers will reluctant to install a new
desktop operating system, particularly if the old one is working
well, or the business has just completed a Windows XP desktop
roll-out. They may find it had to justify a business case for
rolling out Vista.