Check if your Critical Software Programs are Compatible with Microsoft's Windows 10 Before Migrating

We often joke that the only things that are guaranteed in life are death and taxes however, one more item you could add to that list is a migration to Windows 10.

In January 2020, Microsoft's popular Windows 7 operating system will see the end of its 10 years of support when the second five year window, referred to as Extended Support, closes on 14 January of that year.

I also believe another inevitable aspect of the end of official support for Windows 7 is that it will not get an extension like Windows XP did several years ago and that means companies have to look towards Windows 10 as their next operating system.

We have written and shared many resources here at ITPro: Windows that can help you not only get up to speed on Windows 10 but that can help you plan and implement your own testing program to make sure your hardware and software is compatible with the operating system.

During the planning phases of your migration checking that your Line of Business software's compatibility  will need to be coordinated with the developers of your software however, for other commercial software you might be using Microsoft already has a tool that you can use to check on those programs.

Ready for Windows is a portal where software developers can declare their support for Windows 10 and end users like yourself can then search and see if the commercial software you use is in the list.

For example, I am a big fan of TechSmith's software like SnagIt and Camtasia so I searched for them on the Ready for Windows site:

SnagIt results:

Camtasia results:

The results are easy to interpret by the appearance of a green check mark on the software versions that are verified as compatible with Windows 10.

If you click on anyone of the results you will get more detail based on data from Microsoft:

You also have the option to check compatibility with previous editions of Windows 10 using the servicing option drop down on each products detail page.

If you want to learn more about this process check out this video overview of Ready for Windows:

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