-- Tom Manter, Aberdeen Group
-- Carl Howe, Forrester Research
-- Michael Silver, Gartner
-- Rob Enderle, Giga Information Group
-- Steve Kleynhans, META GroupWindows XP could cut your IT costs, says Tom Manter, but whether you should upgrade depends on what OS you're running now. If you want 64-bit power in future, however, you have no choice.
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| Tom Manter Research Director Aberdeen Group |
Windows XP is Microsoft's biggest release of a new desktop operating system since Windows 95. It provides significant advantages to Microsoft because of the improved economics around supporting a common code base for both consumers and businesses and it delivers new and enhanced features to the user community. But not all businesses will benefit equally by upgrading to Windows XP.
Why you should upgrade to Windows XP
As I already mentioned, there is a long list of new features available in XP. But the most compelling reason for businesses to upgrade is the improved reliability and performance that Windows XP delivers over Windows 9x and ME. As the cost for hardware and software continue to decline, people costs are increasing. Foremost on IT executives' minds is controlling the increasing costs associated with managing their compute environment. A large part of this cost is directly related to supporting their desktop users.
XP's improvements in performance and reliability alone can lower IT costs and improve productivity by dramatically reducing the number of user support issues requiring attention; improved performance may postpone those upgrades IT buyers were trying to fit into their budget. Finally, let's not forget that XP Professional comes in two flavors: 32-bit and 64-bit. So, if your business plans to take advantage of the greater processing power of Intel's Itanium architecture, you will need Windows XP for those desktops.
Reasons not to upgrade
In light of the current economic climate, IT enterprises are challenged to rationalize any new investments. Certainly, the ability for XP to lower costs and increase productivity is strong justification. Again, however, this is only true if businesses are running desktops with Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows ME. If instead Windows 2000 has already been deployed on the desktop, then IT enterprises should already be benefiting from improved reliability and performance (Windows 2000 and XP share a common kernel code base).
Finally, beginning with XP, Microsoft has unbundled several client licenses that were previously included. For example, earlier releases of the Windows desktop operating systems included client licenses for Back Office and SQL Server. However, XP strips those apart. Therefore, IT buyers need to be aware that client licenses for their Microsoft Back Office applications will cost extra.
Do you agree with the analysts? Share your thoughts with your fellow readers using TechUpdate's Talkback.Carl Howe says an XP upgrade won't cut your IT costs, not to mention that Microsoft's new licensing plan could cost you money. Look for OS alternatives.
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| Carl Howe Principal Analyst Forrester Research |
Forrester doesn't think companies should plan Windows XP upgrades for at least six months. Why? Because in today's down economic climate, an expensive Windows XP rollout isn't going to increase business revenue or decrease IT costs, and those are the metrics that IT is being measured on. Instead, Forrester recommends that firms:
-- Deploy new desktops with Win2K. Windows 2000 gains most of the reliability advantages of Windows XP without requiring firms to debug Microsoft's new platform code. Further, it's easier to get application, device driver, and help desk support for Windows 2000 today than it is for XP--and that will take at least six months to change.
-- Start diversifying desktops to manage Windows costs. IT budgets at large companies are getting even more scrutiny now after the events of September 11, and Microsoft's new volume licensing policies will raise OS costs for many firms. The only way to keep a cap on Microsoft costs will be to develop desktop alternatives where they make sense. Accepting Macs on the desktops in the art department and Linux on the desks of engineers will allow firms to contain the growing costs of Microsoft's platforms--and reduce the vulnerability of the firm's infrastructure to the next Nimda worm in the bargain.
Do you agree with the analysts? Share your thoughts with your fellow readers using TechUpdate's Talkback.Solid improvements and a focus on the user experience make XP a worthy upgrade, says Rob Enderle. But only on new hardware.
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| Rob Enderle Research Fellow Giga Information Group |
Windows XP, as you would expect, is the .1 version of Windows 2000 after all, enough improved over Windows 2000 to be preferred, and its improvements directly address IT needs.
These improvements include a much better hardware discovery process and an updated Windows update function that now includes drivers. The combination makes this OS much better for corporations who build their own image, which is a requirement for IBM's advanced Image Ultra service. It has a much stronger system restore function which should eliminate the need to re-image hardware about 80 percent of the time due to software problems, and its wireless networking capability makes it much easier for a user to go from access point to access point. (This will be more important as hotels and coffee houses deploy wireless technology).
It even has a migration facility, something both IT and consumers have demanded, so that personal preferences and settings can move from an old to a new machine. Finally, it represents a renewed focus on the user experience driven by Microsoft's top management, and this alone would likely have us recommending this OS over all of the previous versions.
Windows 9x organizations and those using NT will find this OS the most attractive and we have found that it is generally more cost-effective to buy low-cost hardware and put a new OS on it rather than upgrade if the hardware is over 18 months old. Windows 2000 shops should upgrade only if the new OS addresses a specific problem, however, since XP is the .1 release, new hardware should be allowed in with this update. Best time is generally late Q1 2002 when most of the drivers will be done and any initial problems have been corrected.
Do you agree with the analysts? Share your thoughts with your fellow readers using TechUpdate's Talkback.Don't abandon your Windows 2000 upgrade, says Steve Kleynhans. XP will save you money in the long term, but it doesn't warrant an immediate investment.
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| Steve Kleynhans Vice President META Group |
Instead of starting a special upgrade to put Windows XP on desktops, companies should weave it into their normal desktop upgrade cycles, which are on a three-year schedule for many leading enterprises. In particular, companies already well into the process of upgrading to Win2000 should continue with that version for the present.
WinXP does not substantially improve on reliability, performance, and administration improvements already provided by Win2000. However, this doesn't mean that XP offers enterprises no value compared to Win2000 and previous versions. XP provides remote desktop management and software installation tools that will result in cost savings. XP also offers improvements to the user interface that will help users be more productive. However, these benefits will take months or years to accumulate, while the large cost of a massive upgrade will be immediate and--if incurred now--will hit at a time when money is scarce in many organizations.
Companies that have not started upgrading their desktops to Win2000 should begin moving to XP instead. We expect it will take three to six months for most organizations to test and certify WinXP for deployment. Furthermore, this upgrade will probably require the replacement of some desktop computer hardware and the upgrade of some software. In the current buyer's market for PCs, these companies should ensure that they receive favorable pricing on PCs running the new 845 Pentium 4 chipset. All organizations should plan to move new PC purchases to WinXP by the third quarter of 2002.
Do you agree with the analysts? Share your thoughts with your fellow readers using TechUpdate's Talkback.
