Here’s what you need to do…

Microsoft will end Office 2010 extended support on 13th October, 2020.

This means that following this date, Microsoft will no longer issue security or stability updates for Office 2010 and its suite of programmes.

If you currently run Office 2010 in your business, Neuways highly recommends that you upgrade to Microsoft Apps for Business immediately.

The reason for this is that hackers tend to stockpile exploits for software prior to its switch-off date. Then, as soon as the end of support date passes, they unleash these exploits upon the people and businesses who have not upgraded.

Why Updates Matter

In brief, updates keep software running smoothly and safe to use.

Read more about why system updates matter

Stability updates guarantee that programmes like Word and Excel continue to run smoothly. Without these, annoying bugs creep into the software and programmes will begin to slow down over time.

Security updates are designed to patch exploits that hackers create in software like Office. These exploits, whilst starting small, can result in an entire shutdown of your systems – so it’s essential that you’re always using the latest version of any software.

Using software beyond its end of support is risky. If any exploits or hacks are found after End of Support, these will not be fixed by Microsoft.

It is therefore in your interests to upgrade to either Office 2019 or Microsoft 365 Apps for Business.

What are the Options?

You have two direct upgrade paths; Office 2019 or Microsoft 365 Apps for Business.

Office 2019

Office 2019 is a one-time purchase, which at first glance is quite appealing. It’s an out-of-the-box solution, just like any other previous version of Office.

The drawback here is that Microsoft has offered zero feature updates since it launched in 2018. Essentially, you’ll always remain static in terms of productivity features, until you eventually upgrade to the next version of Office.

You’ll also need to upgrade again when Office 2019 inevitably reaches its end of life.

It’s worth mentioning that if you use Office 2019 in conjunction with Microsoft’s 365 cloud services, you will only be able to do this until 2023. After which, you will be required to move on to the Microsoft 365 platform.

Microsoft 365 Apps for Business (Recommended)

Microsoft 365 Apps for Business is our recommended option.

It’s your typical all-in-one Microsoft Office suite, but thanks to its subscription-based approach, Microsoft delivers regular feature updates* and leading-edge collaboration tools. You also receive a generous 1TB of cloud storage!

Going down the Microsoft 365 Apps for Business route means that you’re always using the most up-to-date version of Office. If you run a business, you want to be using Microsoft 365 Apps for Business.

So, you may as well start now.

*Regular security updates will continue to be rolled out for both Office 2019 and Microsoft 365 Apps for Business.

If you have any further questions about the end of Office 2010 extended support, or your upgrade path,
get in touch with our technical team on 01283 753 333 or via hello@neuways.com.