Microsoft recently announced that Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) will be available on Windows 7 and 8.1 from the summer of 2018, offering Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR) (EDR) on computers that do not run the latest operating system version.
With this release, Microsoft's ultimate goal is to get more businesses to upgrade to Windows 10 by allowing them to get a taste of what's included in the new operating system.
The Windows Defender ATP EDR will provide administrators with a rich view of threats, giving them a clear look at how all computers are protected, regardless of the Windows version.
Microsoft recommends that companies combine EDR with Windows Defender, although it admitted that it can coexist with third‑party protection solutions.
With Windows Defender ATP for Windows 10, Windows Server 2012R2 and 2016, Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, as well as the integration of our partners for non‑Windows devices, we provide security teams with a unified solution for detecting and responding to advanced attacks» says Rob Lefferts, Partner Director, Windows & Devices, Security & Enterprise.
The acceleration of Microsoft's efforts to upgrade customers from Windows 7 to Windows 10 is not surprising as it is something the company has been trying to achieve for a long time.
Let us remind that Windows 7 stops receiving support in January 2020, so consumers and organizations have less than 2 years to complete the upgrade to Windows 8.1 or Windows 10. Statistics showed that Windows 7 was running on more than 40% of systems worldwide.
