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If you’re an independent ATM deployer, you’ve likely had Jan. 14, 2020 on your mind for quite some time now. Believe it or not, that date—which is when Microsoft will no longer provide technical support, security upgrades, or patches for Windows 7—is coming faster than you think. And if your fleet isn’t on its path to a Windows 10 migration when it does, your organization’s compliance, security posture, and functionality options might be severely impacted.
So what should you as an independent ATM deployer be doing to get ready? Read this article to learn more about what the road ahead will look like.
Where to Start?
Although Microsoft has done its best to make sure that the Windows 10 migration wasn’t a surprise to anyone in the industry, the road toward compliance might still be daunting for the many companies that are still deploying from among the estimated 3.5 million ATMs running Windows 7.
As a general guideline, Burroughs estimates that a full fleet migration to Windows 10 can take about 18 months, a timeline that is also supported by Microsoft. And although your organization can continue to run Windows 7 until your entire ATM fleet has migrated, it’s a long process that you hopefully already have underway.
As will be the case for many, this period of time will include a full-scale assessment of your fleet’s readiness for and compatibility with Windows 10. Next, your organization will need to select your approach for completing the upgrade, including timeline, costs, and hardware adjustments that need to be made. Finally, implementation will kick off, with upgrades happening from site to site.
What Can You Expect?
The road to a full Windows 10 migration is going to be different for every organization. However, there are a few key things to know before you kick off the process.
Downstream Considerations
Thanks to your system assessment, you will already know which ATM hardware needs to be upgraded or replaced to support Windows 10. However, a similar assessment of the software running on your individual machines and across your network needs to occur to make sure that it is equally compatible.
To start, your list should include:
- Security software
- Support tools/features
- Third-party tools or software
With any changes to your hardware or operating system software, make sure to preview what sort of impacts respective vendors can expect—and make changes before remaining bugs cause your machines to fail.
Indirect Costs
Calculating the costs of software, hardware, and migration support to the penny is easy. However, fully calculating the impact that the migration will have on your bottom line due to indirect or opportunity costs can be difficult.
The longer individual ATMs are out of service awaiting the necessary equipment or technical support required to make the migration happen, the more it will impact your customers. In turn, this can impact your profits, and your customer loyalty.
Therefore, deciding who will perform the migration, when to touch each ATM, and how to make these changes can be just as important as the go-live itself.
Staying Nimble
It’s likely that your fleet isn’t made up entirely of one specific OEM running the same type of hardware and software. If that’s the case, you will need to consider the availability of required hardware and software as well as system knowledge needed to complete your migration.
Additionally, some OEMs and independent service providers are further along than others when it comes to having compatible hardware and software ready, as well as staff available to facilitate the move. Make sure to communicate early and often with your providers to make sure your needs are met, and that your plans can be adjusted accordingly.
Next Steps
Every journey of a thousand miles begins by taking the first step. For your organization, that first step toward a successful Windows 10 migration can be to call the team at Burroughs. We have the technicians, experience, and capability to help your institution see its way through this technical challenge from start to finish.
No matter the OEM, Burroughs has staff and equipment ready to service it while account managers work to help your organization with customizable services and dedicated managed services professionals.
