Spiceworks, the professional network for IT, announced the results of a new study examining organizations’ adoption of Windows 10 two years after the operating system launched. The study,†Windows 10 Adoption: Two Years After Launch, found that as of June 30, 2017, 60 percent of global organizations have adopted Windows 10. The highest adoption rates were found in the software industry (75 percent) and in businesses with 100 to 500 employees (67 percent). In terms of overall share, Windows 10 has surpassed Windows XP and now only trails Windows 7 among operating systems running on laptops and desktops in businesses.
“In recent months, widespread ransomware attacks such as WannaCry and Petrwrap have put businesses under pressure to upgrade unsupported operating systems, such as Windows XP and Vista, and move to more secure systems like Windows 10,” said Peter Tsai, senior technology analyst at Austin, Texas-based Spiceworks, in a press statement. “And while Windows XP is still running in some businesses, it’s evident that more companies are beginning to recognize the security risks and prioritize upgrades in order to better secure their networks.”
2017 OS share in businesses worldwide: Windows 10 gains share from Windows XP
According to Spiceworks data, in†March 2017†Windows XP had the second highest share among operating systems, running on 14 percent of laptops and desktops in businesses across the globe, while Windows 10 had a share of 9 percent. In the last three months, however, Windows 10 has surpassed Windows XP and is now running on 13 percent of laptops and desktops in businesses. Windows XP is currently running on 11 percent of desktops and laptops.
Windows 7 continues to maintain the highest share among operating systems, running on 68 percent of laptops and desktops in businesses across the globe. Windows 8 has a share of 5 percent, followed by macOS at 2 percent.
2017 OS penetration rates: More businesses are upgrading outdated operating systems
Despite representing a relatively low share of laptops and desktops running in businesses, Spiceworks data shows Windows XP (42 percent) and Windows Vista (7 percent) penetration rates, defined as the percent of companies running one or more instance, are still fairly high. However, these rates have decreased significantly since March 2017. In fact, the Windows XP penetration rate decreased by 10 percentage points in just three months, while the Windows Vista penetration rate decreased by two percentage points.
Conversely, the global Windows 10 penetration rate has increased from 54 percent to 60 percent since March. Windows 7 still has the highest penetration rate at 84 percent, but its rate decreased by three percentage points. The Windows 8 penetration rate also decreased from 38 percent to 35 percent.
Windows 10 adoption rates vary significantly based on company size and industry
According to Spiceworks research from†June 2015, 73 percent of IT professionals planned to implement Windows 10 in their organization within two years after launch. When further examining the Windows 10 adoption rates by industry, region, and company size, the results show some organizations are in line with what IT professionals predicted.
Spiceworks data shows companies with 100 to 500 employees have the highest penetration rates at 67 percent. Conversely, businesses with less than 50 employees and enterprises with more than 1,000 employees showed the lowest penetration rates at 57 percent.
When examining the results by industry, the data shows the software industry has the highest Windows 10 penetration rates at 75 percent, followed by manufacturing at 66 percent and construction at 65 percent. Organizations in human resources and legal industries have the lowest penetration rates at 52 percent and 54 percent, respectively.
The results also show organizations in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) have the highest penetration rates at 62 percent, followed by North America at 61 percent, Latin America at 58 percent, and the Asia-Pacific region at 55 percent.
Methodology
Spiceworks operating system data was collected on June 30, 2017, and is based on anonymized, aggregated deployment data among a sample of hundreds of thousands of IT professionals across the globe who use Spiceworks software to inventory their organizations’ laptops, desktops, servers, and other network devices. The sample includes a variety of company sizes from small-to-medium-sized businesses to enterprises and a variety of industries, including manufacturing, healthcare, education, government, and finance.
