Windows 10 End of Life 2025: How TeamViewer DEX Accelerates Windows 11 Migration

TeamViewer’s recent snapshot of its remote‑support traffic paints a stark picture: a substantial portion of endpoints that still receive help via TeamViewer are running an operating system that reaches end of vendor support in days, and the vendor’s Digital Employee Experience (DEX) tooling is being positioned as a pragmatic way to manage the mass migration to Windows 11.

Background / Overview​

Microsoft has set a firm end‑of‑support date for Windows 10: after October 14, 2025, mainstream technical assistance, feature updates and routine security updates for mainstream Windows 10 editions will cease. That deadline is non‑negotiable from a lifecycle perspective and changes the security calculus for any device that remains on Windows 10 without Extended Security Updates (ESU).
In plain terms, an unsupported OS does not stop working — users will still be able to boot their machines and run applications — but newly discovered kernel‑ or platform‑level vulnerabilities will no longer be addressed by vendor patches. For organisations, that gap rapidly becomes a compliance, insurance and operational risk. Independent reporting and consumer polling in multiple markets underscored the urgency in the run‑up to the cutoff, noting that many households and businesses either planned to defer upgrades or faced hardware incompatibilities.
TeamViewer’s announcement — and similar telemetry from security and management vendors — turns the calendar into a practical workload: IT teams must decide which devices can be migrated in place, which can be remediated to meet Windows 11’s hardware baseline, which must be replaced, and which will require ESU or an alternative OS for a managed bridge.

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What TeamViewer reported — the headline claims​

• TeamViewer analysed an anonymized sample of roughly 250 million TeamViewer sessions carried out between July and September 2025 and reported that over 40% of endpoints receiving support were still running Windows 10. The vendor framed the finding as a reminder that “two in five endpoints” will become unsupported once Microsoft’s cutoff passes.
• To help IT teams manage migration at scale, TeamViewer highlighted features of TeamViewer DEX and a Windows 11 Readiness Pack that automatically checks critical compatibility signals — processor generation, TPM configuration, Secure Boot state and other preconditions — and provides post‑upgrade validation to confirm configuration and compliance. TeamViewer’s product and security executives were quoted urging organisations to upgrade promptly and use DEX to reduce the operational burden.

These claims are operationally significant because the TeamViewer dataset covers remote‑support endpoints — devices that people actively request help for — and therefore samples a slice of the installed base that is both large and operationally meaningful. At the same time, the exact methodology for the 250 million‑session snapshot was not publicly archived in a detailed whitepaper at the time of reporting, which means the figure should be treated as a directional telemetry signal rather than a definitive global census.

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Why the numbers matter: security, compliance and scale​

Unsupported operating systems quickly become high‑value targets for attackers because new vulnerabilities remain unpatched at scale. For organisations with regulated data, auditors and cyber insurers increasingly treat unsupported software as an adverse finding that may require remediation or insurance exclusions. The operational consequence of tens or hundreds of millions of machines moving from “supported” to “unsupported” on a fixed date is therefore both real and immediate.
Telemetry sets tell different stories but point to the same operational reality:

• Web analytics and pageview trackers sometimes show a higher share of Windows 11 among browsing devices (which biases toward actively used client devices).
• Security‑vendor telemetry and remote‑support datasets more often reflect the installed base, including machines used less frequently or in constrained environments; these datasets tended to show Windows 10 remaining dominant in many enterprise fleets through mid‑2025.

That methodological difference is crucial when turning percentages into device counts and budgets. Use your own CMDB and MDM inventories first; vendor telemetry is best used to benchmark and prioritise.

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What TeamViewer DEX claims to do — features and benefits​

TeamViewer is positioning DEX as a single‑pane migration accelerator that bundles discovery, automated readiness checks and post‑upgrade validation. Key features called out in vendor materials and product pages include:

• Real‑time device inventory and Windows 11 Readiness Pack checks (CPU/SoC generation, TPM presence and version, UEFI Secure Boot flag, RAM and storage thresholds).
• Automated remediation guidance where feasible (firmware updates, enabling TPM/UEFI settings, driver updates).
• Post‑upgrade validation to confirm that devices boot with expected security settings and to validate compliance baselines after migration.
• Integration with remote support workflows so stubborn endpoints can be triaged and fixed without requiring a physical visit.

Taken together, these capabilities can materially reduce time‑to‑upgrade for devices that are already hardware‑compatible or are fixable with firmware/driver updates. They also supply the telemetry organisations need to prioritise high‑risk endpoints and track migration KPIs such as mean time to remediate (MTTR) and post‑migration incident rates.

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Where DEX helps — and where it doesn’t​

TeamViewer DEX and similar readiness tools offer measurable benefits, but they are not a universal solution.

• What DEX can do reliably:
  • Automate discovery and scoring of upgrade eligibility at scale.
  • Identify common, software‑level remediations (enablement of firmware TPM, toggling Secure Boot, applying OEM BIOS/UEFI updates).
  • Reduce pilot failure rates by enabling targeted remediation and preflight testing.
  • Validate compliance post upgrade and integrate validation outputs with CMDBs and ticketing systems.
• What DEX cannot change:
  • It cannot make unsupported hardware suddenly meet Windows 11’s baseline if the CPU, chipset or firmware truly lack necessary capabilities.
  • It cannot replace application compatibility testing and staged rollouts — migration still needs governance, user acceptance testing and rollback plans.
  • Tooling cannot eliminate the capital cost or e‑waste implications of hardware refresh cycles where devices must be replaced.

Buyers should therefore treat DEX as an operational multiplier — one that reduces friction and measurement costs — not as a silver bullet that removes the need for procurement, application testing or change‑management resources.

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Verifiability and data hygiene: the limits of vendor telemetry​

The TeamViewer headline number (250 million sessions; >40% Windows 10) is a useful alarm bell, but responsible IT planning requires deeper provenance:

• Ask vendors for raw criteria and definitions. How did TeamViewer define an “endpoint”? Was the sample deduplicated by device? How were sessions mapped to unique machines? Were sessions weighted by geography or by account type? Those operational details materially affect whether the percentage is directionally useful for your fleet.
• Corroborate with at least two independent data sources. Examples to compare against include security‑vendor telemetry (Kaspersky and peers), web‑analytics trackers (StatCounter), and your own MDM/CMDB inventories. Each dataset has its own bias; reconciling them gives a defensible operational view.
• Treat public vendor snapshots as operational signals rather than procurement invoices. Use the vendor telemetry to prioritise and scope pilots, but convert percentages into device counts only after reconciling with internal inventories.

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Practical migration playbook: a step‑by‑step checklist​

The next 90 days for IT teams should focus on a surgical, measurable migration program rather than ad‑hoc upgrades. The following playbook is designed to be executable, measurable and repeatable.

1. Inventory and classify (days 0–7)
   • Export authoritative device lists from Intune/SCCM/MDM and your RMM. Tag by OS build, device model, TPM status, UEFI firmware version, business criticality and app ownership.
   • Deliverable: a single reconciled inventory (CSV/CMDB) with upgrade eligibility flags.
2. Run readiness scans at scale (days 7–21)
   • Use PC Health Check and DEX readiness tooling to generate per‑device results on TPM, Secure Boot and CPU compatibility. Automate report exports so outputs can feed patching and ticketing tools.
   • Deliverable: prioritized remediation backlog (firmware updates, driver updates, BIOS settings).
3. Pilot and compatibility testing (days 14–45)
   • Select 3–5 representative hardware families and a cross‑section of core LOB apps. Validate both in‑place upgrades and image reimaging approaches. Maintain rollback images for each device type.
   • Deliverable: validated migration runbook per hardware family.
4. Decide ESU vs migration (days 21–60, parallel)
   • For business‑critical but non‑upgradable devices, weigh ESU as a time‑limited bridge while you procure replacements or plan VDI/Windows‑as‑a‑Service alternatives. Document ESU enrolment and justify as a temporary, auditable measure.
5. Scale rollout and change management (days 45–180)
   • Roll out by rings (pilot → early adopters → critical apps → broad fleet), instrument with DEX for pre/post metrics and maintain a break‑glass rollback path. Track KPIs: device migration velocity, post‑migration helpdesk tickets, security posture checks.
6. Post‑migration validation and decommission (ongoing)
   • Revalidate compliance settings (TPM/UEFI/Secure Boot), update inventories and retire devices responsibly via trade‑in or recycling programs to reduce e‑waste.

This sequence is intentionally prescriptive because time is the scarce resource: planned execution beats reactive ‘upgrade everything now’ panics that drive errors, outages and overspend.

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Questions to ask vendors before you buy​

When evaluating DEX, readiness tooling or managed migration partners, insist on clear, exportable answers:

• What exact checks determine “readiness”? (CPU list, TPM version, Secure Boot flag, storage thresholds, driver/firmware family).
• Provide an exportable per‑device report (CSV or direct CMDB ingest) with remediation tasks and remediation difficulty estimates.
• How does the product deduplicate endpoints and correlate sessions to devices?
• Can the vendor validate post‑upgrade settings automatically and provide compliance reports?
• What visible SLAs or rollback mechanisms accompany staged rollouts?

These questions are practical — they turn vendor marketing into operational inputs you can use to budget, staff and govern the program.

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The channel, MSPs and commercial implications​

For managed service providers and the channel, the Windows 10 sunset is a programmatic revenue opportunity — but it must be packaged responsibly:

• Offer fixed‑fee readiness assessments that produce an actionable remediation list.
• Sell staged migration packages (pilot + per‑device migration + post‑migration validation) rather than one‑off “upgrade” projects.
• Price ESU advisory and bridge services separately and be explicit about ESU’s time‑boxed nature.
• Add sustainability services (trade‑in, secure data erasure, refurbish/refurbishment) to manage environmental and PR risk.

DEX telemetry becomes a differentiator for MSPs because it quantifies risk and demonstrates measurable outcomes to customers. But MSPs must also provide governance, testing and user change management to win contracts and reduce project failure rates.

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Costs, sustainability and alternatives​

Two realities complicate migration decisions:

• Capital vs operational trade‑offs. Mass hardware refreshes are capital intensive; ESU is an operational cost that scales with the number of devices and the length of coverage. Both choices have balance‑sheet and cashflow impacts.
• Sustainability and e‑waste. Forced refreshes produce real environmental costs. Practical mitigations include refurbishing, trade‑in programs, and exploring alternative operating systems (ChromeOS Flex, mainstream Linux distros) for devices that cannot be economically upgraded. Those alternatives require driver validation and acceptance testing for peripherals and LOB apps.

Organisations should evaluate total cost of ownership across multiple scenarios: immediate ESU for a subset + staged migration, partial VM/VDI replacement for legacy endpoints, or full fleet refresh with procurement financing. Each path has different operational and sustainability trade‑offs.

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Immediate technical mitigations while migration proceeds​

If devices must remain on Windows 10 for a short period, prioritise layered compensations:

• Enrol critical devices in ESU where necessary and document decisions.
• Enforce multi‑factor authentication and least‑privilege access across the estate.
• Harden network segmentation: isolate legacy endpoints, limit internet‑facing services and restrict administrative capability from unsupported machines.
• Apply EDR and backup/DR protections, and maintain a hardened incident response playbook.

These measures reduce exposure but are not substitutes for migrating to a supported OS. ESU is a time‑boxed bridge — treat it as such.

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Critical appraisal — strengths, limitations and risk flags​

Strengths of the TeamViewer messaging:

• The telemetry is an operationally valuable signal: devices that call support are functionally in use and therefore matter to business continuity. The TeamViewer DEX product map addresses core operational friction points — discovery, remediation and validation — which are exactly where IT teams need assistance.

Limitations and risks:

• The headline 250 million session sample and the “>40% Windows 10” figure were presented without a public, machine‑readable methodology at the time of reporting; that reduces the number’s value as a budgeting input until you verify underlying methods and deduplication rules. Treat the statistic as directional, not definitive.
• DEX can reduce friction but cannot overcome immutable hardware incompatibility. Buyers who assume tools will make every device Windows 11 compatible risk surprises and budget variance.
• Migration decisions have legal, compliance and sustainability consequences that go beyond tooling: auditors and insurers will want documented, auditable choices; sustainability officers will query the environmental cost of forced refreshes. Plan for those conversations proactively.

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Bottom line and recommended next steps for IT leaders​

TeamViewer’s data and DEX tooling provide a practical, vendor‑backed pathway to accelerate migration to Windows 11, but the headline telemetry must be reconciled with internal inventories and at least one independent telemetry source before budgets or SLAs are locked in. The clock is real: Microsoft’s October 14, 2025 cutoff changes the default risk posture for every Windows 10 device.
Recommended immediate actions:

1. Reconcile your authoritative inventory against a DEX/PC Health Check pass to produce a per‑device remediation backlog.
2. Pilot DEX‑driven remediation on representative hardware families and validate rollback plans.
3. Use ESU only as a documented, time‑boxed bridge for critical non‑upgradable assets, and instrument these decisions for auditors.
4. Prioritise internet‑facing and high‑privilege endpoints for immediate migration or isolation.
5. Ask every vendor for exportable per‑device readiness data and a documented methodology before accepting topline percentages as procurement guidance.

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TeamViewer’s snapshot is a powerful operational signal: many endpoints that matter to businesses remain on Windows 10 as the vendor cutoff approaches. DEX tooling — properly evaluated, scoped and integrated with a disciplined migration program — can shorten the runway, lower helpdesk load and provide the telemetry managers need to keep projects measurable. But a tool is only one part of a program: governance, procurement, compliance and sustainability choices are the remaining, unavoidable pieces that determine whether a migration succeeds or becomes a costly scramble.

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Source: Newspatrolling.com Analysis Shows Significant Need for Updates as Windows 10 Nears End-of-Life; TeamViewer DEX Enables Structured Migration - Newspatrolling.com

 

[ChatGPT]

As Microsoft’s Windows 10 support deadline arrives, a fresh telemetry snapshot from TeamViewer shows that a substantial share of devices remain on Windows 10 — an operational and cybersecurity situation that demands urgent, organised action from IT teams and consumers alike. TeamViewer’s analysis of roughly 250 million anonymised support sessions between July and September 2025 found that more than 40% of endpoints it connected to were still running Windows 10, and the vendor is pitching its Digital Employee Experience (DEX) suite — including a Windows 11 Readiness Pack — as a practical tool to accelerate safe migrations.

Background / Overview​

Microsoft has set a non‑negotiable lifecycle deadline: Windows 10 mainstream support ends on October 14, 2025, after which Microsoft will no longer issue routine OS security updates, feature patches, or standard technical support for mainstream Windows 10 editions. The company has published guidance urging eligible devices to upgrade to Windows 11 or to enrol in Extended Security Updates (ESU) as a time‑limited bridge.
At scale this transition is a practical problem, not just a calendar event. Multiple telemetry families — remote support platforms, security vendors, DEX tooling vendors, and pageview market trackers — have painted a consistent picture in mid‑2025: many enterprise estates and millions of consumer devices remained on Windows 10. Those different datasets answer different operational questions (installed base, active browsing devices, and support interactions) but converge on a single conclusion: a large population of devices will become unsupported unless action is taken.

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What TeamViewer’s data actually shows​

The headline figures​

TeamViewer published a press release stating that its analysis of around 250 million anonymised TeamViewer sessions (July–September 2025) shows over 40% of global endpoints receiving support via TeamViewer were still on Windows 10. The company emphasised that the sample includes both free and paid users and framed the statistic as a warning that “two in five endpoints” will no longer receive OS security patches once Microsoft’s deadline passes.

What the number means — and what it doesn’t​

• The TeamViewer figure is a telemetry snapshot of endpoints that received remote support. It is a valuable operational signal because it reflects devices that are actively being managed or serviced.
• It is not a direct census of every PC in the world. Telemetry drawn from a vendor’s support footprint can over‑ or under‑represent particular regions, verticals, or device classes.
• The precise methodological details (session-to-endpoint mapping rules, weighting, geographic breakdowns and deduplication) are not fully enumerated in the summary release, so the topline should be treated as a directional indicator rather than a definitive global percentage.

Bottom line: TeamViewer’s data is an authoritative vendor signal that complements other telemetry. Treat the “40%” headline as a red flag demanding verification against internal inventories, MDM/CMDB records and complementary external sources before using it to drive procurement or compliance decisions.

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Why the timing matters: security, compliance and operational risk​

When mainstream vendor support ends, the practical security model changes quickly. Unsupported operating systems stop receiving kernel, driver and platform patches — the kinds of fixes that prevent privilege escalation, remote code execution and other high‑impact exploits. Attackers have historically prioritized unpatched ecosystems after vendor cutoffs; mass exploitation campaigns frequently follow such inflection points.
For organisations, the consequences are immediate:

• Increased cyber risk: Unpatched OS vulnerabilities become permanent attack surfaces unless mitigated by ESU enrollment, isolation, or migration.
• Compliance exposure: Regulators, auditors and insurers may flag unsupported OSes as control failures or exclusions in cyber‑insurance policies.
• Operational fragility: Legacy drivers and app compatibility issues often surface post‑cutover, creating service interruptions and increased helpdesk load.
• Financial and reputational cost: Breaches or outages caused by unsupported OSes can translate into direct financial loss and long‑lasting reputational damage.

Microsoft’s official guidance makes clear that users still on Windows 10 should move to Windows 11 if their hardware permits, acquire ESU for a time‑boxed extension, or replace devices that cannot be remediated.

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Regional snapshots and adoption context​

Global adoption headlines​

Market trackers and vendor telemetry paint slightly different pictures:

• Pageview‑weighted trackers showed Windows 11 reaching parity or slight leadership in late 2025; StatCounter’s monthly snapshots put Windows 11 ahead in browser activity (roughly 49% vs Windows 10 at ~45% in September 2025).
• Enterprise‑focused DEX telemetry and security vendors showed a higher Windows 10 footprint inside corporate fleets: ControlUp reported in mid‑2025 that half of enterprise Windows endpoints had not yet migrated to Windows 11, highlighting uneven readiness across sectors.
• Security vendor telemetry (e.g., Kaspersky) observed an even larger Windows 10 presence in its installed base, especially among corporate endpoints, reinforcing the view that enterprise estates lag in migration.

Each measurement methodology has biases: pageviews emphasise devices used for web browsing, telemetry from security vendors reflects their installed base, and support‑session data samples devices actively receiving help. All are useful when triangulated against an organisation’s own asset inventory.

Singapore (a notable example)​

TeamViewer highlighted Singapore as a relatively proactive market where nearly 60% of devices had upgraded to Windows 11, but the vendor also noted that roughly 30% of devices there still ran Windows 10, leaving a significant minority at risk at cutoff. That mix underlines how even digitally advanced markets can have substantial vulnerable device cohorts.

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TeamViewer DEX: what it does and where it helps​

TeamViewer positions DEX (Digital Employee Experience) as an operational toolset for large‑scale Windows 11 migration. Key capabilities called out in TeamViewer’s release and product pages include:

• A Windows 11 Readiness Pack that scans device-level prerequisites such as CPU generation, Trusted Platform Module (TPM) presence and version, and UEFI Secure Boot status.
• Automated device inventory and remediation guidance to identify which devices can be upgraded in place, which require firmware or BIOS changes, and which must be replaced.
• Post‑upgrade verification workflows that confirm device configuration and compliance, reducing remediation cycles and rollback incidents.
• Integration with existing TeamViewer remote support tools to streamline staged rollouts and reduce helpdesk burden.

These features address the core migration pain points: discovery at scale, deterministic readiness checks, and verification after changes. When combined with disciplined pilot programs and rollback plans, such tooling can materially shorten migration windows.

Limitations and realistic expectations​

• Tooling can identify hardware incompatibility, but it cannot change the physical limitations of a CPU or the absence of TPM 2.0 in older devices.
• Firmware/BIOS remediation is vendor dependent; OEMs must provide updates to make a device ready for Windows 11 in some cases.
• Post‑upgrade application compatibility testing and user acceptance remain human‑intensive tasks that require coordination between app owners, vendors, and IT.
• The TeamViewer release does not publish a detailed readiness-check algorithm or the full methodology for its readiness scoring; organisations should request exportable reports and the underlying rules before relying on vendor reports for compliance auditing.

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Practical migration playbook — pragmatic, prioritised steps​

For IT leaders facing an immediate migration window or those designing a multi‑quarter program, the following pragmatic playbook prioritises risk and ensures traceable decisions:

• Reconcile the authoritative inventory:
• Export device lists from MDM/CMDB and verify physical ownership, location, and criticality.
• Map each device to business impact (e.g., internet‑facing, privileged user, regulatory scope).
• Run an objective readiness pass:
• Use vendor tools (Windows PC Health Check, TeamViewer DEX Readiness Pack, ControlUp readiness scanners) to classify devices into: upgradeable in place, remedial (BIOS/firmware/drivers), replace, or temporary ESU candidate.
• Prioritise remediation by risk:
• Move internet‑facing, high‑privilege, and regulatory‑scoped endpoints first.
• Isolate and harden devices that will temporarily remain on Windows 10 (network segmentation, MFA, limited privileges).
• Pilot and validate:
• Choose representative hardware families for pilot upgrades, include key LOB apps, and validate rollback plans.
• Use ESU as a controlled bridge:
• For critical systems that cannot be migrated immediately, document ESU enrollments as a time‑boxed mitigation and capture an explicit replacement roadmap.
• Communicate and measure:
• Report migration progress to executive stakeholders with measurable KPIs (devices remediated, pilot success rate, rollback incidents).
• Track helpdesk volume and incident trends to adapt rollout velocity.

This stepwise approach reduces surprises and keeps procurement, compliance and user experience in sync.

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The cost of delay — technical and business impacts​

Delaying migration beyond the support cutoff compounds risk in predictable ways:

• Attackers will increasingly target unpatched Windows 10 vulnerabilities; exploitation windows widen over time.
• Third‑party software vendors may progressively withdraw active testing and compatibility assurances for Windows 10, increasing integration risk.
• The longer migration is deferred, the higher the concentration of required replacements becomes, creating procurement bottlenecks and higher capital expense.
• Using ESU or third‑party compensating controls can be expensive and may not be acceptable for compliance audits in some regulated sectors.

Put simply: postponing migration converts a manageable program into an expensive, high‑risk scramble.

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Cross‑checking TeamViewer’s claims — verification and corroboration​

TeamViewer’s press release provides the primary source for the “250 million sessions / over 40% on Windows 10” claim. It is corroborated in media syndication and independent reporting summarising the same figures. For the EOL date and practical consequences, Microsoft’s lifecycle and support pages are the authoritative reference. Market trackers and DEX/security vendors (StatCounter, ControlUp, Kaspersky) provide complementary telemetry that shows the migration landscape is mixed and often slower in enterprise estates.
Caveats and verification steps:

• Ask any vendor for the raw criteria used to define an “endpoint” and for exportable, per‑device readiness data before accepting topline percentages as procurement guidance.
• Triangulate vendor telemetry with internal inventories and at least one independent external dataset (pageview trackers for consumer bias; security vendor telemetry for installed base bias).
• If a single number will be used to justify capital spending or compliance posture, require the vendor to publish methodology and weighting or provide an auditable export.

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Mitigations if you cannot immediately upgrade​

Not every device will be upgradeable to Windows 11. Practical mitigation options include:

• Enrolling eligible devices into Windows 10 ESU as a time‑boxed measure to receive critical security updates (consumer ESU options and enterprise ESU with tiered pricing exist; terms vary by region).
• Strong network segmentation and reduced internet exposure for legacy endpoints.
• Multi‑factor authentication and privileged access minimisation to reduce lateral movement risk.
• Application isolation (containerisation or virtualised application delivery) for critical LOB apps.
• Consideration of alternative OSes (Linux distributions, ChromeOS Flex) for suitable use cases where replacement and modernization are feasible and cost‑effective.

Each mitigation reduces exposure but none is a perfect substitute for vendor OS security patches.

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Governance, procurement and sustainability considerations​

Large‑scale migrations present governance and environmental trade‑offs:

• Procurement cycles must be aligned with staged rollouts to avoid supply‑chain strain and inflated prices.
• Forced refresh programs raise sustainability concerns due to e‑waste; plan trade‑in, refurbishment, and recycling channels.
• Ensure procurement includes firmware/driver support commitments from OEMs to avoid being stranded during migration.
• Make migration decisions transparent and auditable: capture per‑device remediation rationale (upgradeable, remedial, replace, ESU) and approvals to satisfy auditors and stakeholders.

These governance elements are as decisive to success as the technical checklist.

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Critical appraisal — strengths and risks in the TeamViewer narrative​

Strengths:

• TeamViewer’s dataset is large and operationally meaningful: 250 million sessions is a substantial sample that highlights the real‑world support footprint.
• Positioning DEX tooling to solve discovery, remediation and verification aligns with the real pain points organisations face in mass OS migrations.
• The vendor’s message reinforces established risk vectors: unsupported OSes are high‑value targets and migration timelines produce material business risk.

Risks and limitations:

• The topline statistic lacks a publicly enumerated methodology in the press release (session weighting, deduplication, and geographic sampling details), so the “40%” should be treated as a directional signal rather than an absolute market share figure. Organisations must validate against their own inventories.
• Vendor tooling reduces operational friction but cannot overcome fundamental hardware incompatibility or OEM firmware unavailability.
• Overreliance on a single telemetry source to set procurement or compliance posture heightens the chance of misallocation; triangulation with at least two independent data sources is essential.

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Action checklist — what IT teams and home users should do now​

• Run the Windows PC Health Check and an MDM/CMDB audit to classify devices by upgradeability.
• Use DEX tools or similar readiness scanners to capture per‑device remediation guidance.
• Prioritise internet‑facing and high‑privilege endpoints for immediate upgrade/ESU.
• Document any ESU enrollments as time‑bound exceptions with a clear replacement plan.
• Expand helpdesk capacity for staged rollouts and pilot remediation windows.
• Preserve sustainability by exploring trade‑in and refurbishment options for replaced hardware.

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Conclusion​

The TeamViewer snapshot — backed by TeamViewer’s press release — and Microsoft’s lifecycle calendar together crystallise a narrow window for risk‑aware action: October 14, 2025 is the operational cutoff for mainstream Windows 10 support. TeamViewer’s DEX tooling can reduce migration friction by automating readiness checks and post‑upgrade verification, but tooling alone cannot erase the hardware, procurement and governance challenges that large migrations impose. Organisations and individuals must triangulate vendor telemetry with internal inventories, prioritise by risk, use ESU only as a controlled bridge, and execute staged rollouts with clear rollback plans. The alternative — leaving significant device cohorts unsupported — exposes networks to elevated cyber risk, compliance headaches, and escalating operational costs.

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Source: Tech Edition TeamViewer data reveals urgent need to upgrade from Windows 10 as support ends

 

[ChatGPT]

A fresh telemetry snapshot from TeamViewer underlines a stark reality for IT teams and consumers alike: even as Microsoft’s official support for Windows 10 reaches its end, a large and operationally meaningful slice of devices will cross into an unsupported state within days — and many organisations are not ready. TeamViewer’s analysis of roughly 250 million anonymised support sessions (July–September 2025) found that more than 40% of endpoints receiving support via TeamViewer still run Windows 10, a headline the vendor packaged as a warning and a call to action for migrations to Windows 11 or enrolment in Extended Security Updates.

Background / Overview​

Microsoft has formally set a lifecycle cutoff: Windows 10 mainstream support ends on October 14, 2025. After that date Microsoft will no longer issue routine OS security updates, feature patches, or standard technical support for mainstream Windows 10 editions; Microsoft offers a narrowly-scoped Extended Security Updates (ESU) program as a temporary bridge through October 13, 2026 for consumer ESU enrolments. This is a firm lifecycle anchor that changes the default security posture for any device that remains on Windows 10 without ESU.
TeamViewer’s October 8, 2025 press release summarises their dataset and the product response: an anonymised sample of 250 million TeamViewer sessions recorded between July and September 2025, showing over 40% of endpoints accessed through TeamViewer were still on Windows 10. The company emphasised that the sample includes both paid and free users and positioned its Digital Employee Experience (DEX) tooling, including a Windows 11 Readiness Pack, as a practical way to speed migrations at scale. Jan Bee, TeamViewer’s Chief Information Security Officer, framed the statistic bluntly: “In a few days, two in five endpoints will no longer receive patches and updates, leaving them exposed to vulnerabilities.”
At the same time, other telemetry families paint different—yet complementary—pictures. Security-vendor telemetry (for example, Kaspersky) and market trackers (StatCounter) report different splits between Windows 10 and Windows 11 depending on what they measure: installed-base telemetry, active browsing pageviews, or managed‑tool inventories. These methodological differences matter when you convert percentages into device counts or action plans.

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What TeamViewer’s numbers actually mean — and what they don’t​

The headline claim, verified​

• TeamViewer’s published figure is verifiable in the vendor’s press materials: 250 million anonymised sessions (July–September 2025) and >40% Windows 10 share among endpoints that received TeamViewer support. This is the dataset TeamViewer used to frame urgency and promote DEX readiness tooling.

Important methodological caveats​

• This is a support‑session sample, not a global census. The dataset represents endpoints that were receiving remote support — a subset of all devices that is operationally meaningful (it captures devices active in help workflows) but likely biased toward devices where users or admins have invoked remote assistance.
• Regional and vertical skewing is possible. A vendor’s installed or support footprint can overrepresent specific geographies, industry verticals, or device classes. That’s why the same broad claim can coexist with other telemetry that shows different shares for Windows 11 adoption.
• No public, detailed whitepaper on methodology (deduplication rules, session-to-endpoint mapping, weighting) accompanied the press release. Treat the 40% figure as a directional and operational signal, not an absolute global count that should be blindly converted into budget line items without reconciliation to your inventories.

Cross-checks and independent signals​

• Security-vendor telemetry (Kaspersky and others) reported a large Windows 10 footprint in 2025 telemetry, reinforcing that many devices remained on Windows 10 in enterprise and consumer pools. That independent signal aligns directionally with TeamViewer’s warning even if the exact percentages differ by source.
• Market trackers such as StatCounter measure active pageviews and in many months of 2025 showed Windows 10 still with a substantial share; Windows 11 adoption was accelerating but not universal. Differences between pageview-derived shares and installed-base telemetry explain many apparent contradictions.

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Why the timing matters: immediate security, compliance and operational risks​

When vendor support stops, the threat model changes immediately:

• New OS-level vulnerabilities discovered after the cutoff will not be patched on non-ESU Windows 10 machines. Kernel, driver and platform vulnerabilities frequently enable privilege escalation and remote code execution; unpatched systems become high-value targets.
• Regulatory and insurance exposure. For organisations in regulated sectors, unsupported software can be a compliance red flag and imperil cyber-insurance coverage or claims.
• Operational continuity risk. Unsupported platforms may later encounter driver or application incompatibilities, degraded performance, and a lack of vendor-provided fixes for platform-level issues.
• Rapid opportunistic exploitation. Attackers historically prioritize previously-patched ecosystems and unpatched tails after vendor cutoffs; high-impact campaigns can follow such lifecycle inflection points.

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The Singapore example: a useful microcosm — data, disagreement, and practical impact​

TeamViewer and regional coverage singled out Singapore as a relatively advanced market for Windows 11 migration, citing nearly 60% of devices upgraded and close to 30% still on Windows 10 in TeamViewer’s sample. TeamViewer’s communications and regional press coverage repeated that message to stress the urgency for businesses operating under initiatives such as Smart Nation.
But a cautionary comparison is instructive:

• TeamViewer sample (support‑session view): nearly 60% Windows 11 in its Singapore subset (per regional reporting). This likely reflects TeamViewer’s installed/support footprint and the behaviours of teams that use remote‑support tools.
• StatCounter (pageview method) for Singapore: at times in 2025 showed far different OS-version splits, with Windows 11 often lower in raw pageview share in that market. That discrepancy demonstrates how sampling frame changes the measured outcome — and explains why headlines can appear to contradict each other.

Practical takeaway for Singapore and similar digital economies: even when a market looks well advanced on one metric, materially exposed cohorts can remain. For public-sector services, small businesses and high‑privilege endpoints, remaining on an unsupported OS has outsized consequences.

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Migration options and immediate choices for organisations​

Organisations effectively have four primary paths for any Windows 10 device as of the EOL date:

• Upgrade in place to Windows 11, where hardware and application compatibility permit.
• Enrol eligible devices in Windows 10 Consumer or Enterprise Extended Security Updates (ESU) for a time‑boxed bridge (consumer ESU runs through October 13, 2026 for enrolled devices).
• Replace hardware where Windows 11 in-place upgrade is impractical or more costly overall than replacement.
• Adopt an alternative (Linux, ChromeOS/OS Flex, cloud-hosted Windows via Windows 365) where it fits business needs and reduces risk.

Each option carries trade-offs: cost, time, testing burden, sustainability (e‑waste) and compliance implications. The correct mix is almost always a blend, not a single universal solution.

What DEX tooling (like TeamViewer DEX) brings to the table​

• Automated compatibility scanning (CPU generation, TPM state, Secure Boot, firmware/BIOS status).
• Prioritised remediation lists and exportable readiness reports.
• Post‑upgrade validation and configuration compliance checks.
• Reduced helpdesk load through automated, measurable workflows.

These capabilities are operationally useful — but they are tooling components in a broader migration program that must include governance, testing, procurement and sustainability planning. Treat tooling as an accelerator, not a replacement for disciplined migration governance.

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A practical playbook for IT leaders (short, prioritised, executable)​

• Reconcile your authoritative inventory
• Export device lists from MDM/CMDB, Intune, SCCM or Lansweeper and match them against any vendor readiness scans. Use the inventory as the single source of truth. Do not replace internal inventories with a vendor’s topline percentage.
• Rapid triage by risk
• Prioritise internet‑facing, high‑privilege and regulated‑data endpoints. These should be first in the upgrade/ESU/replacement queue.
• Run device‑level readiness scans
• Use PC Health Check, Intune readiness reports, or DEX tooling to produce per‑device remediation items (TPM firmware updates, Secure Boot enablement, BIOS updates, driver updates). Generate exportable CSVs for CMDB ingestion.
• Pilot, test, validate
• Pilot upgrades on representative hardware families, validate application compatibility, and confirm rollback/restore plans. Keep pilots small but representative.
• Use ESU deliberately
• ESU is a time‑boxed bridge, not an indefinite fix. Document ESU enrolments and instrument decisions for auditors and insurers.
• Plan hardware refresh strategically
• Balance fiscal cycles, sustainability goals (refurbish, trade‑in, recycle) and security imperatives. Prioritise replacements for devices that fail hardware checks or where remediation costs exceed replacement costs.
• Harden remaining Windows 10 endpoints
• For devices that must remain on Windows 10 temporarily: enforce network segmentation, multi‑factor authentication, EDR/AV, strict patching of applications, and restricted internet access where possible.
• Communicate and document
• Keep procurement, legal, compliance and executive stakeholders informed. Insurers and auditors will want documented, auditable remediation decisions.

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Costs, sustainability and long-term implications​

• Hidden operational cost: last-minute refresh cycles and emergency migrations are more expensive than planned, staged projects. Helpdesk load spikes materially increase labor costs.
• E‑waste and sustainability: forced large-scale hardware replacement raises environmental concerns and procurement complexity. Organisations should prioritise refurbishment and trade‑in programs where possible.
• Licensing and ESG trade-offs: decisions about ESU spend, replacement cadence and sustainability commitments have procurement and reporting implications that span fiscal years.

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Where vendor telemetry can mislead — questions to ask before acting on a headline​

Vendor and media headlines are useful alarm signals; they are not substitutes for a plan. Before you rely on a third‑party percentage to set budgets or SLAs, request the following:

• Raw methodology: how were sessions mapped to endpoints? How were duplicates handled?
• Geographic and vertical breakdowns: which countries and sectors are represented?
• Exportable per‑device reports that can map to your CMDB or asset inventory.
• Definitions of “readiness” used by the readiness tool (TPM presence, CPU whitelist, driver expectations).
• The time window and update cadence of telemetry.

Ask vendors for exportable CSVs and the exact checks their Readiness Pack performs, not only the aggregated headline number. The best procurement decisions are based on instrumented evidence you can reconcile with your own authoritative inventory.

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Risks and red flags to watch for now​

• Blind reliance on a single vendor metric. A single telemetry stream can be skewed by the vendor’s client base or use patterns.
• Application compatibility blind spots. Line‑of‑business apps that were never tested on Windows 11 can be the cause of major migration delays.
• Firmware and OEM driver availability. Vendors must confirm driver and firmware updates for specific models before rollouts; missing drivers can stall upgrades.
• Insurance and compliance gaps. Treat unsupported OSes as elevated risk in compliance audits and insurance assessments; document decisions thoroughly.

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Recommended immediate actions (for IT teams and small businesses)​

• Verify Microsoft’s cutoff date — October 14, 2025 — and treat that as a fixed planning anchor.
• Export your device inventory now and run a readiness sweep with PC Health Check, Intune or a reputable DEX/Readiness tool.
• Identify critical assets (internet-facing, high-privilege, regulated) and assign them to the immediate upgrade queue.
• Enrol eligible devices in ESU where migration cannot be completed before the cutoff, and document the rationale.
• Schedule pilot upgrades and define rollback procedures and backups.
• Communicate timelines to procurement, security and business owners; preserve audit trails.

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Final analysis — strengths and risks of TeamViewer’s messaging​

• Strengths:
• Operational alarm delivered at scale. TeamViewer’s dataset is large and operationally relevant to support workflows; it provides a clear signal that an exposed population remains online and being actively supported. That signal is a useful, timely nudge to accelerate remediation planning.
• Practical tooling proposition. A Readiness Pack and DEX workflow are exactly the kind of automation that reduces helpdesk toil and improves the measurability of migration projects.
• Risks and limits:
• Sampling bias and over‑generalisation. The headline “two in five endpoints” can be misread as a global audit; without methodology, it’s a directional figure and should be reconciled against internal inventories.
• Possible regional mismatch with other trackers. Country‑level numbers from support-session telemetry can differ materially from pageview or installed-base trackers (e.g., StatCounter), and those differences must inform cautious interpretation.
• Tooling ≠ governance. DEX/platform automation is necessary and helpful but cannot remove the need for staged testing, vendor driver verification, rollback planning and documented compliance decisions.

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Conclusion​

The calendar is real: October 14, 2025 marks the moment the default security guarantees for Windows 10 end. TeamViewer’s large‑sample telemetry — 250 million anonymised sessions showing over 40% of support‑session endpoints on Windows 10 — is an operationally meaningful alarm bell for IT teams and home users alike, not a precise global census. Use that signal to accelerate evidence‑driven action: reconcile your authoritative inventory, prioritise high‑risk devices, run readiness scans and pilots, and treat ESU only as a time‑boxed bridge while you complete migrations or plan replacements. Tooling such as DEX and Windows 11 Readiness Packs will speed work at scale, but they cannot replace governance, testing and documented audit trails. The choice now is not between upgrading eventually and never upgrading — the choice is whether the migration will be measured, staged and auditable, or last‑minute, costly and risky. Act now; the consequences of delay are tangible, measurable and avoidable.

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Source: SME horizon Significant need for updates as Windows 10 nears end-of-life - SME horizon