I’m working for a large organisation with 8000 users working in multiple business. Like a lot of other companies around the World we are trying to figure out how to migrate to Windows 10. One of the first task is to find the correct branch of the Enterprise version of Windows 10 (CB, CBB, LTBS) that will fit best our needs. Easy? Not at all!
When I heard about LTSB the first time I was enthusiast. I thought: “-Finally MS has understood that a considerable part of the enterprises, focus on custom business applications and needs a very stable, wide compatible, secure and customizable OS. Enterprises will happily pay for needed features (or apps) because this usually means there is a kind of ROI with them. Home’s features are not needed nor welcome in an well-organized company because they may deconcentrate users out of their business and also need extra (useless) maintenance (security hole/patches/fix/…)â€. But sorry, I was wrong!
MS will drop support for Windows 7 on Kaby Lake CPU before the end of the extended support of Windows 7. Now MS (seems, I hope not decided yet) will NOT supports Cannon Lake CPU with Windows 10 LTBS.
It’s quite easy to everyone imagine a strategy against enterprise customers that have paid billions dollars during the past decades and that have made MS what is now.
Let hope someone in MS will clarify soon, once and for all, that Enterprises are still a recognized customer type that deserve working tools and support. If Windows 10 Enterprise LTSB cannot “survive†a new incoming hardware during its support timeframe, than it’s not even a branch option. Missing, i.e. some new power management features, is one thing, losing support, is another story. If MS really want to help Enterprise migrations to Windows 10, than it should now release an official clear statement about LTSB support and educate its consultants because, at the moments, they seems confused like us.