Dell confirms Windows XP phase-out

PC vendor to stop selling Windows XP-ready systems this month

Final countdown: Dell must stop shipping Windows XP-ready PCs by 22 October

Dell has confirmed that it will stop taking orders for PCs and laptops featuring the Windows XP Home and Professional operating systems later this month.

The hardware vendor said the move was to ensure its compliance with Microsoft’s wider end of life (EoL) policy for Windows XP.

Microsoft began scaling back support for XP in July to encourage end users to upgrade to Windows 7, the latest version of its PC operating system.

Under Microsoft’s EoL guidelines, PC vendors must stop shipping systems with Windows XP installed on them by 22 October this year.

However, a blog post on Dell’s web site said qualified end users with “custom image requirements” will still be able to acquire a Windows XP Professional- or Home-ready system after this date.

It states: “After the 22 October date, qualified customers will still be able to get systems with Windows XP through Dell's Custom Factory Integration service.

“Otherwise, customers who order new machines with Windows 7 Professional or higher can run XP applications in Windows XP Mode.”

The post added that Dell will continue to provide driver support for the operating system until December 2012.