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Because “typically more than half of an organization’s applications still require Windows,” said Gartner researchers during an October 13 Webcast for Gartner clients and others, replacing Windows is not a short-term option.

Gartner analysts Michael Silver and Stephen Kleynhans shared these opinions and more during an hour focused on providing business users with guidance about Windows 7 features, licensing and deployment.

Assertions from their presentation:

* Windows 7 is not a major architectural release; it’s a polishing of Windows Vista. Still, for businesses, there are “good things to be had” in Windows 7, including AppLocker, BitLocker to Go, BrancheCache, better User Account Control settings, an updated user interface and support for HomeGroups.
* Business users should be cognizant of the downgrade/upgrade gotchas around Windows 7. For users who don’t have Software Assurance (SA) contracts, Microsoft’s limits on downgrades to XP (18 months from Windows 7’s release or until the time Windows 7 Service Pack (SP) 1 is released — whichever is earlier) could be problematic. If you don’t have SA and don’t purchase new PCs with a Windows 7 license within this window, you could end up paying $120 to $200 per PC for an upgrade license if you aren’t ready to deploy Windows 7 right off the bat.
* While Windows XP’s extended support phase doesn’t end until 2014, third-party application support for a new operating system typically begins to wane two years after the end of mainstream support. This means the XP “danger zone” is 2013 and beyond.
* There’s no need to wait for Windows 7 SP1 before starting to plan and test Windows 7. Because Microsoft releases most fixes and updates regularly over Windows Update/Automatic Update, there’s no need to wait for SP1, which is basically a rollup of all these fixes. Microsoft officials aren’t saying when they are planning to release SP1 for Windows 7, but Gartner is calculating it’ll be some time in mid-2010, according to their charts.
* Companies should budget 12 to 18 months to test and prepare for a new operating system release. Because Windows 7 had “a good beta,” that period may be slightly shorter. But expect a 12-month window between Windows 7’s release to manufacturing (which was July) and “maturity.” Maturity, in this case, means full ISV support; the availability of sufficient training resources and a significant amount of “expertise to be built up in the market.”