Microsoft just announced it will not allow older versions of Internet Explorer to remain on your PC. This move from past policy will auto-update Internet Explorer.
“In an evolution to our update model for Internet Explorer, we will be instituting auto updates for IE users across Windows XP, Vista, and 7 using Windows Update,” Internet Explorer senior director Ryan Gavin told Paul Thurrott earlier this week. “We’ll start this process in January in Australia and Brazil and then gradually scale up and roll it out worldwide.”
This move is most important for security reasons and also compatibility with future web technologies like HTML 5. Microsoft stressed this move will be good for consumers, developers and enterprise. It’s good for consumers so they will stay up to date and secure automatically. It’s also good for developers, because it takes away the stress of having to be compatible with older web limitations and now focus on the latest web technologies. Finally it’s good for the enterprise because they can continue to use tools like Windows Server Update Services on their time frame.
“Getting people to use the latest browser version has many benefits, chief among them is that newer browsers have better security features and keep users safer. The Internet Explorer team’s balanced approach to helping people move to the latest version is a good idea. Not only does it help individual users, it also takes into consideration the needs of enterprises.”