XP's death sentence won't be commuted this time

In a letter to its OEM customers that install the operating system on PCs they sell, Microsoft has confirmed that it would no longer sell Windows XP as a packaged product, nor sell it to OEMs past its June 30 deadline.

Over 100,000 people had attempted to save Windows XP through an online petition. Nonetheless, Microsoft has remained steadfast in its intention to retire the aging operating system.

The news does not mean an imminent death for OEMs who still wish to continue shipping the OS in computers. They will still be able to do so until January 31 of next year.

Support for XP will not end any time soon either, as the company committed to security and critical updates for the OS through April 2014. Users would also be able to continue to exercise something it terms "downgrade rights."

In the case of either the consumer or enterprise, those that purchase Windows Vista Business or Ultimate (and Vista Enterprise) would be able to roll back computers to XP Professional if needed.

Microsoft did admit that Vista had its share of problems. "The architectural changes that improved security and resilience in Windows Vista led to compatibility issues with existing hardware and applications," online services and Windows business chief Bill Veghte said in the e-mail.

However, he said the company has gone to great lengths to address those issues, and Vista's positives far outweighed any negatives it may have had initially.

Dell announced that as a result of the new policy from Microsoft, the company would permit sales of new computers with Windows XP installed until Thursday at 5:59 AM CDT. After that, the operating system would no longer be available, and the downgrade service option would need to be used in order for customers to obtain Windows XP.

News of the letter first appeared on Joe Wilcox' Microsoft Watch on Monday.