Windows 98 Critical Updates and June 30th 2006 cut off date. Really going to happen? How critical is this?

Windows 98 Critical Updates and June 30th 2006 cut off date. Really
going to happen? How critical is this?

Still have several networked Windows 98SE machines at a small
company, in addition to XP machines. All of the machines feature a
corporate anti-virus scanner, etc. Network is protected by a Cisco
Firewall.

Will keeping these machines on the network leave new security holes?
Most of Microsoft's critical updates seem to be for IE6 more than
anything.

These machines still suit our needs fine, so I'd hate to have to
replace them all just because of new security issues. Most of them
are 600 mhz, 128 megs ram. Our applications require more like 166
mhz, 32 megs of ram, etc. Too old to be worth investing in XP, but so
far we have yet to find a good reason to replace them.

Some of the machines do surf the web, usually with FireFox, check
e-mail, etc. I can handle a machine here and there getting infected,
but i'm more concerned about a network wide attack, and most
importantly our Windows 2000 server.

What are other small companies doing about the June 30th issue?

Thanks for any advice.

Nate Goulet wrote:
> Windows 98 Critical Updates and June 30th 2006 cut off date. Really
> going to happen? How critical is this?
>
> Still have several networked Windows 98SE machines at a small
> company, in addition to XP machines. All of the machines feature a
> corporate anti-virus scanner, etc. Network is protected by a Cisco
> Firewall.
>
> Will keeping these machines on the network leave new security holes?
> Most of Microsoft's critical updates seem to be for IE6 more than
> anything.
>
> These machines still suit our needs fine, so I'd hate to have to
> replace them all just because of new security issues. Most of them
> are 600 mhz, 128 megs ram. Our applications require more like 166
> mhz, 32 megs of ram, etc. Too old to be worth investing in XP, but so
> far we have yet to find a good reason to replace them.
>
> Some of the machines do surf the web, usually with FireFox, check
> e-mail, etc. I can handle a machine here and there getting infected,
> but i'm more concerned about a network wide attack, and most
> importantly our Windows 2000 server.
>
> What are other small companies doing about the June 30th issue?
>
> Thanks for any advice.
>
>
>
I added the 98 general newsgroup. Hopefully, they can give you some advice.

Nate Goulet wrote:

> Windows 98 Critical Updates and June 30th 2006 cut off date.
> Really going to happen? How critical is this?

Micro$haft wants you to be in a panic over this. They hope it will
have people like you in a mad rush to replace win-98 with XP.

Milkro$oft has a lot of XP sitting on the shelves, and they want to
sell them before they dump XP and move to Vista. Then they'll start a
campaign telling you that XP is really really old, antiquated and
buggy, and that you need to move to Vista.

> What are other small companies doing about the June 30th issue?

We'll be using 98 until it's 2098.

We don't fall for Macro$haft's FUD.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

On Mon, 01 May 2006 18:01:48 GMT, (Nate Goulet)
wrote:

>Windows 98 Critical Updates and June 30th 2006 cut off date. Really
>going to happen? How critical is this?
>
>Still have several networked Windows 98SE machines at a small
>company, in addition to XP machines. All of the machines feature a
>corporate anti-virus scanner, etc. Network is protected by a Cisco
>Firewall.
>
>Will keeping these machines on the network leave new security holes?
>Most of Microsoft's critical updates seem to be for IE6 more than
>anything.
>
>These machines still suit our needs fine, so I'd hate to have to
>replace them all just because of new security issues. Most of them
>are 600 mhz, 128 megs ram. Our applications require more like 166
>mhz, 32 megs of ram, etc. Too old to be worth investing in XP, but so
>far we have yet to find a good reason to replace them.
>
>Some of the machines do surf the web, usually with FireFox, check
>e-mail, etc. I can handle a machine here and there getting infected,
>but i'm more concerned about a network wide attack, and most
>importantly our Windows 2000 server.
>
>What are other small companies doing about the June 30th issue?
>
> Thanks for any advice.
>
>
Its very hard to say what security issues if any you would have. Over
the years I have become more and more sceptical about so called
"critical" updates with some justification. I generally only install
buffer overrun exploit fixes. I do not use IE or Lookout / Lookout
Express and I use a SuSE Linux Box for general surfing.

You have good security / router / firewall installed all you need to
do is be careful about where you surf and what you download, the other
main security nightmare is e mail.

If you use something like Mailwasher Pro to read e mail on the server
and ditch the crap before downloading it via a decent e mail client
(Thunderbird & Courier I use) you can get better control of e mail.

Apart from that as another responder said I would go for Linux, one
box first then change over as you become confident. You can do
anything on a Linux box including running MS Office Applications via
WINE or Codeweavers Crossover Office but Open Office is pretty near as
good as you will need. Its much safer, far more reliable, does not
have "updates" forced upon it and it is free.

Businesswise SuSE 10, CentOS, Fedora, Ubunto are the way to go, Ubunto
is the easiest followed by SuSE10. Fedora and CentOS are trickier.

Mailwasher Pro link follows, this and Synchromagic are the most
valueable applications I have ever had the pleasuer of using.

http://www.firetrust.com/

Jonah