Spiceworks recently completed a study to get a better grasp on adoption plans of Windows 8 among US SMB IT pros. For this study, we surveyed approximately 1,000 IT pros on two separate occasions. The first survey was conducted in August 2012, prior to the Windows 8 launch in October, and the second survey was conducted in December 2012.

1. Voice of IT
TM
February 2013
The future of Windows 8?
Only time will tell.
A Spiceworks Market Insights Report
Spiceworks recently completed a study to get a better grasp on adoption plans of Windows 8 among US
SMB IT pros. For this study, we surveyed approximately 1,000 IT pros on two separate occasions. The first
survey was conducted in August 2012, prior to the Windows 8 launch in October, and the second survey
was conducted in December 2012.
The main goals:
• Understand how IT pros’ perceptions/plans for Windows 8 adoption changed once the product
hit the marketplace
• Determine how much impact employees will have on Windows 8 adoption
• Find out if IT pros plan to upgrade from XP to Windows 7 or Windows 8
The first survey also investigated their current environment for computers, smartphones and tablets
to understand if there are any underlying factors that might affect adoption.
SMB IT pros are all about simplicity, and the findings suggest that they continue to struggle with
the increasing number of devices end users want either from their companies or through BYOD. Given
this struggle, employee habits may be a key indicator into how and when Windows 8 will be adopted
among SMBs.

2. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
Windows 8 adoption in a complex world.
SMB IT pros typically have small teams and a ton to manage. They could have anywhere from 20 to 1,000
end users at multiple locations and multiple devices per user. Windows 8 is being marketed as having
versatile new features as well as a common ecosystem for computers, tablets and smartphones – which is
definitely a compelling offer that could make an IT pro’s life a bit easier.
Currently, IT pros have their fair share of operating systems (OSs)
of SMBs support
to manage. Here’s the breakdown: 62% multiple locations
manage remote
• 86% support more than one computer OS 78% employees
• 82% support more than one smartphone OS support more than one
75% device for the end user
• 60% support more than one tablet OS
66% support BYOD
Two of the main reasons why? Companies are dealing with legacy apps
and end users who want devices that require another OS.
Reasons for Supporting Multiple Operating Systems
Why does your company support more than one OS for [DEVICE]? (Select all that apply.)
Computers Tablets Smartphones
Mission-critical app(s) not compatible with all OS 34% 18% 6%
End-users wanted to use other OS 33% 71% 79%
Legacy from merger acquisition 23% 6% 8%
We have specific brands we prefer to use 14% 25% 21%
Our departments/divisions/regions are allowed to use 12% 27% 32%
what they want
Other, please specify 36% 10% 8%
Respondents 870 364 636
= Top two responses
2

3. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
So, given the consumerization of IT and BYOD it seems that the reality of managing multiple OSs is
here to stay, and companies are used to having to evolve their OSs over time. This trend will most
likely continue since nearly two-thirds of respondents state that they’re either neutral or don’t think
it’s necessary to have an integrated OS platform like the one advertised for Windows 8.
3

4. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
Windows in SMBs: From XP to 7 or 8.
Windows has a stronghold in SMBs with 96% of respondents surveyed currently supporting Windows 7
and 83% supporting Windows XP. Knowing that XP will no longer be supported starting April 2014, SMBs
will need to determine whether they’ll upgrade to Windows 7 or make the leap to Windows 8.
Respondents: 1114
4

5. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
Once you take XP out of the equation, is it going to be the tried-and-true (Win7) or the new-and-improved
(Win8)? To find out how SMB IT pros size up the two OSs, we asked respondents to select the top three
improvements they felt Windows 8 offered over Windows 7.
While over a third believe there are no major improvements over Windows 7, the more than 60% who
saw improvements cited enhanced touchscreen capabilities, increased speed, and better integration
with smartphones and tablets at the top of the list.
“
FROM THE COMMUNITY
Windows 8 is an excellent
successor to Windows 7 in
every way. There is a bit of
transition using it on a non
touch desktop, but after you
“
get past the learning stage,
it is absolutely incredible.
Sosipater
Network/Systems Administrator
community.spiceworks.com
“
FROM THE COMMUNITY
We are currently a Windows
7 shop. We are able to do
every task our business
requires both now and
in the forseeable future.
Though we have proactively
prepared an upgrade
plan (that includes several
directions), we will not
expend the resources
unless an unmet business
need requires it.
Bobby D.
IT Manager
“
community.spiceworks.com
5

6. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
Windows 8 on computers: Adoption slowing, testing on the rise.
What’s the status on Windows 8 adoption and testing? The OS has been in the market since October, and
data shows that adoption plans on desktops and laptops have decreased slightly while testing has increased
significantly. Prior to the launch of Windows 8, a quarter of respondents stated they had plans to implement the
new OS at their company within two years of the release. The number, however, dropped to 20% after release.
WINDOWS 8 PRODUCT
REVIEWS IN SPICEWORKS
http://community.spiceworks.
com/product/43724-microsoft-
windows-8
6

7. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
Could the adoption tide be turning?
Even though adoption timing may have pushed out for some, there are significantly more SMBs
currently testing Windows 8, which jumped from 48% testing prior to launch all the way up to 69%
testing post launch.
“
FROM THE COMMUNITY
Overall, I’ll continue to test
and play with the OS, but it’s
hard to envision deploying
this OS to desktops in our
network at this point.
Ryan8481
Help Desk Tech
“
community.spiceworks.com
7

8. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
Reasons for adopting or not adopting Windows 8.
Respondents planning to adopt Windows 8 within 90 days of release were asked the top reasons for
adopting. Increased speed and security were at the top of the list followed by improved manageability,
enhanced touchscreen capabilities, and better integration with smartphones and tablets.
“
FROM THE COMMUNITY
The new UI takes some
getting used to but the OS
seems pretty quick and
for someone who’s new to
Hyper V, it offers a great way
to get up to speed.
Paul2860
“
14 years’ IT experience
community.spiceworks.com
8

9. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
The top reason companies are not planning to adopt until 90 days after release (or have no plans to adopt
at all) is because they feel there’s no real advantage over their current OS. And given the large penetration
of XP and the success of Windows 7, Microsoft will need to prove advantages of Windows 8 in a business
environment if they want to see a large conversion to this OS vs. Windows 7 by 2014.
“
FROM THE COMMUNITY
Will likely not allow this on
my corporate network for
quite some time, because
I just don’t want to put
everyone through the
“
learning curve and support
issues to make it useful.
B2BYTE
IT Manager
community.spiceworks.com
9

10. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
Windows 8 on mobile: Smartphones & tablets
What’s the verdict on adopting Windows 8 for mobile? Turns out, the majority of IT pros have no plans to
adopt the OS on their company’s smartphones and tablets. However, 79% of IT pros managing smartphones
and 71% of IT pros managing tablets state that the top reason for managing multiple mobile OSs is due to
employee requests.
So it’s likely that Windows 8 could gain higher adoption if it’s successful in the consumer market and
employees request it more often.
10

11. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
For those planning to adopt, the top reasons for moving employees to Windows 8 are better integration with
other devices, better user interface, and enhanced touchscreen capabilities.
11

12. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
The jury’s still out on Windows 8 adoption...
As the title of this report suggests – only time will tell when it comes to the success of Windows 8. While
many IT pros believe that the new user interface is an advantage of Windows 8, they also recognize that
their end-users will need to be trained.
In addition, critical applications will need to be supported and hardware must meet certain specs to ensure
proper functionality. Given this, the transition to Windows 8 will take some time. Based on our research, we
believe there are two factors that will impact the success of Windows 8 in SMBs:
1. Employees requesting and/or bringing Windows 8 devices into the office
2. IT pros considering Windows 8 the better upgrade path than Windows 7 for their XP devices
With multiple factors in play, we’ll be keeping a close eye to see if and when Windows 8 adoption hits its stride.
12

13. THE FUTURE OF WINDOWS 8
Respondent Profile
For each study, we spoke to companies with less than 1000 employees. The breakout by company size was
consistent across each study with approximately 60% of respondents coming from companies with less
than 100 employees.
About Spiceworks Voice of IT®
The Spiceworks Voice of IT® Market Insights program publishes stats, trends and opinions collected from small
and medium business technology professionals that are among the more than 2.4M users of Spiceworks. Survey
panelists opt-in to answer questions on technology trends important to them. To find out more about our
research capabilities, email marketresearch@spiceworks.com.
About Spiceworks™
Spiceworks™ is the world’s largest vertical network for IT that connects 2.4 million IT professionals with more than
,
1300 technology brands. By combining a community of IT pros with free IT management software, Spiceworks
helps businesses discover, buy and manage more than $425 billion technology products and services each year.
To learn more, visit: Be first to hear about Spiceworks Voice of IT® insights, email:
http://www.spiceworks.com/voice-of-it marketresearch@spiceworks.com
The contents in this report are a result of primary research performed by Spiceworks. Unless otherwise noted, the entire contents
distributed as part of this report are copyrighted by Spiceworks. As such any information made available by any means in this report may
not be copied, reproduced, duplicated, published, displayed, transmitted, distributed, given, sold, traded, resold, marketed, offered for sale,
modified to create derivative works or otherwise exploited for valuable consideration without prior written consent by Spiceworks. For
more information visit www.spiceworks.com/voice-of-it/terms.
This report contains information of fact relating to parties other than Spiceworks. Although the information have been obtained from, and
are based on sources that Spiceworks believes to be reliable, Spiceworks does not guarantee the accuracy, and any such information might
be incomplete or condensed. Any estimates included in this report constitute Spiceworks’ judgment as of the date of compilation, and are
subject to change without notice. This report is for information purposes only. All responsibility for any interpretations or actions based on
the information or commentary contained within this report lie solely with the recipient.
All rights reserved. 2012-2013.
13