Valve Stop Steam Support In Windows 7 And Windows 8 In January 2024

Steam will stop operating in Windows 7 and 8 (photo: Steam)

Valve has warned users that Steam will officially stop supporting the Windows 7 operating system, Windows 8, and also Windows 8.1 starting January 1, 2024.

So, after that date, Steam Client will no longer run in the Windows version mentioned above. If you want to continue running Steam on your PC, make sure you update Windows to the latest version that supports it.

"To continue running Steam and any games or other products purchased via Steam, users must update to a newer version of Windows," Valve said in its announcement.

Furthermore, Valve said that this change was necessary because the core feature on Steam relies on a embedded version of Google Chrome, which is no longer working in older versions of Windows.

"In addition, the upcoming version of Steam will require Windows features and security updates that are only in Windows 10 and later," the company added.

While support won't end until 2024, Valve strongly recommends all Windows 7/8/8.1 users to update faster than Steam's termination schedule.

Steam's cessation of operations is also in line with Microsoft's decision to end security updates and technical support for Windows 7 in January 2020 and for Windows 8.1 in January 2023.

According to the company, computers running this operating system, when connected to the internet, are vulnerable to new malware and other exploits that will not be patched.

"The malware can cause your PC, Steam, and game performance to be poor or stuck. The malware can also be used to steal the credentials of your Steam account or other services," he concluded.

As PC Gamer shows, this termination will not affect most Steam users. Only under 1.9 percent of the software audience uses one of the relevant versions of Windows, according to Valve's latest survey.