New York, Jan 28 (IANS): Hooked to Windows XP? It is time to either upgrade the operating system or buy a new computer.

Come April 8 and technical assistance for Windows XP operation system would no longer be available, including automatic updates that help protect your PC.

Microsoft will also stop providing Microsoft Security Essentials for download on Windows XP from April 8, says a company press release.

It means no security updates and other patches to keep the system safer from viruses and other malware attacks.

Your Windows XP computer, however, would continue to run but it might become more vulnerable to security risks and viruses.

According to company officials, very few older computers will be able to run Windows 8.1, which is the latest version of Windows.

“We recommend that you download and run the Windows Upgrade Assistant to check if your PC meets the system requirements for Windows 8.1 and then follow the steps in the tutorial to upgrade if your PC is able,” explained the release.

Here is the solution.

Go for a machine with at least a 1-gigahertz processor, 1 gigabyte of memory, 16 gigabytes of hard drive space and a graphics card compatible with DirectX9.

If you don't want to change your Windows XP computer, opt for third-party security software.