Unsupported versions of Windows and .NET

Running .NET applications on unsupported versions of Windows can lead to errors such as authentication failures when attempting to establish HTTPS connections, due to the lack of compatible cipher suites. This issue is exemplified by a sample application that fails to connect to a website on older Windows versions but works on Windows 10. The failure occurs because unsupported Windows systems do not have the necessary ciphers to match those required by the website, a situation exacerbated by .NET's reliance on the OS for ciphers. Unlike web browsers and platforms like Go and Java, which ship their own ciphers, .NET applications must depend on Microsoft's updates to the OS for new ciphers. Unsupported Windows versions do not receive these updates, leading to increasing incompatibility with modern websites, illustrating a tangible consequence of using outdated Windows systems beyond general security concerns.