Steve Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 If you have Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 installed on your PC, you can upgrade to Windows 10 any time between now and the end of July next year for free. MS always described this free upgrade as lasting "for the life of the device". The licensing works differently to previous versions of Windows in that, you don't get a unique key to activate it. Instead, when you upgrade, a generic key (shared by all users of the same version of Windows 10) is put in place, and licensing info based on your hardware is created, which is stored on MS's servers. It's that hardware-based licensing info that activates Windows in the future, should you need to reinstall Windows 10. The problem with this is, if you upgrade certain components in your PC, or you have to replace them because they break - the motherboard, for example - that will cause Windows 10 to deactivate, as replacing a major component makes it think "hey, this isn't the same machine!". Until August 2016 you can get around this by reinstalling Windows 7 or 8.1, then upgrading to 10, as the free upgrade offer will still be on. After that though, you will have to pay for a Windows 10 license. MS haven't been clear about this, even when asked directly. Gabe Aul was asked on Twitter and he said something along the lines of "you can phone support and they will have a solution to get you activated", which reassured a lot of people that they'd be able to reactivate Windows 10 for free, but that's not actually what he said - he just said that they'd have a solution for you and "buying a Windows 10 license" is that solution. A bunch of people have asked MS tech support about this and been given the same answer, for example: - http://i.imgur.com/zBE0mUj.jpg Tech journalists should be all over this, but they're not. For instance, here's a section of an article by Paul Thurrott, one of the biggest (and most respected) MS tech journalists out there: - What if something changes with your hardware? If it's something major like a motherboard replacement, its hardware ID will no longer be the same. If this was done by your PC maker or an authorized repair center, no worries: they can inject an OEM key and make sure the system remains activated and will be good going forward (because the new ID is now registered with the store). If you do this yourself, you will need to phone activate. In other words, everything works exactly as expected. So we can actually relax now. https://www.thurrott.com/windows/windows-10/5008/windows-10-tip-associate-your-pc-with-your-free-windows-10-license Except there is no phone activation and there won't be. If you phone up, you'll be told to buy a Windows 10 license, which currently costs £100 for Home and £190 for Pro. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rasteri Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 As someone who still kind-of resents having to upgrade from Windows 95 to 98, I'm sticking with 7 until I'm physically forced to change. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 I'm sure there will be a way around it, there always is. Just buy an iPad Pro instead Steve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted September 9, 2015 Author Share Posted September 9, 2015 Yes, today is the day that all the Apple fans can start liking the Microsoft Surface, now that there's one with an Apple logo on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frost Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 The problem with this is, if you upgrade certain components in your PC, or you have to replace them because they break - the motherboard, for example - that will cause Windows 10 to deactivate, as replacing a major component makes it think "hey, this isn't the same machine!". Until August 2016 you can get around this by reinstalling Windows 7 or 8.1, then upgrading to 10, as the free upgrade offer will still be on. After that though, you will have to pay for a Windows 10 license. This has been the case since, to my knowledge, Vista. Having worked as someone selling machines at that time and since. I'm not sure why this is suddenly news now? This may suggest why journalists aren't mentioning it (although they probably should be!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted September 9, 2015 Author Share Posted September 9, 2015 With previous versions of Windows, you could use telephone activation to reactivate your install after making a hardware change. It was an automated system where you phoned up and typed in your license key. I've had to do it a few times myself. Now when you phone up, you'll be told you need to buy a new license. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frost Posted September 11, 2015 Share Posted September 11, 2015 Correct, but the automated service didn't/doesn't always work unfortunately. Especially a pain for corporate key machines. This is also a bit dodgy: http://www.pcgamer.com/windows-10-is-sneaking-onto-new-windows-7-and-8-installs-without-permission/ For people who only have a small data allowance, this could cost! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted September 11, 2015 Author Share Posted September 11, 2015 At least if the automated service didn't work, you could speak to a customer service advisor or use the online chat. The issue there wasn't a matter of policy like it is with Windows 10. And yeah, they shouldn't be forcing the Windows 10 download on people that didn't reserve it. If people want to stay on Windows 7 or 8.1, that's up to them. I can appreciate MS wanting to push as many people to upgrade as possible, but that isn't the right way to do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted October 13, 2015 Author Share Posted October 13, 2015 Microsoft have finally addressed this in the latest preview build of Windows 10, so you can now use a key from Windows 7, 8 or 8.1 to activate Windows 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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