Free Upgrade Ends

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Microsoft has stated that the free upgrade eligibility to Windows 10 will end on July 29, 2016. After that, it will cost USD $119 to upgrade…

Does that finally mean that those of us that do not want this upgrade or can not successfully upgrade to Windows 10 can finally get on with business as usual after this date, without having to jump through hoops to avoid this potentially unwanted upgrade?

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One hopes.

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WS Loungers have described how to download an install version of Windows 10, to, say, a memory stick.

If I were to do that, but to delay actually installing Win 10 until some date after 29 Jul 16, would my upgrade still be free-of-charge? In other words, is the critical date the date that I download Win 10, or the date that I activate it? At present, I am a contented Win 7 Pro 64-bit user, but I’m probably going to have to go to Win 10 sooner or later.

Dell E5570 Latitude, Intel Core i5 6440@2.60 GHz, 8.00 GB - Win 10 Pro

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That would be my guess, but I’m not letting down my guard.

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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Microsoft has stated that the free upgrade eligibility to Windows 10 will end on July 29, 2016. After that, it will cost USD $119 to upgrade…

Does that finally mean that those of us that do not want this upgrade or can not successfully upgrade to Windows 10 can finally get on with business as usual after this date, without having to jump through hoops to avoid this potentially unwanted upgrade?

That would be my guess, but I’m not letting down my guard.

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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My understanding is the transformation must occur by July 29th. But you can image your present drive, swap the OS, then image that, then re-image your old setup and be ready to go if you decide much later to swap to Win10.

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According to Microsoft when you upgrade and get the digital entitlement that entitlement for that PC is permanently recorded in your Microsoft account. So, the successful upgrade is the key. It needs to be done before July 29.

Also, according to Microsoft they will gradually withdraw the GWX functionality after July 29. Once removed there should not be any more nagging to upgrade via GWX. That does not mean there won’t be ads or banners urging you to go to Win10.

--Joe

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According to Microsoft when you upgrade and get the digital entitlement that entitlement for that PC is permanently recorded in your Microsoft account. So, the successful upgrade is the key. It needs to be done before July 29.

Also, according to Microsoft they will gradually withdraw the GWX functionality after July 29. Once removed there should not be any more nagging to upgrade via GWX. That does not mean there won’t be ads or banners urging you to go to Win10.

Is this the same as the Microsoft account (vs local account) that you create when you are setting up a new user account in Windows?

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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The same Microsoft account you use when you upgrade and login to Win10.

--Joe

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The same Microsoft account you use when you upgrade and login to Win10.

What if you have a local account, not a Microsoft account?

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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What if you have a local account, not a Microsoft account?

The activation is based/stored on what Microsoft calls a “digital entitlement” (i.e. whether the device has an authenticated pre-qualifying activation from W7 or W8.1) rather than whatever user account (MS or local) that you use to log in to that device.

At the moment there is no clear information from MS whether, for example, using a pre-saved GenuineTicket will let you Clean Install Windows 10 Directly without having to Upgrade First after July 29.

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I would advise that if at some future date after the July 29 cutoff date you might want to upgrade to Windows 10, first make a current and complete drive image of your now-favorite Windows 0S. Next, go ahead and go through the upgrade process to Windows 10 and check to make certain that it is indeed activated before the cutoff date. That will give your PC a “Windows 10 Activated Installation” machine ID in Microsoft’s database. Then restore your drive image of your current-favorite Windows OS and go about your merry way.

I would caution, however, that if at some point in the future you might choose to upgrade some hardware, I would restore the Windows 10 installation to get that hardware change recognized and duly activated, and then go back to your other OS.

Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!

We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do with our systems; we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things.

We were all once "Average Users".

Computer Specs

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Oops. My bad. Your digital entitlement is saved by Microsoft independent of any account information.

--Joe

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