A Year Later, You Can Still Upgrade to Windows 10 for Free

[AntiShill]

Jellybean keyfinder will find the windows key.simple tool..

That tool works for windows 7 and earlier, but finds absolutely nothing useful with windows 10. And you have to be careful with the search results for that, some of those downloads come with malware and other trouble.

 

[AntiShill]

I had a boot disk crash after upgrading to Windows 10. With a new boot disk I found I couldn't use the same key even though the old installation was completely gone and I was the 'owner'. Microsoft refused to issue a new key without paying. The key is now linked to the drive it is installed on, not the user! So beware when you upgrade you lose the right to transfer the operating system to a new disk without buying another licence.

The windows 10 key is never linked to disk. I've done more than a few HDD to SSD migrations for myself, relative, friends, and work machines. The key is bound to the motherboard. I've swapped CPUs and not trigger the activation, go from i5 to i7, core 2 duo to core 2 quads, phenom 2 to FX-pile_of_______, etc, windows 10 does NOT care. But the moment the mobo is swapped, I've replaced mobos on latops and desktop systems, and that when the key activation issue is triggered.

However in the case of motheboard swap, if you do NOT want to call Microsoft, and you have a valid windows 7 key and you are not transitioning to the newer kabylakes, ryzens or whatever Microsoft has chosen to forbid for upgrades (since they technically didn't exist prior to windows 10), just reinstall windows 7, do the windows 10 update like this article indicates, and I don't believe there should be any issues for your conscience. Mobo swap reusing your old CPU, GPU, SSD, HDD, etc. should be fair game.

 

[AntiShill]

If I upgrade my Windows 7 to Windows 10, can I go back to 7 in case I don't like 10?

You get 30 days to use the Windows 10 revert option. The windows 7 key is still valid if you want to reinstall your system.

The side benefit is that should choose to go to windows 10 on that same system (really meaning the same mobo) in the future, assuming you had activated windows 10 in the process, you will have a valid windows 10 key already waiting.

But the better option for reverting is to use something like Acronis and clone your disk before you upgrade, so you are not limited to the 30 days for reverting.

 

[AntiShill]

Any OS can be adjusted. MIcrosoft made Windows 10 harder to adjust.

In dealing with system software thru the years, whether as a software engineer or helping friends, family do builds, there has NOT been one OS that has been painless in the upgrade process. It is the same for Unix systems be it Android, MacOsX(darwin), linux of the infinite varieties, etc., there are always some changes to mess with people, a learning curve. I suppose this way you won't get alzheimer's. The most annoying ones, are the stupid cosmetic changes and just change for change's sake that gets zero functionality gains.

FWIW, I am not sure microsoft has made it any harder than any transition in the past, be it 98 to 2K, XP to 7, etc. But what microsoft did this time with windows 10, is that they have been extremely pushy. I much rather do these updates and upgrade on my schedule and not theirs, but lately I've had to help more than a few with the windows 10 creator update breaking stuff. It seems Microsoft has decided that using customers/users as guinea pigs for beta testing is now the thing to do. That just seems insane. That is probably why the upgrade is still free. They do this so they can fix the problems before they push it on their corporate enterprise accounts, probably that is where they are getting the top dollars.

 

[dob_1]

The windows 10 key is never linked to disk. I've done more than a few HDD to SSD migrations for myself, relative, friends, and work machines. The key is bound to the motherboard. I've swapped CPUs and not trigger the activation, go from i5 to i7, core 2 duo to core 2 quads, phenom 2 to FX-pile_of_______, etc, windows 10 does NOT care. But the moment the mobo is swapped, I've replaced mobos on latops and desktop systems, and that when the key activation issue is triggered.

However in the case of motheboard swap, if you do NOT want to call Microsoft, and you have a valid windows 7 key and you are not transitioning to the newer kabylakes, ryzens or whatever Microsoft has chosen to forbid for upgrades (since they technically didn't exist prior to windows 10), just reinstall windows 7, do the windows 10 update like this article indicates, and I don't believe there should be any issues for your conscience. Mobo swap reusing your old CPU, GPU, SSD, HDD, etc. should be fair game.

All I know is that Microsoft themselves told me the licence was linked to the disk. I had not exchanged the motherboard or anything else, only the boot drive and they refused to honor the license, insisting I buy a new one as they told me the license was tied to the disk. I also tried a number of unused Windows 7 keys that had been purchased by the company of a friend. They would not work either. In the end I was able to reformat the 'failed' boot drive and reuse it. With exactly the same hardware the license was accepted.

 

[dob_1]

The windows 10 key is never linked to disk. I've done more than a few HDD to SSD migrations for myself, relative, friends, and work machines. The key is bound to the motherboard. I've swapped CPUs and not trigger the activation, go from i5 to i7, core 2 duo to core 2 quads, phenom 2 to FX-pile_of_______, etc, windows 10 does NOT care. .

Yes I have done migrations from HDD to SSD on boot drives and they worked. But this was a crashed boot drive with a fresh install on another drive. Microsoft insisted the license was tied to the disk and would not honour my old license even though that instance of the OS could not longer run.

 

[yukka]

Ok I may upgrade my desktop. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[hahahanoobs]

"For those of you holding out because of Windows 10's data collection, we get it, but more than two dozen telemetry-related updates have been released for Windows 7 and 8, so they're hardly safe havens at this point."

Shhhh. People actually think they are safe...

 

[senketsu]

I still install Windows 10 everyday, well 5 days a week

actually I do too, except it is on the same computer. Damn you Windows 10, damn you to hell!

actually I'm impressed that I have used it so long and haven't had to reinstall. Usually the longer and more you use windows it starts not to work well and would end in a reformat. Haven't had this problem with 10. Your mileage may vary.

 

[Reehahs]

actually I do too, except it is on the same computer. Damn you Windows 10, damn you to hell!

actually I'm impressed that I have used it so long and haven't had to reinstall. Usually the longer and more you use windows it starts not to work well and would end in a reformat. Haven't had this problem with 10. Your mileage may vary.

I only had to reinstall it once since first installation, that was due to very sticky virus that resided in the audio drivers that was not possible to remove with numerous methods.

 

[reproductor]

Windows 10 has build releases - after Creators Update 1703 in April 2017 can no longer change the size of just Desktop Icon text. Either leave as is or magnify everything. I was pissed and rolled it back only to encounter errors such as eight Windows Apps no longer opening. I had to do a Repair Install using a previously saved Windows 10 1607 ISO/DVD.
My other machine is on the Insider program - I earned a free Windows 10 Activation for that - and it's downloading a new build every week. This machine, I simply bought a transferable Windows 7 OA COA from a valid US seller and upgraded it.

 

[Happy Mouse]

I am a video game programmer and IT technician of many years. Windows 10 does have bloatware they push and some abundance of communication in the background that doesn't need to be there but overall it's a good and stable OS. I created some batch files to go through and cleanup some of the settings, remove bloatware, and much more. I use these scripts on all Win10 machines I encounter with my job and they work well, although I add and remove things all the time. Anybody who is interested in checking out my cleanup scripts can ask, and I'll send you a copy. I also have tons of experience with Win10 issues if anybody has questions. As a side note: Never run random batch files without looking them over first! I expect people to at least be cautious of my files, although I can guarantee they are safe. Look me up on Facebook by searching for "PCcloud9 Tech News & Tips".

It's a solid OS, it just needs some tweaks!

I am interested in checking out your cleanup scripts please send me a copy. I have tried a few " windows powershell" tweaks that have helped, but I would love to see if I did it right. Thanks bunch. I have disabled Cortana but lots of crap still in there. LOL

 

[Danny101]

In dealing with system software thru the years, whether as a software engineer or helping friends, family do builds, there has NOT been one OS that has been painless in the upgrade process. It is the same for Unix systems be it Android, MacOsX(darwin), linux of the infinite varieties, etc., there are always some changes to mess with people, a learning curve. I suppose this way you won't get alzheimer's. The most annoying ones, are the stupid cosmetic changes and just change for change's sake that gets zero functionality gains.

FWIW, I am not sure microsoft has made it any harder than any transition in the past, be it 98 to 2K, XP to 7, etc. But what microsoft did this time with windows 10, is that they have been extremely pushy. I much rather do these updates and upgrade on my schedule and not theirs, but lately I've had to help more than a few with the windows 10 creator update breaking stuff. It seems Microsoft has decided that using customers/users as guinea pigs for beta testing is now the thing to do. That just seems insane. That is probably why the upgrade is still free. They do this so they can fix the problems before they push it on their corporate enterprise accounts, probably that is where they are getting the top dollars.

They definitely made the important settings harder to find. For the everyday person who don't delve into the inner workings I suppose it is better for them that the updates are a bit forced, at least the security stuff. As for power users and those who know what they're doing, then it is right to put out by it. As for me, I'll be looking into Linux more and will be setting up dual boot installations. Windows will be a glorified gaming machine while Linux will be where I'll get real work done. Unfortunately, in the laptop realm, it'll have to be Windows for my job. It's the only thing the software supports.