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Free Windows 10 Upgrade @ Microsoft (Previous Installation/Licence Required)

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nocure on 23/10/2020 - 15:50 microsoft.com (4383 clicks)
Last edited 26/10/2020 - 17:40 by 1 other user
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For those who haven't upgraded here's a reminder. All credit to kimba88 for the previous post

Support for Windows 7 is now officially over, which means Microsoft wants holdouts to upgrade to Windows 10 to keep devices running securely and smoothly. If you have an older PC or laptop still running Windows 7, you can purchase the Windows 10 Home operating system on Microsoft's website for $225. But you don't necessarily have to shell out the cash: A free upgrade offer from Microsoft that technically ended in 2016 still works.

Here's how to get Windows 10 for free, if you're currently running a licensed and activated copy of Windows 7, Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 Home or Pro:

  • Go to the Download Windows 10 website.
  • Under Create Windows 10 installation media, click Download tool now and Run.
  • Choose Upgrade this PC now, assuming this is the only PC you're upgrading. (If you're upgrading a different machine, choose Create installation media for another PC, and save the installation files.)
  • Follow the prompts.

When the upgrade is complete, go to Settings Update & Security > Activation, and you should see a digital license for Windows 10."

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Comments

  • [Deactivated] on 23/10/2020 - 15:52
    -4

    Couldn’t get this to work with an OEM DELL W7 licence on Oracle VirtualBox. Ymmv.

    • Vool on 23/10/2020 - 16:20
      +15

      I've upgraded a lot of Dell machines from W7, never had an issue. I assume the VM is where the issue is.

      • capslock janitor on 23/10/2020 - 18:52
        -1

        I STILL PREFER A T420 WITH WIN7 IF I CAN GET A GOOD ONE …

        • mja1986 on 23/10/2020 - 19:53
          +3

          Check eBay, people still older ThinkPads on there all the time

    • blorx on 23/10/2020 - 17:12

      I upgraded my Dell XPS (sheldon cooper) version from XP to 7 to 8 to 10 swapping from 32bit to 64bit along the way just last month with license to swap into my pc build, and ditch the 12-14yo lappie. YMMV

      • humptydumpty on 23/10/2020 - 17:31

        blorx, how did you get from XP to 7?

        • blorx on 23/10/2020 - 17:38
          +1

          I have some legit media laying about - 2 copies of 7, 1x8, 1x8.1.

          • [Deactivated] on 23/10/2020 - 17:40
            +7

            @blorx: You don’t even need legit media, just the oem sticker from trashed devices…

        • rifter on 30/10/2020 - 21:26

          SLIC

      • Zackeroo on 24/10/2020 - 17:51
        +1

        Wow… What specifications did that laptop have?? (RAM, CPU in particular)

    • rimwar on 23/10/2020 - 17:27
      +1

      I am Guessing its because of the way the Authorization windows 10 Locks to your hardware ID of you Motherboard. I am guessing the VM doesn't passthrough the Hardware Id of your host machine.

      • [Deactivated] on 23/10/2020 - 17:36
        +3

        Yeah. I’ve just installed W10 and not activated it. According to heidoc.net it’s completely legal.

        • Naigrabzo on 24/10/2020 - 13:10

          ya it will nag but still work AFAIK.

    • HeWhoKnows on 24/10/2020 - 12:42

      Must be a Dell Computer.
      You may need to input the Windows 7 key attached to the side of the Dell PC
      Not required when upgrading HP Win 7 PCs

    • McOzbargainer on 25/10/2020 - 08:00

      Note that it is an OEM licence as you said. It will only work on that machine. Not a VM, not another computer, that machine and only that machine

  • superforever on 23/10/2020 - 15:55
    +26

    Have been doing it for months, I think Microsoft never stop allowing people to free upgrade from win7.

    • Drakesy on 23/10/2020 - 15:58
      +16

      Agreed, they put a value on the upgrade to make people think they're getting something for free. It really is in Microsoft's best interest to get everyone onto 10 so they can phase out w7 faster.

      • Ezekiel2320 on 23/10/2020 - 16:04
        +37

        It's mostly about spying on your data and shoving ads into your personal computer

        • Sleuth on 23/10/2020 - 16:11
          +12

          "…and all I've done is enter my name!"

        • PainToad on 23/10/2020 - 16:20
          +1

          It's mostly about spying on your data and shoving ads into your personal computer

          PSA about Windows LTSC. If I ran Windows, that's the version I'd be using.

          • Gnostikos on 23/10/2020 - 18:08
            +9

            @PainToad: Yeah LTSC/Enterprise editions do offer a little more control over disabling opt-in telemetry settings, data-slurping and additional bloatware but you can never disable all of that crap completely without basically trashing your install (popular tools like ShutUp 10 and workarounds like hosts file editing also don't stop all connection attempts and are just as liable to break a lot of necessary functionality; not to mention these solutions are temporary at best and are often completely circumvented/undone by MS in future feature upgrades or updates).

            Also, those editions are pretty difficult to a get a hold of (legitimately) for private, non-commercial usage as they're exclusively resold through volume licensing reseller channels.

            Such is and always has been the nature of Windows 10 from its inception. It's built from the ground-up to phone home to Redmond (and God knows who else) about anything and everything you might be doing. Even a fresh install of Window 10 Enterprise that sits there doing nothing for 8 hours will quietly make over 5,000 connection attempts to 93 different IP addresses, a good portion of which are not publicly known to belong to Microsoft (and that's with all of the opt-in telemetry settings disabled).

            If you really care about privacy, switch to a decent Linux distro.

          • Bunnyburger on 23/10/2020 - 18:11
            +1

            @PainToad: LTSC is a bitch in the sense you can't install stuff from the Windows App Store. Would you happen to know a workaround? I've been looking everywhere

          • Ostrich on 23/10/2020 - 18:11
            -2

            @PainToad: LTSC is the only version of Win10 i would use!

          • Ostrich on 23/10/2020 - 18:12
            +2

            @PainToad: You can easily install Windows store on LTSC.

            https://github.com/kkkgo/LTSC-Add-MicrosoftStore

            Works great

            • Bunnyburger on 29/10/2020 - 12:16
              +1

              @Ostrich: Thanks Ostrich, I bet talk of you sticking your head in a hole is just a myth, after all you stood up and helped me :3

          • Agret on 05/11/2020 - 02:35

            @PainToad: I don't recommend it, they base it off a certain Windows 10 build and then just maintain it for the next couple of years. Any build specific issues won't be fixed and you to put up with a ton of known bugs, meanwhile if you were using retail branch you would have a Windows Update resolve it for you.

            We have legal LTSB/LTSC at work and I based a couple of system images off it and it really becomes a pain in the ass to maintain it when you know there are things you can't fix.

        • Wally on 23/10/2020 - 16:25
          -1

          which means Win 10 meets the industry definition for malware/virus

          • Clear on 23/10/2020 - 18:50
            +1

            @Wally: Funny enough it's the one version I've rarely seen get infected.

        • frewer on 23/10/2020 - 19:29

          Is there a way to stop that ?

      • HeWhoKnows on 24/10/2020 - 12:43
        +1

        Win 7 has not been supported since Jan 2020.
        i.e Its phased out already from thier point of view

    • BenMHarvey on 23/10/2020 - 16:19

      They never stopped doing the upgrade so this isn't really anything new

      • jcon on 23/10/2020 - 16:21
        +2

        They've changed the way to do it a few times so it's helpful.

    • Beanvee on 23/10/2020 - 17:55

      Technically it activates but is not considered a 'valid' license, for consumers that doesn't really mean anything. They won't come after you.
      But if you do the upgrade outside of the valid offer period as a business, they could potentially ask you to pony up.
      Kind of like how Oracle will let anyone install and use Java for free, but if you use it for commercial purposes they can slap you with fines for not licensing it.

      • superforever on 23/10/2020 - 17:58

        I think MS only once have an official period for the free upgrade.

        But if you do the upgrade outside of the valid offer period as a business

      • dlovep on 27/10/2020 - 21:13

        for the java bit not technical correct, if you use OpenJDK I dont think Oracle can charge you anything. see here

        Oracle JDK was licensed under Oracle Binary Code License Agreement, whereas OpenJDK has the GNU General Public License (GNU GPL) version 2 with a linking exception.

    • Menzoberranzan on 23/10/2020 - 22:21

      For ages. I got a cheap W7 key off Ebay a couple years back and got it upgraded to W10 for free

  • MSG on 23/10/2020 - 15:59
    +9

    Thanks, finally I can upgrade from Windows XP

    • muwu on 23/10/2020 - 16:11
      +12

      I read that as

      …finally I can upgrade from Windows 😝

      • bluebo on 24/10/2020 - 01:54

        would upgrading to linux count?

    • Logical on 23/10/2020 - 16:13

      I still have win98 on my Dell latitude c640 notebook from way back…. still working so I will try an update tonight.

      • MiscOzB on 23/10/2020 - 16:54
        +4

        That's probably far too old for Win 10

        • FireRunner on 23/10/2020 - 17:51

          I tried upgrading a Windows Vista Laptop to Windows 10. It actually worked but ran so slow it was basically unusable. Can’t image a 98 era machine even working

          • superforever on 23/10/2020 - 17:59

            @FireRunner:

            I tried upgrading a Windows Vista Laptop to Windows 10

            Not free, right? I never heard they have free Vista to Win10 upgrade.

            Fresh reinstall Win10 and upgrade SSD, it will fly.

            • FireRunner on 23/10/2020 - 18:19

              @superforever: Used the Windows 7 key from another broken laptop. It was a fresh install on an SSD, hardware is just too old

          • afoveht on 23/10/2020 - 18:26
            +1

            @FireRunner:

            Can’t image a 98 era machine even working

            I have an old Gateway laptop from 1999 with Win98 that I pull out every now and then - never been upgraded our serviced. I have some development tools that require 98 and an LPT port that I sometimes need to work on legacy products. The thing still works great, I just bypass the clock error at boot and off I go. When I'm done back in the drawer it goes till next time.

            • FireRunner on 23/10/2020 - 18:29

              @afoveht: I meant working with Windows 10

            • [Deactivated] on 23/10/2020 - 18:44

              @afoveht:

              sometimes need to work on legacy products

              Yeah? What sort of products do you use?(curious!)

      • misfitt1911 on 23/10/2020 - 17:08

        Since you mentioned Windows 98, did you know that someone is still pushing unofficial Windows 98 service packs? :)

        • AlexF on 23/10/2020 - 18:29

          and.. some automation may still be relying on DOS. Pre-NT was mostly offline - with air gap, little need for security.

  • Sammy Boi on 23/10/2020 - 16:00
    +2

    I remember getting a free upgrade to windows 10 from a bootleg copy of Windows 7
    Well technically the copy was legit but the serial wasn't

    Thanks Bill

    • t_c on 23/10/2020 - 16:29

      Bill thanks you, as shown by all the popular free apps, fb, insta etc, having more users that use your product may be more valuable than just selling a one time licence

    • hollykryten on 23/10/2020 - 16:45

      The copy isn't legit if the serial number wasn't.

      • Sammy Boi on 23/10/2020 - 23:54
        +1

        Have you ever used windows un activated?

        • hollykryten on 24/10/2020 - 11:13

          No. But at least that's legit as it's a trial mode. Using a pirated serial key isn't and then using that to get a free Windows 10 upgrade doesn't make the upgrade legit. Therefore technically the installation is not legit if you had no legit purchased license.

          • Sammy Boi on 24/10/2020 - 12:32
            +1

            @hollykryten: You basically just contradicted your own statement…

            "Therefore technically the installation is not legit"

            Please don't use the word technically when you're incorrect XD

            • hollykryten on 24/10/2020 - 14:37

              @Sammy Boi: I'm not incorrect and i'm not contradicting any thing. According to the EULA if you don't use a validly licensed product key then you don't get to have a legit installation copy on the computer. And if you do use a pirated product key then the installation is not valid therefore not a valid copy. It's all invalid according to the EULA. And i'm not talking about the trial mode as that's obviously legit. I'm not condoning Windows piracy.

              So you don't seem to understand that the license is the key to having a right to install and use the software. You can't say that you used a pirated product key and then say that the software installation was legit. You had no licensing right to use the software and so not a valid copy.

              • Sammy Boi on 24/10/2020 - 14:48

                @hollykryten: I'd love to see the part of the EULA that corresponds to the words you've written

                And the windows 10 upgrade was perfectly legit Microsoft could detect what I was doing and they gave me a legit windows 10 upgrade
                again thanks Bill

                Let me put this in a technical term if I install Windows downloaded from Microsofts own website it is a legit install

                Unless the disk image is modified you are incorrect

                • parad0x on 26/10/2020 - 03:47
                  -1

                  @Sammy Boi:

                  I'd love to see the part of the EULA that corresponds to the words you've written

                  You've clearly never read the EULA.

                  Please don't correct people on their use of "technically" when you yourself are simply stating your own unsubstantiated thoughts and opinions, and they're correct in their understanding of the actual facts. After all, the definition of the word is "according to the facts"…

                  And here are those facts you requested to see;

                  2. Installation and Use Rights.

                  a. License.
                  The software is licensed, not sold.
                  <snipped for brevity>
                  Updating or upgrading from non-genuine software with software from Microsoft or authorized sources does not make your original version or the updated/upgraded version genuine, and in that situation, you do not have a license to use the software.

                  5. Authorized Software and Activation.
                  You are authorized to use this software only if you are properly licensed and the software has been properly activated with a genuine product key or by other authorized method.
                  <irrelevant info snipped for brevity>
                  Successful activation does not confirm that the software is genuine or properly licensed.

                  • Sammy Boi on 26/10/2020 - 13:14

                    @parad0x: Successful activation does not confirm that the software is genuine or properly licensed

                    HAHAHAHAHAHA

                    I'm glad I didn't read it

                    A genuine product key doesn't mean that the copy installed wasn't genuine before it was activated or one was applied

                    It may go away over your head but people do use modified containers

    • MitchyD1989 on 23/10/2020 - 21:37

      I got the same lol. Was naive and bought a cheap Win 7 Ultimate DVD on eBay, thought it was all legit at the time. Activated fine but a few years later it suddenly revoked and I was getting alerts about using a non-genuine version of Windows.

      But shortly after that Windows 10 released and it let me upgrade for free without a hitch, which gave me a genuine digital license.

      • Sammy Boi on 23/10/2020 - 23:56

        That's basically what happened with me

        And I noticed in the past windows would tell you it's not genuine even if it was just a legit copy not activated even if It didn't have anything dodgy to bypass Windows activation

        • Sammy Boi on 24/10/2020 - 12:34

          I can install Windows 7 with no serial anything I do later doesn't affect the fact the install was legit and was an authentic copy of Windows

  • Francis82 on 23/10/2020 - 16:05
    +3

    Done it yesterday free from a youtube video ,had the windows 7 key on bottom of laptop,but never even asked for it , should have done it years ago and I'm a novice with computers.

    • Francis82 on 23/10/2020 - 16:12
      +1

      Also upgraded hd too samsung evo ssd just before installed windows 10 from watching another youtube video. Saved myself $300 from local computer shop prices to do both and bought the ssd myself,about 2-3hrs it took all up,pretty much all just loading times

      • Fobsessive on 24/10/2020 - 13:00

        $300 quote to install an SSD and download W10?!

        • Francis82 on 25/10/2020 - 00:04

          $400 the quotes where ,I took off 100 because I bought the ssd myself and the sata to usb lead

  • smurfstah on 23/10/2020 - 16:05

    Anyone know of a way to upgrade from Win10 Home to Pro for free?

    • Clear on 23/10/2020 - 16:07

      Oh there are ways that OzBargain would not allow 😉

      • smurfstah on 23/10/2020 - 16:13

        hook a brutha up haha :D

    • Mibo on 23/10/2020 - 16:15
      +2

      coughHWIDGENcough

    • G-rig on 23/10/2020 - 16:49
      +1

      ebay $5 lol

    • superforever on 23/10/2020 - 17:31

      Anyone know of a way to upgrade from Win10 Home to Pro for free?

      If you have an old Win7 pro key around.

      • smurfstah on 23/10/2020 - 18:18

        One thing I dont have unfortunately :)

    • twjr on 23/10/2020 - 21:36

      If you've got access to an education email you can get win 10 education for free.

  • jackwoz on 23/10/2020 - 16:07
    +4

    Can i upgrade from my Windows 3.1 license to Windows 10

    • ThePasserby on 23/10/2020 - 16:13
      +3

      I believe you'll have some issues finding ISA bus drivers.
      But give it a go…

    • EightImmortals on 23/10/2020 - 16:14
      +1

      Only if you have the original floppys.

      • Ozpit on 24/10/2020 - 08:54
        +1

        Given that a 3.5” floppy can hold approx 1.4mb, and that the latest version of 64-bit Windows 10 needs 20gb of hard drive, it will take around 14,285 floppies to do the install. I suggest jackwoz take some serious long service leave before embarking on his upgrade.

        • EightImmortals on 24/10/2020 - 18:23

          Pretty sure I still have a Windows 95 set of floppies somewhere, that was a heap too.

  • Balls on 23/10/2020 - 16:08
    +11

    you can just install fresh windows 10 then plug in a windows 7 or 8 key no problem

    • spacebanana on 23/10/2020 - 16:10
      +3

      This.
      Works a charm!

    • Surtr on 23/10/2020 - 16:25
      +8

      This actually worked, I have a Windows 7 Pro key that I had from TAFE 7 years ago, I thought I had to installed Win7 first, license, then upgrade to Win 10 for free.

      But your method literally just worked as Ive tested it now, entered the Win7Pro key, accepted it, restarted PC, now shows Windows 10 Pro activated

      Thanks so much!!

    • Benmc on 23/10/2020 - 16:47

      Where did you download the fresh full windows 10 installation files from?

      Is that the "create installation media" option?

      • superforever on 23/10/2020 - 17:32
        +2

        Is that the "create installation media" option?

        Use it to create USB.

  • Baron-K on 23/10/2020 - 16:10
    +1

    The old man's pc is on windows 7 and the spinning rust drive is slow as hell. Would the best approach be: extract activation key > fresh install windows 10 on SSD > enter activation key?

    • Jamiea on 23/10/2020 - 16:27

      Yes that should work

    • jackwoz on 23/10/2020 - 17:09
      +1

      Or the quick and dirty method, just clone as is to a SSD

    • jv on 23/10/2020 - 17:33
      +1

      It depends on the licence used to install it in the first place.

      If it was an OEM licence, it might not activate.

      • greatlamp on 23/10/2020 - 20:43

        In that case better to upgrade to windows 10, then fresh install on an ssd with no key

        Windows will automatically activate based on the hardware

        • Fobsessive on 24/10/2020 - 13:10

          First obtain a copy of the original W7 serial just in case

    • pongky on 29/10/2020 - 09:11

      I did just that last week! Had an old Dell i7 lying around from 2009 and bought a 250GB SSD just to see how fast it can run on fresh W10. Lucky for me the serial # is on a sticker on the case so I just plugged that in when setting up windows for the first time (using a bootable USB) and voila! Works great and fast

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