How To Upgrade Windows 8 To Windows 10 For Free 2020

Now that you have successfully upgraded to 10 and system properties says activated, you can now do a clean install of windows 10 using the media creation tool mentioned above. Just dont forget to backup your important files because this will wipe everything, hopefully taking all of the bugs with it. I'd also make sure you are on the latest bios for your machine.

Once your system is shown as activated in the win 10 system, you can reinstall as much as you want unless u change your motherboard or change the majority of hardware that was installed when you upgraded. Windows 10 uses your system hardware to create a "FINGERPRINT" of sorts of our system. If too many items change, you may have to re-activate.

At that time you will need a windows 10 serial number . I've found that changing the motherboard is the key hardware change that will de activate your system. Even if you're running good and decide to upgrade your motherboard, you'll probably lose your activation. You could always do a clean install of windows 7 or 8 using the serial number on your computer.

Once that is activated through Microsoft, you can then upgrade again to Microsoft Win 10 for free and Microsoft will remember your change/update. When installing clean from the media tool, when it asks for serial number or product key, just skip that part. Once online, Microsoft will activate your Win 10 automatically without entering a product key.

Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1 users will find instructions to show how to use a media creation tool to download windows 10 Microsoft. Before even starting the process, users should make sure that they have approximately 4GB of free space and only then follow each step attentively to avoid any issues and successfully update their operating systems. Windows 10, a newly released Windows operating system, is familiar to Windows 7, 8 users and with many improved and innovated features.

With its extraordinary compatibility, any computer runs Win 7 or Win 8 or 8.1 can easily upgrade to Windows 10, and all the files and programs you have installed are available after upgrading. What's more, Win7 or Win8.1 user can free upgrade to Windows 10 within one year and access to free lifetime updates. Microsoft has addressed how to upgrade Windows 7, 8 to windows 10.

However, free upgrade for XP system is not coming along with it, and Microsoft is working with its partners to develop. Following the unveiling of Windows 8, Microsoft faced criticism for mandating that devices receiving its optional certification for Windows 8 have secure boot enabled by default using a key provided by Microsoft. Concerns were raised that secure boot could prevent or hinder the use of alternate operating systems such as Linux. It also revealed that ARM devices would be required to have secure boot permanently enabled, with no way for users to disable it. Older blog but I will take a chance and post my problem. One partition is windows 10 Home 64bit and the other is windows 10 pro 32 bit.

When I had a hardware failure I replaced the mainboard with a board that was very close to the original in the sense of chipsets and CPU. Used my original Graphics card , FAXmodem , Hard drives, and memory. When I powered the system I went to the 64 bit partition first. It activated using the "replace hardware recently" option. I have a second retail win 7pro disc package with valid key but when I enter it, It just keeps saying I can't have two different versions on the same machine basically. We upgraded from Windows 7 to 10 late on October 22, 2019 with no problems on my SSD boot drive .

From starting the process to seeing the Windows 10 splash screen for multiple users it took one hour and 30 minutes; including the initial small download and the following large download from Microsoft. Quite frankly many of my apps seem snappier in response and performance. Many of these features were adopted from Windows Phone. Windows 8 added support for USB 3.0, Advanced Format hard drives, near field communications, and cloud computing. Additional security features were introduced, such as built-in antivirus software, integration with Microsoft SmartScreen phishing filtering service and support for UEFI Secure Boot on supported devices.

After the installation process is complete, you will need to activate Windows 10. For that, connect your machine to the internet and go to Windows Update and then Activation. Your PC will be activated with a digital license. There is another option in case online activation does not work.

You can enter the license key that you got with your copy of Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 and manually activate your Windows 10 from the Activation portal. If your Windows 7 or Windows 8 license is not activated and you are not interested in purchasing a license, then your options are limited. Microsoft offers a 90 day trial of its Windows 10 Enterprise edition. Windows 10 Enterprise is normally distributed under Microsoft's volume license program for large organizations that deploy Windows 10 in bulk. It's a full-featured edition of the operating system but in this case, it's really an evaluation version of the software.

Users must register before they can download and install the software. This option is perfect for those users who are running Windows Vista or never had a genuine license, to begin with. When you do the in-place upgrade, your product key is converted to digital entitlement and uploaded to Microsoft's cloud servers. You can then wipe your drive and do a clean install of Windows 10. When you reinstall Windows 10 you'll get to a screen that asks for your product key.

Just click on the 'I don't have a product key' link on the bottom of the screen. Once the installation is complete, Windows will automatically activate the first time your system gets online. Reviews of the various editions of Windows 8 were mixed to negative. In contrast, an ExtremeTech article said it was Microsoft "flailing" and a review in PC Magazine condemned the Metro-style user interface. Some of the included apps in Windows 8 were considered to be basic and lacking in functionality, but the Xbox apps were praised for their promotion of a multi-platform entertainment experience. Other improvements and features were also regarded as positive changes.

After the deadline, only critical security updates were to be released for users on these platforms. Windows 8.1 remains officially unsupported on all newer CPU families, and neither AMD or Intel will provide official chipset drivers for Windows operating systems other than Windows 10. However, on August 2016, Microsoft again extended the Skylake support policy until the end of support for Windows 7 and 8.1 . At the bottom of the next screen you should see Windows is Activated, if you do not see this click on "Change product key" enter your windows 8 license key and follow the steps to activate windows 10.

Can I Upgrade Windows 8 To Windows 11 For Free It may take some time in downloading Windows 10 files from the internet. So it depends on your internet speed that how much time will it take. If you are using a pirated or cracked version then it may ask you to enter the product key. Otherwise it will not ask for any product / license key and upgrade process will go smoothly.

After completion of download, click on the 'Install' button. For one, you can download what is known as a Windows 10 media creation tool and run an "in place" upgrade. If instead you prefer a "clean installation," all your files and applications will be deleted. We have an extensive tutorial on how to use the Windows 10 media creation tool showing all detailed steps. Windows 8 provides heavier integration with online services from Microsoft and others.

A user can now log into Windows with a Microsoft account, which can be used to access services and synchronize applications and settings between devices. Windows 8 also ships with a client app for Microsoft's SkyDrive cloud storage service, which also allows apps to save files directly to SkyDrive. A SkyDrive client for the desktop and File Explorer is not included in Windows 8, and must be downloaded separately. Bundled multimedia apps are provided under the Xbox brand, including Xbox Music, Xbox Video, and the Xbox SmartGlass companion for use with an Xbox 360 console. Games can integrate into an Xbox Live hub app, which also allows users to view their profile and Gamerscore.

Other bundled apps provide the ability to link Flickr and Facebook. Due to Facebook Connect service changes, Facebook support is disabled in all bundled apps effective June 8, 2015. Choose to either start the upgrade immediately or at a later time.After following these steps, your upgrade will begin and may take a while to complete.

During the process, your computer will restart several times. When it's done, a "Welcome Back" screen will greet you. To finish the Windows 10 setup, follow the onscreen instructions. A vertical toolbar known as the charms provides access to system and app-related functions, such as search, sharing, device management, settings, and a Start button. The traditional desktop environment for running desktop applications is accessed via a tile on the Start screen. However, Windows 8.1 added the start button back to the taskbar after many complaints, but removed the preview thumbnail.

Swiping from the left edge of a touchscreen or clicking in the top-left corner of the screen allows one to switch between apps and Desktop. Pointing the cursor in the top-left corner of the screen and moving down reveals a thumbnail list of active apps. Aside from the removal of the Start button and the replacement of the Aero Glass theme with a flatter and solid-colored design, the desktop interface on Windows 8 is similar to that of Windows 7.

Windows 8 introduces significant changes to the operating system's user interface, many of which are aimed at improving its experience on tablet computers and other touchscreen devices. The new user interface is based on Microsoft's Metro design language and uses a Start screen similar to that of Windows Phone 7 as the primary means of launching applications. The Start screen displays a customizable array of tiles linking to various apps and desktop programs, some of which can display constantly updated information and content through "live tiles". As a form of multi-tasking, apps can be snapped to the side of a screen.

Alongside the traditional Control Panel, a new simplified and touch-optimized settings app known as "PC Settings" is used for basic configuration and user settings. It does not include many of the advanced options still accessible from the normal Control Panel. Microsoft began an advertising campaign centered around Windows 8 and its Surface tablet in October 2012, starting with its first television advertisement premiering on October 14, 2012. Microsoft's advertising budget of US$1.5–1.8 billion was significantly larger than the US$200 million campaign used to promote Windows 95.

All Windows 7 PCs plan to offer a new Windows 8 upgrade on December 31, 2012, and Microsoft upgraded it as a product of currently supported Windows 7 PCs in January 2013 via Windows Update. Prior to its general availability on October 26, 2012, updates were released for some of Windows 8's bundled apps, and a "General Availability Cumulative Update" was released on Tuesday, October 9, 2012. All the apps you had installed before should be present as well as your personal files. Below you can see Acrobat reader and Google Chrome were present after my upgrade to windows 10 as well as my "mydocument" text file.

Now, even though the free upgrade offer is technically over, this method still functions in every version of Windows 10, from 2016'sAnniversary Update to the November 2019 Update. It works when installing Windows 10 with installation media or by entering the key after installing Windows 10. As part of Windows 10's first November updatein 2015, Microsoft changed the Windows 10 installer disc to also accept Windows 7 or 8.1 keys. This allowed users to perform a clean install Windows 10 and enter a valid Windows 7, 8, or 8.1 key during installation. Some times it happened that if you have a genuine Windows 7 key and still Windows installer can throw message like "This product key didn't work". In this case you can try to re-activate Windows 7 first.

And then start upgrading again, now installer will skip that step and you will be able to start the upgrade process. Note, during the upgrade process the tool download windows 10 files from the Microsoft server, and the time depends on your internet speed and hardware configuration. This process can take quite a while, and the computer will restart numerous times. Reboot your computer and connect it to the internet. Open Settings and choose "Update & Security" and click "Activation." From here, you can see if the Windows 10 upgrade worked.

If not, press an "Activate" button ; this will create a digital Windows 10 product key. Try using your Windows 7 or Windows 8 license key. Before you begin upgrading to Windows 10, we recommend you to create a backup copy of your personal files first. This is an extra security step to protect your files in case anything goes wrong.

Besides, many people tend to store many important files and folders on the desktop, which might get deleted during the upgrade. It has been four years since Microsoft ended the offer to get Windows 10 for free by updating from previous versions in 2016. It was a simple process that merely required a quick click on the upgrade button from the notification. Yet, many people have still been able to update their Windows 7 and 8 operating systems to the newest one in 2021. The only thing is required — an authentic version of previous Windows versions and its activation key. Before installing, review your software choices and any files or programs you want to keep.

Choose between transferring personal data and apps, personal files only, or nothing during the upgrade. Windows 8 was released to a mixed critical reception. Despite these shortcomings, 60 million Windows 8 licenses were sold through January 2013, a number that included both upgrades and sales to OEMs for new PCs. The most important thing to remember is that the Windows 7 to Windows 10 upgrade could wipe your settings and apps. There's an option to keep your files and personal data, but because of differences between Windows 10 and Windows 7, it's not always possible to keep all of your existing apps. Make sure you've noted what apps you use regularly so you can easily obtain them by downloading the installers again.

Windows 8.1 can also be upgraded the same way, but without needing to wipe your apps and settings. You can't use a Windows 7 or Windows 8 key if you are upgrading. What you can do though is activate it using a Windows 7 or Windows 8 key after setup is complete; if you choose to perform a clean install.

If it's activated, then setup doesn't prompt you. That's it, you can upgrade without any further hindrance. There you go, my system upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10 in 2017 for free. But there are a few things I recommend doing before starting the upgrade process. Checking for drive errors, cleaning up your drive, and uninstalling third-party anti-virus/malware software are just a few.