Ways to obtain a free license. Ways to get a license for free Is vista updated to windows 10

No sooner had the "ten" officially come out, as millions of users around the world had already managed to install it on their computers and virtual machines, after which they began to violently disassemble it bit by bit. If you have not yet joined this march of lovers of everything new, today you have the opportunity to do so.

Unfortunately, the free upgrade of Windows (XP, 7, 8/8.1) to Windows 10 version was closed on 07/29/2016. But do not despair - there is one loophole left (the official loophole!), Which we will talk about now.

What's the point?

To begin with, a free upgrade from Windows 7 and 8 to Windows 10 is quite possible, but with XP it is a little more difficult - you need to get a newer version first. As for the upgrade to the new version itself, its advantage over the usual installation is quite obvious - after you upgrade, all your programs and settings will be saved, and you won't have to spend several hours restoring the usual "atmosphere".

Each program and each setting will be carefully transferred to the new version, and you will only have to enter a password for your account, after which you can immediately start working with the modern version of the most popular OS.

Is it possible to update now?

You can upgrade today! Naturally, in order to get a new version, you will have to take several additional steps, otherwise all users would already be sitting on the "top ten" and stubbornly would not understand what happened to their computer. If you follow the instructions below, then the free update will not cause any difficulties.

How to upgrade Windows (XP, 7, 8/8.1) to Windows 10 for free after 07/29/1016?

Microsoft cares about users with disabilities by offering them lifetime access to install Windows 10 on Windows (7, 8/8.1). And the concern is that they offer accessibility features (virtual keyboard, magnifier, etc.) that will be in this version (they can be omitted). You, too, can pretend that you need them and make the transition from (7, 8 / 8.1) to Windows 10 on the sly for free.

To do this, you just need:
1) Have licensed Windows 7, 8/8.1;
2) Go to the page of the official website of Microsoft;
3) Click "Update now" - the installation file will be downloaded (the shortcut will appear on the desktop);
4) Click on the downloaded file - follow the instructions (reboot will be required at the end).

Ready! Now you know how to install Windows 10 instead of Windows (7, 8/8.1). Use this method until it is covered.

For more information about this method, see the video + it shows how to make the version clean:

Can XP be upgraded to Windows 10?

Unfortunately no. First you need to become the owner of a later licensed version (7, 8/8.1). Only after that will the above update be available.

How could I switch from XP, 7, 8 to Windows 10 before 07/29/2016?

The update center is already on every computer, it is called Windows Update and is usually used to deliver traditional "patches" to your PC. As we have already said, the new version of the OS by itself would not have appeared in it, but this situation could be corrected quite simply. First you had to download the Windows 10 Preparation Tool application - it would unlock the ability to download an update to the new operating system on your PC.

As soon as the program was completed, you could safely open the Update Center and look for a new item in it, which "weighed" from 2.5 to 3.5 gigabytes, depending on the version of the operating system you already have (x86 or x64).

That, in fact, was all - it only remained to press the button " Install and the free update would start downloading and installing. In the process, according to good tradition, the computer would restart several times, but after 30-60 minutes you would have had a complete installation of Windows 10 from under Windows 7, 8 / 8.1.

What should have been done if an update notification arrived?

Some computers received notifications on how to upgrade Windows 7, 8/8.1 to Windows 10 online and for free. It looked something like this:

By receiving this message, you could reserve a free operating system update for yourself. The download took place at the moment when it became available, and you could update the system itself a little later - at any convenient time.

In order to reserve it for yourself, you had to click on the "Reserve a free update" button and then enter the email address on the page that appeared, to which you would later receive a notification that the files were prepared for download.

Once the files were downloaded, you could install them anytime you wanted!

Now you know how you can and how not to upgrade from Windows (XP, 7, 8/8.1) to version 10.

Microsoft recently released a new version of the OS - Windows 10, with a free upgrade option for users who have Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 installed on their PC.

Unfortunately, those who still prefer to use Windows XP will have to go a little longer and upgrade their software first to Windows 7 and then to Windows 10 without losing data.

Clean install of Windows 10

Alternatively, Windows XP users can choose to clean install Windows 10 using the ISO file from the Microsoft site, or try installing using the Windows media creation tool.

Important: if you choose to follow the clean install method, you won't be able to transfer user data to Windows 10.

Below we will provide step by step instructions on how to upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 10 without losing data.

System requirements

Before you start the upgrade process, check if your computer meets the system requirements necessary for the normal installation and operation of Windows 10:

• Processor - 1 GHz or higher
• RAM - 1 GB for 32-bit system and 2 GB for 64-bit
• Hard disk space - 16 GB for 32-bit OS, and 20 GB for 64-bit OS
• DirectX 9 or higher graphics card with WDDM0 driver
• Display capable of at least 800x600 resolution

Purchasing a Windows 10 license

Unfortunately, it is not possible to directly upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 10. Therefore, after you have verified that your system requirements are suitable for installing Windows 10, you can purchase a Windows 10 Home license. In Ukraine, the cost of licensed Windows 10 is approximately from 2500 to 6000 UAH, depending on the version. In Russia, the price ranges from 7,000 rubles.

How to upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 10 for free without data loss

• In order to easily upgrade (without buying a license) from Windows XP to Windows 10, you first need to upgrade the system to Windows 7, and then using the direct online update to Windows
• Download one of the Windows image ISO files below:

Attention: if for some reason the links do not work, then you can download any clean Windows 7 image of your choice, in Russian, Ukrainian or English.

• Once you have downloaded the desired ISO file, create bootable media to perform the upgrade.

Attention: bootable media refers to a flash drive with at least 8 GB in size that will be inserted into the USB port before starting the update procedure.

• Download Windows 7 USB/DVD download tool from Microsoft website, then install and run it.
• The program will prompt you to select the previously downloaded ISO file. Just show the program where the file is located and click Next.
• Select the media type as "USB Device" and then select the USB flash drive on the next screen. You will see a warning in front of you that the information on the device will be completely erased.
• Just select "Yes" and a boot disk will be created.

After you successfully upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7, all user data is saved. Now you can safely upgrade to Windows 10 without the risk of data loss using the Media Creation tool.

At the moment, the current version of the Windows operating system is 10. However, not all computers meet the minimum requirements to use it. Therefore, they resort to installing older operating systems, such as Windows 7. Today we will talk about how to install it on a Vista PC.

The update process is not something complicated, but it requires the user to perform a series of manipulations. We have divided the entire procedure into steps to make it easier for you to navigate the instructions. Let's take everything in order.

Windows 7 minimum system requirements

Most often, owners of Vista OS have weak computers, so before starting the upgrade, we recommend that you compare the characteristics of your components with the official minimum requirements. Pay special attention to the amount of RAM and processor. Our two articles at the links below will help you determine this.

As for the requirements of Windows 7, read them on the official Microsoft website. Once you've made sure everything is compatible, proceed directly to the installation.

Step 1: Prepare removable media

A new version of the operating system is installed from a disk or flash drive. In the first case, you do not need to make any additional settings - just insert the DVD into the drive and proceed to the third step. However, if you are using a flash drive, make it bootable by burning the Windows image. For guidance on this topic, please see the following links:

Step 2: BIOS configuration for installation from a flash drive

To continue using a removable USB drive, you will need to configure the BIOS. You need to change only one parameter that switches the computer boot from the hard drive to the USB flash drive. Read more about how to do this in our other article below.

UEFI owners should take other steps, since the interface is slightly different from BIOS. See the article at the following link for help and complete the first step.

Step 3: Upgrade Windows Vista to Windows 7

Now let's look at the main installation process. Here you need to insert a disk or USB flash drive and restart your computer. When you turn it on again, it will start from these media, the main files will be loaded and the installation start window will open. Then do the following:

1. Choose a convenient primary OS language, time format, and keyboard layout.



2. In the Windows 7 menu that appears, click on the button "Install".



3. Read the terms of the license agreement, confirm them, and proceed to the next step.



4. Now you should decide on the type of installation. Since you have Windows Vista, please specify "Full installation".



5. Choose a suitable partition and format it to erase all files and put the operating system on a clean partition.



6. Wait until all files are unpacked and components are installed.



7. Now set the username and PC. This entry will be used as an administrator, and the profile names will come in handy during the creation of a local network.



8. In addition, you should set a password so that outsiders cannot access your account.



9. Enter the product license code into the special line. You can find it on the package with a disk or flash drive. If you don't have a key at the moment, skip the step to activate online later.



10. Set the desired option for "Windows Update".



11. Set the current time and date.



12. The last step is to choose the location of the computer. If he is at home, indicate the item "Home".

It remains only to wait for the completion of the settings. During this, the computer will restart several times. Next, shortcuts will be created and the desktop will be configured.

Step 4: Setting up the OS for work

Although the OS is already installed, however, the PC cannot fully function. This is due to the absence of certain files and software. Before starting the installation, you need to set up an Internet connection. This process is carried out in just a few steps. Detailed instructions on this topic can be found in our other material at the link below:

Let's take a look at the main components in order, which should be installed in order to proceed to normal work with the computer:

This concludes our article. Above, you could familiarize yourself with all the steps for installing and configuring the Windows 7 operating system. As you can see, there is nothing complicated in this, you just need to follow the instructions exactly and carefully perform each action. After completing all the steps, you can safely start working on your PC.

From time to time, every Windows user begins to think about how to upgrade an outdated version of their system to a newer one. However, sooner or later, everyone will still have to switch to at least Windows 10, as Microsoft is gradually adapting all its application software (in particular, Microsoft Office, DirectX 12, modern shader support programs, etc.) specifically for the latest version of the OS .

Preparing for the upgrade

Some users are wondering: do I need to back up my files and settings before updating the system? It depends on the OS version that you currently have installed. If you decide to switch to the "top ten" from Windows XP or Vista, then it's better to take care of data backup. If you have Windows 7 or 8, then this is not necessary, since the automatic update process does not affect the existing data on the hard drives in any way. True, it is possible that individual programs will stop working due to bitness incompatibility with the new operating system.

Switching to Windows 10 from different original OS versions

Algorithms for updating the OS to Windows 10 can be divided into two options:

• upgrade from Windows XP or Vista;
• upgrade from Windows 7 or 8.

How to upgrade to Windows 10 from Windows XP or Vista

For Windows XP/Vista users, unfortunately, the only way to upgrade to Windows 10 is a clean installation of the system. That is, you will need to install Windows 10 as the original OS, since the upgrade process for older versions such as XP and Vista is simply not available due to differences in system component builds. To install Windows 10 on a Windows XP/Vista PC, you must first create a bootable USB drive.

1. Go to the official Microsoft website and download the special Media Creation Tool by clicking on the "Download tool now" button. For detailed instructions on downloading and working with the utility, click on the auxiliary buttons in the form of circles with pluses
2. Launch the Media Creation Tool and after accepting the license agreement, select "Create installation media for another computer".
   Make sure you have a USB device connected to your computer before creating bootable media
3. In the settings window that appears, check the box next to the "Use recommended settings" line.
   You can also set the settings manually
4. Then select the option to create bootable media "USB flash drive". Press "Next".
   Remember that the size of the USB device must be at least 8 GB
5. Wait for the bootable media creation process to finish, and then you can exit the Media Creation Tool.
   The process of creating bootable media takes several minutes
6. Ready. Now you can start installing Windows using a bootable USB drive. Boot from it and follow the instructions that appear on the monitor screen.

Video: How to create a bootable USB drive with the Windows 10 operating system

How to upgrade to Windows 10 from Windows 7 or 8

For Windows 7/8 users, there are several ways to upgrade to Windows 10, both free and paid.. All of them are relevant for both versions of the OS, and there are no differences in the update process.

Free Upgrade to Windows 10 (Special Edition)

Until recently, Microsoft provided owners of older operating systems with the opportunity to upgrade to Windows 10 for free. However, this generous promotion expired on July 29, 2016. After that, users could upgrade to "tens" thanks to "a special edition for people with disabilities." But this method also ceased to be available on December 31, 2017. To date, there are no longer such official campaigns for updating the system, which can be seen by going to the official Microsoft website. Therefore, to upgrade to Windows 10, you have to use other options, which will be discussed below.

Upgrading with the Windows 10 Upgrade Assistant

The Windows 10 Upgrade Assistant utility (“Windows 10 Upgrade Assistant”) was available during free upgrade promotions, after which it was removed from the official Microsoft website. The Upgrade Assistant was replaced by a new utility - the Creation Tool, which lacks the ability to upgrade the OS to Windows 10. But today, the Upgrade Assistant can still be found and downloaded on thematic sites. In order to update Windows through this utility, you must:

1. Find and download Windows 10 Upgrade Assistant. After launching it, it will start checking the compatibility of your PC with the latest Windows 10 service pack.
   If at least one of the PC components is incompatible, a message will appear stating that the update is not possible
2. Upon completion of the check, the assistant will begin downloading all the necessary files to install and update the system.
   During the preparation of the update, you can continue to work on the computer by minimizing the "assistant" window
3. After downloading the update package, the assistant will automatically restart the PC.
   Rebooting the PC can be delayed by clicking on the line "Restart later"
4. After rebooting, Upgrade Assistant will automatically start the process to upgrade your system to Windows 10.
   The duration of the update process depends on the processing power of the PC

Windows Digital License Activation

This method is relevant for users who have previously purchased an official digital license for Windows 10 linked to a Microsoft account.

1. Go to the official Microsoft website and download the Media Creation Tool.
   After installing the Media Creation Tool, you can then use it to download and install Windows 10
2. After starting the program, you will be prompted to accept the license agreement. Then you will need to select the "Upgrade this PC now" option.
   You can also save Windows 10 to USB to create a bootable device
3. After clicking the "Next" button, a long process of downloading and checking all system components for updating will begin. At the same time, about a dozen successive windows will open sequentially.
   Before you begin the preparation phase of updating Windows, make sure you have enough free space on your system hard drive
4. Upon completion of the preparatory process, a window will appear informing you that the update is ready to be installed. Click the "Install" button.
   You can change the components selected for saving, marking only those that are really needed
5. Now all that remains is to wait for the installation process of Windows 10 to finish.
   After clicking the "Install" button, the standard installation process of Windows 10 will begin

After successfully updating Windows 7 to Windows 10, you should bind a “digital license” to it. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Open the Start menu and click on the Settings tab. You can also open the "Settings" settings by pressing the WIN + I hotkey combination
2. Go to the Update & Security section and select the Activation setting. Then click on the "Add account" line.
   Clicking the "Learn More" link will provide Microsoft help on activating Windows.
3. Enter the required information (login and password) to sign in to your Microsoft account.
   You must already have a Microsoft account with an activated Windows 10 digital license
4. Done, your Windows 10 is now account bound and assigned a "digital license".
   After signing in with a Microsoft account, a message will appear in the OS activation field stating that Windows 10 is activated using a digital license

Connecting to the Digital Entitlement Partner Program

Digital Entitlement, or "Digital Resolution", is available only to members of the Windows Insider Partner Program (this program from Microsoft gives users the right to insider evaluation of Windows 10). To become a Windows Insider member and receive a "digital clearance" to upgrade your Windows OS to version 10, you must:

1. Go to the settings of the "Windows Insider Program" ("Start - Control Panel - Update and Security") and click the "Start" button.
   You can also open the program settings through the Windows search box
2. After starting the settings, you will need to sign in to your Microsoft account (if you do not have an account, you will have to create one).
   You can also create a Microsoft account through the official website of the corporation.
3. Upon completion of the account integration with the OS, you will be prompted to choose one of three Windows Insider build packages:
   
4. After confirming the selection, your computer will automatically restart.
   Restarting the PC can be delayed if necessary
5. After rebooting the system, go to the "Windows Update" settings and click on the "Check for updates" button. The Windows 10 update package will automatically download and install.
   If the button is not pressed, it means that the process of automatically downloading updates is already running
6. Wait for the update process to finish and restart your PC.

Video: How to become a member of the Windows Insider Program

After updating Windows through "digital release", even if you download the Windows Insider build package number three, this still does not guarantee stable operation of the system (the update files will still be test files). In addition, you will have to update the system more often (it will become mandatory), and the resulting version of Windows 10 will not be truly licensed (you will only be given a trial version for 90 days, followed by automatic renewal).

Purchasing a license activation key

There are two options for purchasing a license activation key for Windows 10.

Buying license digital keys for Windows 10 on third-party marketplaces often causes problems. The most common of them are non-working activation keys or the purchase of temporary "OEM licenses" (keys that are revoked by developers after a certain time). In order to protect yourself as much as possible when buying on third-party trading platforms, you must carefully check all the information provided, namely: the reliability of the seller, the type and version of the activation key, the possibility of returning within 30 days.

To date, there are several ways to upgrade Windows 7 and 8 to "tens". In addition to purchasing a digital license or an activation key, you can also become a member of the Microsoft partner testing program for free or use a special utility. For users of Windows XP and Vista, there are no alternatives other than a "clean" reinstallation of the system.

The promotion to upgrade Windows 7, and 8.1 to Windows 10 for all users ended at the end of the summer of 2016. Despite the fact that the free transition period expired a long time ago, many other methods worked for a long time - from changing the time in the system to activating Windows 10 with existing keys of previous versions of the seventh or eighth generations.

But due to the fact that in January 2018 Microsoft representatives announced the official closure of any update opportunities, it seems that it is no longer possible to get licensed Windows 10 for free. But as practice shows, many of the options that worked before are still active. Let's look at the most convenient and effective of them.

At the moment, three free upgrade methods are working: using the Windows Upgrade Assistant utility, activating the system with a key from previous versions, and clean installing Windows 10 (relevant for users who have already made the transition, but for some reason returned to the previous versions).

Possible upgrade options:

Before considering the current upgrade options, you need to consider the following points:

1. The Windows 10 migration process cannot be done from Windows Vista or XP.
2. The system you are migrating from must have the latest updates installed.
3. The current system must be activated or an official key purchased.
4. Computer hardware must be supported by Windows 10.

Upgrade via Upgrade Assistant

For a long time after the end of the promotion for all users for a free upgrade, Microsoft provided a free upgrade to the new version of Windows 10 for people with disabilities. At first, the period of this promotion was extended until December 31, 2017, but after the expiration of this period, the opportunity to upgrade was active until January 18, 2018.

The company even created a separate one in order to make the upgrade as comfortable as possible. One of the features of this promotion was that the user, in order to confirm his incapacity, did not need to undergo any special checks or confirmations. Anyone who went to the site and downloaded the Windows 10 Upgrade Assistant utility could upgrade.

At the moment, on the main page of the Microsoft site for updating for people with disabilities, there is an announcement that this promotion is ending. The company points out that now the only option is to purchase the original version already preinstalled on the new device, or buy a separate full version of the software. No download links are provided for this utility.

BUT the file with the bootloader (Windows 10 Upgrade Assistant) is still available on the Microsoft website, download while you have access.
If the file disappears from the downloads, write in the comments, we will try to put it simply on the site (if at that time, in general, this update option still works).

During the first installation, the program will check the current version of the update assistant.

After that, you will need to read and agree to the terms of the license agreement.

The Setup Assistant will check if you can upgrade to Windows 10 on this computer.

And, if all the items have passed a positive check, after pressing the OK button, the upgrade process to Windows 10 will start. After the upgrade is completed, the key of the previous version is picked up, and at the exit the user can use the activated system.

If the utility gives an error on the first run, this may be due to what was said earlier - Microsoft has officially closed the possibility of this update. But to get around this limitation, it is enough to change the system time to any one that will be earlier than 12/31/2017.

To do this, click on the clock on the taskbar and go to change the date and time settings.

After you need to go to the section to change the date and time.

And then choose any date that will be earlier than the agreed date 12/31/2017.

After this procedure, you can try to run the update assistant program again, it should run smoothly and update the system.

Upgrading using a key from previous versions

This method is the simplest and fastest. To get started, you already need to be the owner of a seventh or eighth generation Windows key. To upgrade to Windows 10 you need:

The system must accept the key from the previous version and activate it.

Clean install of Windows 10.

It is necessary to make a reservation again that this method is suitable for users who have already upgraded to Windows 10 before. It consists in simply performing a clean installation of Windows 10, and the activation key should be automatically picked up by the system.

The activation key should be accepted automatically due to the fact that the first time you upgrade to Windows 10, the user became the owner of a digital license. This means that the activation key is linked to the hash sum of the hardware installed on the user's system. Then, after logging into a Microsoft account, the activation data is stored on the company's servers, and the digital license is automatically assigned to both the user account and the system hardware.

Updated: March 31, 2018 by: Denis