The free update for Windows 11 from Windows 10 concluded on October 5th, 2022.
The free update for Windows 11 from Windows 10 concluded on October 5th, 2022.
Currently not applicable. Microsoft relies on Windows as a base to distribute its offerings (OneDrive, Office, Xbox, Azure). Windows 9 isn't available since the rest of these services are handled through paid plans. If you own a Pro license for Windows 10, you can upgrade to Windows 11 Pro at no cost. These licenses come from gray market sources that purchase and resell in bulk. Technically, Microsoft has the ability to revoke them whenever needed—so proceed with caution.
Re: Microsoft They were really profitable with it, which is why they seem indifferent about grey market windows. The main issue seems to be that many come from refurbished or older PCs, especially high-end ones. It’s also tough to enforce because each case needs a court battle and the refunds are minimal. It doesn’t justify spending a lot on legal trouble when the payout is barely over a hundred dollars. It does encourage some questionable behavior.
Re: Win9 It works in a way, though it’s not exactly Windows. Some call it Win9, probably a simplified version. It’s more like a cleaned-up 7 without data mining. Definitely not officially approved by Microsoft. There’s someone who promotes it regularly.
Re: grey market licenses They don’t enforce these and show no signs they’ll do so in the future. You’re correct—avoid buying from a company that only sells through their own key generator. Once one of them grows large enough, it becomes worth targeting.
Edited September 26, 2022 by Bombastinator
Alright, thanks everyone. I'm going to try to update soon and revert if things don't work out. Quick question though (not sure if I should make a new topic for this): I don't have enough space on my external drive to backup my full 4 TB ssd, so I will backup my most important files. I have many sdks and other software installed that touches the registry and some put dlls in the Windows folder. I also have many custom registry keys for custom context menus, etc. If I update, will those remain on Windows 11, or would I have to redo them. If I have to redo them, is there a way I could check what dlls are in the system folders that don't come with the OS, and what registry keys don't come with the OS, so that I could backup those specific parts? Thanks.
There is also compression involved. It might be useful if it’s merely a backup rather than a reassignment. Visualize the disk and observe how much space the file can take. This could work, though it may not always fit. It really depends on the type of data. I believe this is why uninstall wizards were developed. AMD64 contains a significant amount of 8088 architecture, with some components even supporting that far back. One outcome of this is that everything becomes quite disorganized. While backing up data is straightforward, preserving applications is more challenging. Usually, a fresh installation is the best approach.