Windows 10 upgrade: You’ll have to wait

Though Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30) said a month ago that Windows 10 would become available on July 29, Microsoft clarified on Thursday that everyone won’t be able to upgrade on that day

Microsoft will roll-out upgrades slowly, in waves.

In a blog post, Windows Chief Terry Myerson said that Windows 10 upgrades will first go to “Windows Insiders,” a group of 5 million people who have been testing out a preview version of Windows 10.

After the “Insiders,” Microsoft will begin notifying people who reserved copies of Windows 10 that they can upgrade, “slowly scaling up after July 29,” Myerson said. If you already reserved a copy, your PC has been confirmed as compatible.

The slow roll-out is in part because Windows 10 is in very high demand. Microsoft expects 1 billion PCs to run Windows 10 in two to three years.

“We want to make sure all of you have a great upgrade experience, so we’ll roll-out Windows 10 in phases to help manage the demand,” Myerson said. “We are humbled by your excitement and we can’t wait to deliver Windows 10 to you soon.”

But the slow roll-out is also due to the need to test the millions of different PCs running Windows 7 and 8 for compatibility with Windows 10. Apple (AAPL, Tech30) can roll out iOS updates in one day, because there are just a few different kinds of iPhones and iPads in existence. Windows PCs are practically as varied as snowflakes.

Myerson said the “vast majority of Windows 7 and 8 PCs will be fully compatible with Windows 10. But the company hasn’t finished testing.

“We are not yet done, we will never be done,” Myerson said.

In addition to consumers, Microsoft announced that businesses and schools will be able to start upgrading to Windows 10 on August 1.

Is Microsoft planning to dump Windows Phone?

 If you’ve been closely following mobile platforms related developments, you would know that Windows Phone has been losing share as Android and iOS continue to dominate the market.

While Microsoft has been extending its apps and services to other operating system making its own mobile platform less relevant, it has continued to support development and i set to introduce Windows 10 for phones. However, it looks like Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and his team members could be having second thoughts about continuing with the development of Windows on phones and small tablets.

According to Twitter account @MSFTnerd, a user who is believed to be close to Microsoft’s internal developments, Nadella and Microsoft’s senior leadership team are debating on whether the company should continue Windows on phones and small tablets or just bundle Microsoft services on Android, going forward. The development was reported by Softpedia.



We’ve seen Microsoft introducing Office apps on other mobile platforms and inking tie-ups with the likes of Samsung for bundling its apps on Android phones. Perhaps, Microsoft is reconsidering investing resources on Windows Phone, which commands a meager 3.2% share of the smartphone market (as per IDC). The company can reach out to customers who use its services via other platforms.

The user also tweeted that there were murmurs that “Microsoft was working on changing its relationship with Google around location services and video on Windows and ads.”

Further, the account tweeted that “Microsoft would push Google Play devices with Microsoft apps in exchange for Google providing first-class Maps, YouTube, Search on Windows.” It’s not clear if this implies that Microsoft will make its own Android devices bundled with its apps or just pre-load its apps on Google devices like the Nexus phones.

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Image courtesy: Softpedia

However, Google developing quality apps for Windows Phone would be a big move. Google and Microsoft had been at the loggerheads with each other when the latter had developed a full-fledged YouTube app for Windows Phone. Google had blocked it alleging that the app was against its terms of service.

Microsoft has been trying hard to reduce the app gap between Windows Phone and competing platforms. In April, Microsoft executives had announced that the company will release new tools to help developers quickly adapt the apps they’ve built for Apple or Android devices, so they will work on smartphones, PCs and other devices that use the new Windows 10 operating system.

How to check if your PC is Windows 10 compatible

With Windows 10 coming on July 29, you’ll want to make sure your PC, applications and various devices will all play nice before you reserve and upgrade. Fortunately, Microsoft has made it easy to do within the Get Windows 10 tool that appears on all copies of Windows 7 and 8. 




Upgrading your copy of Windows to 10 should be seamless, but you want to make sure set up is actually ready beforehand. That new Windows icon down in your system tray will let you do more than reserve your copy of Windows 10 for free. As Fatima Wahab at AddictiveTips points out, it can also check your whole system to make sure everything is all set for the upgrade. It’s pretty simple to do:

* Click the Get Windows 10 icon in your system tray in the lower-right section of your desktop.
* Click the hamburger menu in the upper-left corner.
* Under “Getting the upgrade,” select Check your PC.

If you’re all set and ready for the upgrade when it comes, you’ll be given a good to go message. Otherwise, you’ll see a list of devices and apps that aren’t supported.

Device issues could mean a monitor won’t display properly at the highest resolution, or some speakers won’t be able to play audio with the upgrade. Apps that are listed as unsupported will need to be uninstalled before you start the upgrade process. Of course, a driver update or patch install may fix those issues as well, so check again if you can find updates.

Windows 10 Is Almost Here: Here’s What You Need to Know

Windows 10 Is Almost Here: Here’s What You Need to Know

Windows 10 will be released on July 29, 2015. Microsoft is already advertising it to WIndows 7 and 8.1 users using a system tray pop-up. This is a free upgrade, and will probably be a good one for Windows 7 and 8 users alike.

Microsoft wants to get all recent Windows machines on the same operating system, providing a standardized Windows platform and pushing the “universal apps” offered by the Windows Store. After the mess of Windows 8, Windows 10 is looking pretty good.
Yes, It’s Free (For Most People)

Windows 10 will be a free upgrade, assuming your computer runs Windows 7 Service Pack 1 or Windows 8.1. As long as you upgrade to Windows 10 within the first year, you won’t have to pay a cent. Despite some confusion online, you won’t have to pay anything. As long as you upgrade to Windows 10 within the first year, you can continue using Windows 10 and getting updates for the “supported lifetime of the device.” It’s a full copy that will continue to work.

If you have an older computer running Windows Vista or a previous version of Windows, you won’t get a free upgrade. You may want to buy a new computer if you have such an old computer, anyway. If you have a pirated (“non-genuine“) copy of Windows, you may be able to upgrade — but you’ll continue to have a “non-genuine” copy of Windows 10.

If you’re building your own computer or purchasing a copy of Windows 10 to run in a virtual machine, you’ll have to pay $110 for Windows 10 Home or $199 for Windows 10 Pro. If you want to upgrade an old computer to Windows 10 after the first year and you miss out on the free upgrade offer, you’ll need to pay for a copy of Windows too — unless Microsoft extends the offer.

How to Upgrade

“Reserve” your copy of Windows 10 and your Windows computer will automatically download Windows 10 in bits and pieces before the release date. When Windows 10 is good to go, you won’t have to download a massive installer from Microsoft at the same time everyone else does. It’s a bit like preloading a game or movie before the release date.You’ll be able to upgrade via Windows Update when Windows 10 comes out. Microsoft rolled out a “Get Windows 10″ application that prompts you to “reserve” your copy of Windows 10, and you’ll be seeing those notifications in your system tray on Windows 7 SP1 and Windows 8.1 computers. Yes, that Windows 10 pop-up in your system tray is real, legitimate, and from Microsoft. It was added to your existing WIndows systems via a Windows update.

If you plan on upgrading when Windows 10 is released, reserve it now. You don’t actually have to reserve — you’ll be able to upgrade for free for the first year. Reserving your copy will just save download time later. Microsoft will likely have a website that walks you through upgrading when Windows 10 is released.

While the upgrade process shouldn’t erase your personal files, it’s always important to havebackups anyway. If you have hardware or programs that won’t work with Windows 10, the upgrade application will inform you of any possible problems you might experience.

What’s New – and Should You Upgrade?

If you’ve been using Windows 7, you get access to all the improvements found in Windows 8 with an interface that makes more sense. Windows 10 includes other useful features, including“Task View” virtual desktops and even enhancements to the Command Prompt, that should make Windows 7 desktop users pretty happy to upgrade. Microsoft’s new “Edge” browser is a new default browser, meaning even Windows users who stick with the default browser will have a better experience. Modern versions of Internet Explorer aren’t as bad they used to be, but Edge is still a big improvement. Microsoft’s Cortana assistant is integrated — if you’re in one of a handful of supported countries, at least. Windows 10 is packed with other useful improvements, and — unlike some of the more annoying features found in Windows 8 — they can be disabled if you don’t want to use them.Microsoft wants Windows 10 to be a worthy upgrade to both Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users. It builds on Windows 8’s base, offeringits desktop improvements and security features. But Microsoft has relented on the most hated aspects of Windows 8. The charms bar is gone. The pop-up Start menu is back — it has live tiles on it by default, but you can remove those if you like. That “modern” or “Metro” interface is now confined only to a special tablet mode, and all applications run in windows on the desktop on normal PCs. If you’re using Windows 8 on a non-touch device, this is a huge improvement. The desktop interface makes sense again.

Microsoft is also pushing the Windows Store for desktop users in Windows 10, as those fancy new “universal apps” now run in desktop windows and could actually be a bit useful. That’s a big reason Windows 10 is free — to build a large platform app developers will want to target and get Windows users on the same software.

Microsoft’s Plans for Windows 10

Microsoft is pushing the idea that Windows 10 will be different than previous releases, and it’s even been called “the last version of Windows.” Microsoft plans on releasing frequent updates that polish Windows 10 and add features, although they did also say this about Windows 8.

Microsoft plans on this being the last major operating system upgrade you’ll do, with new features and improvements regularly being rolled out via Windows Update rather than waiting for a once-every-several-years release. Even many of the included applications will be updated separately via the Windows Store.

Windows 10 looks like a good upgrade. Currently, less than two months from its release date, the Windows 10 preview releases are still a bit buggy. Assuming Microsoft can polish Windows 10 up in just a few more weeks, Windows 10 will be a worthy and recommended upgrade.

Yes, there are live tiles, universal apps, and Microsoft account integration features — but you can avoid these if you don’t want them. Better yet, all these new features actually integrate with the Windows desktop rather than fighting with it, as they did in Windows 8.

Microsoft Clarifies How Windows 10 Preview Users Can Keep Genuine Builds for Free

Microsoft has been sending numerous mixed messages about Windows 10 upgrade paths and licensing, and on Monday it once again tried to take an unambiguous stance. The firm updated Friday’s blog post another time in an effort to clear up the “unintended confusion” it had caused.

Gabriel Aul, General Manager for Operating System Group’s Data and Fundamentals Team at Microsoft, said that Windows 10 Insider Preview users will only retain genuine and activated Windows 10 copies if they opt-in for future pre-release updates on either the Fast or Slow cycle. Users will need to continue updating to the latest preview build, or have the pre-release software licence of their build expire.

If users decide to opt-out of the updates, their builds will no longer be “activated under the terms of the Windows Insider Program”, and they will be eligible for the same free upgrade offer as genuine Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users, while new users (including those coming in from Windows XP or Windows Vista) will have the paid upgrade path.

In other words, if you opt out of the Windows Insider program, you will no longer have a licensed Windows 10 copy.

Aul says in the blog, “Let me start by restating very clearly that Windows 10, whether you get it on 7/29 or whether you got it in a preview form through the Windows Insider Program is intended to be installed on Genuine Windows devices… This is not a path to attain a license for Windows XP or Windows Vista systems.”

He adds, “If your system upgraded from a Genuine Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 license it will remain activated, but if not, you will be required to roll back to your previous OS version or acquire a new Windows 10 license. If you do not roll back or acquire a new license the build will eventually expire.”