Unless you value native Android app support via the Amazon Appstore, you may have decided to stick with Windows After all, it will continue to be supported until October However, these are your only two realistic choices in The same can be said of Windows 7, which has been officially unsafe to use for more than two years. At this point, most people will be taking advantage of the free upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows Installing it is a relatively simple process, but so is reinstalling Windows An SSD will be much faster than a mechanical hard drive for reinstalling Windows Read our tips on how to speed up your internet if you think this might be an issue.

Warning: Before you reinstall Windows using the process below, you should also back up all your files, music, photos, videos, save games and web bookmarks. You may already have a backup of those, but since all your apps will be removed , you should also:.

The former will consume a lot more data, but local installs typically take longer. Prices from third-party sellers, including Amazon , are typically lower. Depending on how you purchase, you’ll receive installation media DVD or USB key or a product key and instructions for downloading installation media. Windows 10 tips: Setup and configuration: Don’t settle for default settings Performance and troubleshooting Productivity Networking and security.

If you already have a Windows 10 product key or you are planning to reinstall Windows 10 on a machine that already has a digital license more on that later , visit the Download Windows 10 page and download the Media Creation Tool.

This free download allows you to create a bootable USB flash drive directly. As an alternative, I recommend that you download an ISO file instead. By default, the pre-selected options choose an architecture bit or bit that matches that of the current PC. Open the drop-down list shown here if you want to choose a different architecture or download an ISO file that includes both architectures.

The combined installer is just over 6 GB in size. For a workaround, see “Windows 10 installer files too big for USB flash drive? Here’s the fix. A free day trial edition is also available from the Microsoft Evaluation Center. Microsoft made Windows 10 version also known as the Windows 10 May Update available to the Release Preview ring of the Windows Insider Program on April 16, , and plans to begin making it widely available to consumers via Windows Update at the end of May.

This major update succeeds version also known as the Windows 10 November Update. That version was released to the general public on November 12, The previous version was version , which was released on May 21, The version release was deliberately scaled down to include only “a scoped set of features for select performance improvements, enterprise features, and quality enhancements.

In its first two years, Windows 10 had separate release schedules for consumer and business editions. In mid, Microsoft consolidated these two channels into a single one. Business and enterprise customers can opt to defer the appearance of new releases in Windows Update for up to days after the general release date using the Windows Update for Business feature set. For a full listing of release dates for major versions, see the official Windows 10 release information page.

Each major release is associated with a build number. The initial July release was build The build numbers of subsequent updates are as follows:. As an alternative, you can click in the search box and type settings:about. The same information is also available using the winver command, which displays results in a compact About Windows dialog box.

The system shown below, for example, is running the May Update, version , with the Cumulative Update applied. If you are running any unmanaged edition of Windows 10 using default settings, these feature updates the new, official terminology for what were once called upgrades are delivered through Windows Update.

In versions prior to , feature updates download and install automatically. You can schedule the installation for a more convenient time or postpone it for a few days, but you cannot delay the update indefinitely. Beginning with version , Microsoft began offering feature updates for installation separately from security and reliability updates. The company says these updates will not be downloaded or installed automatically unless the current version is at or near the end of its support window.

For more details about these changes, see “Windows 10 Home edition users are big winners as Microsoft overhauls its update process.

On systems running Windows 10 Home and Pro, the support period for each version is 18 months. Windows 10 Enterprise and Education editions have a longer support period of 30 months for the version released in the second half of each year. To manage feature updates based on these support calendars, see “When will you get the next version of Windows 10? Here’s how to take control.

When a feature update is released, it may take several weeks or months to roll out to the huge worldwide installed base of Windows 10 users, a process Microsoft calls “throttling. Each feature update delivered through Windows Update requires roughly 3 GB of bandwidth and disk space. If you install a different version of Windows 10, the system might need to reactivate Windows. There might also be situations when Windows requires reactivation even though the product has already been activated.

The Product Key could be obtained by buying a retail kit from a store or online. When the new Product Key is entered, the system will reactivate using that new Product Key. Windows activation terms The following list explains the terms that are used during the activation process:.

This is also called a Digital License. The key is manually typed into the OS and Windows 10 will activate via the internet by validating the Product Key. Windows 10 retail kits will include this character key. Certificate of Authenticity COA : An identification method to help prove that a Windows product is not counterfeit or copied. The COA could be in the form of a label that contains a bar code and product key.

Activating Windows 10 Windows 10 can only be activated by connecting to the internet except for volume-license versions of Windows Windows 10 cannot be activated over the phone. If a system has a Digital Product Key that was injected into the system BIOS during the manufacturing process, Windows 10 will use that key to activate Windows 10 on that specific system. Activation is automatic when connected to the internet.

Activation is automatic when connected to the internet if the user has already typed in the Product Key. Digital Product Keys and retail Product Keys are unique and can only be used to activate one system. If the system cannot be connected to the internet and activated, the system is in the ‘Deferred Activation’ state. Windows 10 can be used normally while in ‘Deferred Activation’. No message is displayed on the desktop indicating that Windows is not activated.

On rare occasions, it is possible to connect a system with a valid DPK to the internet, but not activate Windows. By connecting to the internet, Windows will be taken out of ‘Deferred Activation’ and will expect to be activated. The system will display a light grey message in the lower right corner of the desktop stating that Windows is not activated.

Also, various personalization features are turned off, for example, the user cannot change the desktop background. The easiest fix is connecting the system to the internet, ensuring it has access to Microsoft, and allowing the system time to activate. Valid Product Key. Windows 10 will display a light grey message in the lower right corner of the desktop stating that Windows is not activated.

 
 

 

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› Business › Enterprise Software. If you already have a Windows 10 product key or you are planning to reinstall Windows 10 on a machine that already has a digital license.