Who Will Get Free Windows 10? Here is the Answer

Recently when Microsoft made an announcement about the availability of Windows 10 final release (RTM version) for Windows Insiders, it created a lot of confusion among people. By the official statement it appeared like Microsoft is going to giveaway free genuine copy of Windows 10 to all Windows Insiders which will be activated as well.

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We also posted a topic about this announcement which can be read at following link:

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Windows Insiders to Get Windows 10 for Free

But today Microsoft has made it clear that only genuine Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users can upgrade to Windows 10 for free within one year of Windows 10 launch as the part of free upgrade offer.

So what about the previous announcement which claimed to provide free and activated copy of Windows 10 final version to Windows Insiders?

To clear all confusion, today in this topic we are going to tell you who are going to get free Windows 10 and who are not:

Genuine Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 Users: YES

All Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users who are using genuine Windows version and have activated it, will 100% get free Windows 10 but within 1 year of the launch. Once you upgrade your computer to Windows 10 in first year, you’ll be able to use Windows 10 forever on that device at no additional charges.

Check out following article to learn everything about this free upgrade offer:

Windows 10 Upgrade Paths and List of Deprecated Features

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Windows Insiders: YES and NO

Now lets talk about Windows Insiders, the people who are helping Microsoft in testing Windows 10 preview builds by installing them in their computer systems and by providing bug reports and feedback to Microsoft.

Windows Insiders will also get free copy of Windows 10 final release on July 29, 2015 BUT it’ll be a little bit different than the Windows 10 copy which will be given to genuine Windows 7/8.1 users or people who buy Windows 10 from Microsoft Store or local market.

The free Windows 10 copy which will be given to Windows Insiders will contain a time bomb. In other words, it’ll come with an expiry date and once the expiry date arrives, Windows 10 will stop working and will not allow users to login.

So it’ll work like any other testing build of Windows 10. You can consider it as a trial or evaluation version of Windows 10.

But there are 2 good things! First the expiry date usually covers 6-8 months, so you can use the free copy of Windows 10 for that time period.

Second good thing which really matters is that Microsoft will keep releasing preview builds of Windows 10 or the next Windows version, so you’ll automatically receive those new pre-release builds of Windows 10 as the part of Windows Insiders program. Once you install a newer testing build, the expiry date will automatically extend to a new date. By the time the older testing build of Windows 10 expires, you’ll always have a new testing build to install and use.

But there are some downsides as well! First, since these builds will be released for testing purposes, they may contain bugs and issues, so you’ll always have risk of data loss and crashes.

Second issue is that you’ll need to stay on Windows Insider program to be able to receive newer Windows builds to extend expiry date. If you decide to leave Windows Insider program, you’ll have to purchase Windows 10 or roll back to previous Windows versions.

NOTE: If you initially upgraded to Windows 10 preview build from a genuine Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 computer and later you decide to leave Windows Insiders program, your Windows 10 copy will remain genuine and activated as the part of free upgrade offer for genuine Windows 7/8.1 users.

But if you performed a clean installation of Windows 10 preview build and later you decide to leave Windows Insider program, you’ll have to purchase a license of Windows 10 or install your previous Windows version.

Also Check: How to Leave Windows Insider Program in Windows 10?

Pirates: NO (without any doubt)

Pirates will never get genuine Windows versions for free. Pirates will have 2 choices:

1. Buy Windows 10 license when it releases.

2. Join Windows Insiders program and install pre-release builds of Windows 10.

Check out following article for more details about upgrading to Windows 10 from a non-genuine Windows version:

[FAQ] Upgrading to Windows 10 from Non-Genuine Windows

I hope it’ll clear all your doubts about Windows 10 availability. If you have any question, feel free to ask in your comment…

Published in: Windows 10

About the author: Vishal Gupta (also known as VG) has been awarded with Microsoft MVP (Most Valuable Professional) award. He holds Masters degree in Computer Applications (MCA). He has written several tech articles for popular newspapers and magazines and has also appeared in tech shows on various TV channels.

Comments

NOTE: Older comments have been removed to reduce database overhead.

  1. @Sumit

    If you didn‘t pay money for your software at all or you‘re a victim of software counterfeiting (bought a license from untrusted source) you aren‘t using legal Windows version.

  2. There is a machine with windows 7 home installed. It does not have upgrade pop up as in another windows 8.1 machine. Why no upgrade option on windows 7 machine? Machine is activated, machine is Acer.

  3. does the upgrade to windows 10 include windows 8 upgraded to 8.1 that has a oem product ID

    a computer that has windows 8 pre installed

  4. I had once upgraded to Windows 10 insider preview from my Geniune windows 8.1 but removed it as it was creating a mess in bootloading process and so again installed Windows 8.1 genuine along with windows 10 as a dual boot.
    Now I didnot get any notification of windows 10 reserve from Microsoft Windows update in windows 8.1.

    BOTH OS have my Microsoft Account connected and validated

    Now my questions
    Will my windows 8.1 genuine key work for windows 10 after final RTM Build is released…

    If not then if i upgrade fron 8.1 to windows 10 once again during this time but i dont want to do that again as a clean install is better…will it remain to be genuine..?

    Last but not least
    I am a part of volume licensing of Microsoft software for use if I upgraded windows my 8.1 to 10 but as it has not approved by the institution Will it cease to be genuine….?

  5. Thanks for this post before I’m confusing about that windows 8.1 pirated able to upgrade windows 10.

  6. @VG!

    Please answer the following questions to help in getting Windows 10 License without downgrade to the currently installed Windows 8.1 Enterprise in Windows 8.1 Professional With Media Centre Pack. This is just because, the first Notebook having Windows 8.1 Professional With Media Centre Pack has burnt due to a non-genuine battery explosion supplied by the Flipkart’s authorized seller HABHUSA. The second Notebook having Non-Genuine Windows 8.1 Enterprise, in which I want to install Windows 10 Final without download Windows 8.1 Professional ISO and install, in lack of fastest internet.

    1. Will I get Windows 10 free if I did upgrade from Windows 7 Home Premium to Windows 8 Pro and thereafter Windows 8 Professional With Media Centre Pack?
    2. If YES, then how can I register for Windows 10 license using genuine license key of Windows 8?
    3. Which one key would be used either of Windows 8 Pro or Windows 8 Pro With Media Centre Pack to get Windows 10?

    Thanks & Regards

  7. @vidya it wil be optional, not just clean installs. your questin about will it remain genuine? i think the installation itself will answer that before it even does anything. if you have multiple OS’s in your rig im sure it will ask which one you wanna upgrade and ofcourse check if that is genuine. if you have no win8.1 or 7 in your rig then obviously you will no be qualified for the upgrade. just the key by itself wont be enough i dont think

  8. @Rajiv
    Your computer must contain genuine Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 in order to get free upgrade to Windows 10. If you have genuine Windows 7/8.1, your computer will automatically download “Get Windows 10” app to reserve free upgrade.

  9. thank you for that VG i was wondering why i already had that app months before i learned about it in here. i dont recall asking for it or being notified about it either. i guess maybe it was included in the monthy updates? …which i never really read/research on individually.

  10. Thanks VG!

    Can I perform clean install of Windows 8.1 Pro With Media Centre Pack using upgrade license key (upgraded Windows 7 Home Premium)?

  11. @askvg sir

    I have activated windows 8.1 using skype method will i get windows 10 free or need to buy liesence plz answer

  12. @askvg Sir i used skype activation you can search about it i used it by calling microsoft using skype that method i used that so my question is can i upgrade to Windows 10 my windows 8.1 pro is activated by skype and will i get Windows 10 free or need to buy key to activate?

  13. ^^ If its a genuine Windows and activated legally, you are good to go. Do you see the Get Windows 10 icon in Taskbar?

  14. @AskVG sir i got the icon and i activated my windows via phone it was a cd that was not activated i activated that by phone will i get windows 10 or would like to buy windows 10 license????? and sir if you dont know about skype activation you can search on google.
    Sir please answer my question i like your softwares

  15. ^^ As I earlier said, if your Windows is genuine and activated and if you have the icon in Taskbar, you are good to go. Have you reserved Windows 10 upgrade using the icon?

  16. VG, if I do not have SP1 in Windows 7 or I am running 8.0 do I qualify for the free upgrade?I red that somewhere in Microsoft forums that you can upgrade but you must use the ISO.

  17. ^^ According to Microsoft’s official statement, you must be using Windows 7 with SP1 or Windows 8.1 to qualify upgrade to Windows 10. But it might be right that these requirements are only for upgrading using Get Windows 10 app as it’ll be only installed if these requirements are fulfilled. I think if you get Windows 10 ISO, you’ll be able to upgrade from Windows 7 without SP1 or Windows 8. Lets wait for the release.

  18. So, I have a question… What about those of us that initially installed the insider preview on their Windows 7 or windows 8.1 hard drive only to have one of those insider builds crash and wipe the hard drive forcing a fresh install of the Win 10 Preview via downloading the ISO and burning it to a disk to install it?
    This happened to me twice and the problem turned out to be compatibility issues with AMD processors on graphics cards. I have a Radeon R7 250 and every time that driver was installed prior to upgrading to the next build, the system crashed.
    This happened to me with builds 10074 and 10130, I am currently running build 10162 from a clean install of the ISO 10130. Once I figured out the culprit causing the crashes (drivers for the Radeon card) I reverted the drivers before installing the new preview build.
    I currently own licensed copies of Win7 home, Win7 pro, Win7 Ult, Win8 and Win8.1 – All 64 bit and all with different legitimate licenses.
    I have 3 systems that this crashing problem occurred, one system was running windows 8.1, the others were running Win7 Pro and Win7 Ult, respectively…

    So – am I going to have to wipe my disk and install one of my other OS’s first in order to get the legit copy of Win10 when it comes live?

    Dan

  19. sir my windows 10 enterprise is not genuine and it is showing “your windows licence is going to expire soon” how to solve this sir?

  20. Sir , i have hp pavilion laptop of Nvidia Graphics card which had in built windows 10 .But i upgraded it to windows 11 and it is not compatible with the graphics card. Hence , i made a free reset of windows 10. Will i still have to buy windows 10 or it will always be genuine?

  21. ^^ If the laptop came with Windows 10 preinstalled and activated, it should remain activated and genuine.

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