AskVG

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

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We know that Windows 10 is a free upgrade for Windows 7 and Windows 8/8.1 users in the first year of Windows 10 launch. So existing Windows 7/8/8.1 users can upgrade to Windows 10 for free.

Windows 10 Upgrade Paths and List of Deprecated Features

When Microsoft announced about this free upgrade offer, the company also indicated that pirated or non-genuine Windows users will also be able to upgrade to Windows 10 for free. This news came as a surprise and caused lots of confusion between people as they were unable to understand why should a pirated Windows user be allowed to upgrade to latest Windows version for free?

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Now to clear all doubts, Microsoft has officially provided some details about pirated/non-genuine Windows and Windows 10 upgrade offer.

For your convenience, we are providing the official information in form of a frequently asked questions (FAQ) list which will help you in understanding the whole idea easily. We’ll try to cover all possible questions and doubts in this article.

So without wasting time lets start the FAQ list:

Q.1. Is it true that pirated or non-genuine Windows versions also get free upgrade to Windows 10?

Ans. Yes. Its true. If you are using a pirated Windows versions (Windows 7/8/8.1), you’ll get a prompt or notification to upgrade to Windows 10 when its released to public.

Q.2. So does that mean I’ll be able to use Windows 10 forever like a genuine Windows user?

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Ans. No. Pirated Windows will get free upgrade to Windows 10 but they’ll not be able to activate Windows 10 using their pirated product key or license. They’ll still need a genuine Windows 10 license to activate their Windows.

Q.3. So what will happen when pirated Windows users are unable to activate their Windows 10 versions?

Ans. It’ll work like a trial version of Windows 10. You’ll get a limited period of time e.g. 30 days to use Windows 10 and to activate it. If you don’t activate Windows 10 within that grace period, you’ll be unable to use it further and you’ll not be able to log into Windows 10.

Also a watermark on Desktop will become visible telling you that you are using a pirated Windows version and you should make it genuine by activating it using a genuine license key. The exact text of watermark is not known yet but it might be similar to following:

  • This copy of Windows is not genuine.
  • You may be a victim of software counterfeiting. This copy of Windows did not pass genuine Windows validation.

Although it’ll not be very hard to remove that watermark from Desktop. People always modify system files using Resource Hacker to get rid of such kind of watermarks.

Q.4. Will there any offer for pirated Windows users to buy Windows 10 genuine license?

Ans. Yes. Microsoft will provide attractive offers to pirated Windows victims so that they can buy a genuine license of Windows 10.

So the bottom line is that pirated or non-genuine Windows users will get the offer to upgrade to Windows 10 but they’ll not be able to use it for free. They’ll need to activate Windows 10 using a genuine license key, thus they’ll need to purchase a genuine copy of Windows 10 from Microsoft.

Also Check:

List of Windows 10 Editions (SKUs)

Who Will Get Free Windows 10?

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.

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Comments

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  1. hey VG !
    I do not know much about windows and all that…………………I am having a laptop with pirated windows 10 . if i will upgrade it using windows 10 offline ISO disc image , I have to install the drivers again ??????

    pls rpy

  3. hello,

    Just want to ask if i business of 50 computers are updated from Pirated Windows to Windows 10.. is it legal to be used for a business even if on the desktop of 50 computers says

    -This copy of Windows is not genuine.
    -You may be a victim of software counterfeiting. This copy of Windows did not pass genuine Windows validation.

    Will the company suffer and be raided by Microsoft

  4. ^^ Of course. You should purchase licenses for the computers and then you can upgrade to Windows 10.

  5. My friend has a windows 10 (Activated) installed in his PC. Also, he has a windows 10 activator that he used to activate his windows 10. I have a windows 7 ultimate (not genuine) in my laptop. If I upgraded to windows 10 and used his activator, will I be able to use the genuine windows 10 for free for the rest of my life? 😀

  7. It is a dumb upgrade. I did not want to upgrade to 10. I have a genuine windows 7 but after the sudden installation and I stopped it. It tells me that my windows is fake!!! I have had this laptop for 3 years and bought it straight from samsung! ):< I do not like the way there are doing this! I'm busy working and suddenly this! I don't even have time to backup all my files and this! Geez!!!

  8. Dell Desktop with OEM Windows 7 Home Installed. Dell Motherboard failed; opted to install ASUS Motherboard instead (for price point and quality reasons). OEM license won’t re-activate due to non OEM Motherboard but Windows 10 update notification was already in place. Will it update to Windows 10 and bypass the activation because it’s authenticity was verified prior to the Motherboard replacement or will it install and then ask for a Windows 10 license key? I’d hate to have to buy a Windows 10 license key when I do have a legitimate although OEM Windows 7 license. Thanks!!

  9. Disregard my last comment…. Windows validation was looking at the pre-installed license key and flagging it as an OEM invalid key. All I did was enter the COA from the sticker on the case (Duh…. I got a really early start this morning) and voila! It validated!! So now I will have no issues should I choose to update to Windows 10…. Thanks!

  10. I have installed the genuine version of Windows 8.1. I have pirated windows 10 ISO disc image. If I upgrade my windows using this image file will it be genuine or not?

  12. hi.. i have inatalled non genuine windows 7 ultimate but i am having a genuine windows 7 home premium key which came along with my laptop purchase.. so can i directly update windows 10.. and will it ask for the key in between or whether windows 10 will accept my windows 7 home premium genuine key..

  13. ^^ If you want to upgrade, you’ll need to first install Windows 7 Home Premium edition using genuine product key and then you’ll be able to upgrade it to Windows 10. Alternatively, you can try to download Windows 10 Home edition and then install it using your Windows 7 Home premium key.

  14. So, I installed windows 10 in my laptop (windows 7 genuine) then i uninstall windows 10 and go back to windows 7.. And it said that my window is not genuine..? Why?

  15. i had pirated windows 8.1pro,i had upgraded to windows 10 by the popup notification(i reserved the windows before it was released).Now i have received a genuine version of windows 10 pro. i have removed all cracks and i have the “activated” status.i also had done a clean install of windows 10 pro from dvd after that and it is activated by digital entitlement. i also now have received the latest build upgrade(threshold 2).my question is that
    IS IT LEGAL FOR ME TO USE THIS WINDOWS????.as the free upgrade was ment for both pirated and genuine users.

  17. Hy… I am running with windows 7 genuine…can i download windows 10 or not.? if i download windows 10 will all the drivers will be downloaded and installed \or not.? and if everything is fine.., after installing of windows 10 will it ask for the product key again for installation for windows 10.???

  18. ^^ If your Windows 7 is genuine, you’ll automatically receive Windows 10 update via Windows Update. It’ll not ask for any product key.

  20. ^^ If its activated automatically by Microsoft servers and not by using any 3rd party tool, then its genuine.

  21. Nice,

    Just found out the shop who sold me my computer didn’t installed a genuine win7 version…

  22. My Windows 7 is genuine but my Microsoft office is not. This is preventing me from downloading 10. What do I do?

  23. There is some wrong information in this article. Here’s the correction.

    If Windows 10 is not activated (for example, due to upgrading from non-genuine Windows 7 or 8), it will have a permanent watermark telling you to activate. Also, you won’t be able to change Personalisation settings. But other than that, you can use all Windows features without any limitations. Windows 10 WILL NOT expire after 30 days. In fact, it will never expire.

  24. I have a non genuine windows 7 Home Edition OS on my desktop. I will like to purchase a genuine windows 10 Pro OS for my desktop. What do I need to do?

  26. ^^ Pirated Windows 7 can’t be upgraded to Windows 10. You’ll need to purchase Windows 10 license.

  27. Hello,

    I just bought a legit copy of windows 10, after having a dodgy copy.

    But now, settings wont even let me get into the activation part to put in my code.

    Any suggestions?

  30. ^^ You’ll need to clean install Windows 7. You can’t downgrade Windows 10 to Windows 7 directly.

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