Microsoft released the Windows 10 system in 2015 and stated that it will provide Windows 10 to genuine users of Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 for free for the first year. The proposal aims to transfer users to the new Windows 10 operating system, and after upgrading to Windows 10, you can get subsequent permanent free upgrades.

Microsoft officially ended its free upgrade program for Windows 10 in 2016, but if you meet the requirements, you can still get a free copy of Windows 10.

You may think that you are not eligible for the free upgrade, but according to foreign media’s tests and user reports , Windows 10 is still free for users who use the Windows 7 operating system . Users with a genuine backup license of Windows 7 can also upgrade to Windows 10 for free and obtain a digital license.

According to a Reddit user who claims to be a Microsoft employee, you can take advantage of Microsoft’s opportunity to upgrade Windows 10 for free, because the entire “free upgrade offer” is marketing language that prompts users to upgrade as soon as possible.

How to get Windows 10 for free

To get Windows 10 for free, follow the steps below.

• Use a genuine Windows 7 system on your device or virtual machine.
• Go to the Windows 10 download page and click “Download Tool Now”.
• Open the Media Creation Tool and select “Upgrade this computer now”. You also need to click the “Accept” button to accept the terms and conditions.
• Select the upgrade option where you save files and information. If you perform a clean installation through Media Creation Too, you may not get Windows 10 for free.
• After the installation is complete, connect your device or virtual machine to the Internet, and then open Windows Update> Activation.
• If necessary, please click the “Activate” button. After your PC establishes a secure connection with the Microsoft server, the digital license will be activated.
• If you cannot obtain a license, you can also enter the Windows 7 product key to manually activate the operating system.

The above steps will only work if you have installed a legitimate and genuine Windows 7 or Windows 8.1.

Windows 10 free upgrade offer still

As we mentioned at the beginning, the free upgrade offer for Windows 10 is a marketing wording, and you can upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 for free at any time. This is because Microsoft cares more about the market share of Windows 10 than licensing revenue.

Microsoft does not want to publicly acknowledge this “vulnerability”. If the internal plan changes, it can still stop the free upgrade-but as of December 26, 2020, this proposal is still valid.

Netizens in IThome note that Microsoft Windows 10 uses digital activation, which means that the product key is tied to your Microsoft account and hardware. If you want to format your computer, this is easy to do, because Windows 10 will automatically activate.

If you change the hardware (for example, perform an upgrade), activation will happen automatically, and Microsoft will register your new hardware and bind Windows to that hardware. However, if you decide to upgrade multiple hardware, especially if you upgrade the CPU, motherboard, and main storage drive at the same time or in combination, you may encounter problems, which will cause the activation not to be recognized. You can call Microsoft, and Microsoft will provide you with new Key to activate Windows again. Please note that they may ask you to provide the original product key, so please keep it safe.

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