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Windows 10 Will Be Free To Users Who Test It
An anonymous reader writes: Microsoft has been making a big push to change its business model for Windows — likely due to the low/no cost updates you can get for competing operating systems. The company surprised everyone when it said legit copies of Windows 7 and 8 would be supplied with free upgrades, but now they're extending that even further: anyone who tests the Windows 10 Technical Preview will get a free upgrade to the full version of Windows 10 when it comes out. In a blog post, Microsoft's Gabe Aul said, "As long as you are running an Insider Preview build and connected with the [Microsoft account] you used to register, you will receive the Windows 10 final release build and remain activated. Once you have successfully installed this build and activated, you will also be able to clean install on that PC from final media if you want to start over fresh."
It's not really all that surprising that MS wants additional testing badly enough to give away copies of Win10 for free to get it. Remember the fact that part of Microsoft's 2014 layoffs included elimination of all the SDETs in the Windows division. Those that were deemed worthy to stay were converted to SDEs and the rest were told to hit the road.
Needless to say, the result is likely to be exactly what one would expect of canning the entire test team suddenly, if the state of the technical previews has been any indication...
only if you install windows 10 preview and give in to the online requirement and link your windows to a microsoft account. sorry, microsoft, no thank you.
Then your understanding is wrong. As per Gabe Aul, you own it.
The "one year" thing is to push people into upgrading sooner rather than later. If you upgrade within the first year, Windows 10 is free for the life of the device (and that includes reinstalls; so long as you have a Microsoft account and your Windows user is connected to that account, you can reinstall on that device to your heart's content.
If you delay in upgrading past that one year mark, you need to go buy a copy.
If your PC runs Windows 7 it'll run Windows 10. There have been no increase in performance requirements in the past 3 versions of windows. In fact Windows 8, 8.1 and 10 are working on ever increasing memory and CPU efficiency.
One real problem is once you "upgrade" to Windows 10 from say Windows 7 - there is no going back Having checked it out on their website, My Windows 7 copy is no longer registrable.
The free program Advanced Tokens Manager allows you to back up your activation and reapply it at as many times as you want.
Shame you can't make an image of MS' activation servers, too, because that's the problem.
For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
So make an image of your Windows 7 setup before you upgrade.
From Microsoft:
http://answers.microsoft.com/e...
Specifically :If you upgrade from a OEM or retail version of Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 to the free Windows 10 upgrade this summer, the license is consumed into it. Because the free upgrade is derived from the base qualifying license, Windows 10 will carry that licensing too.
Try it and tell me how it works for you?
The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
only if you install windows 10 preview and give in to the online requirement and link your windows to a microsoft account
That might be because it's a tech preview explicitly meant for people who are willing to test it. Reporting back information to Microsoft is the entire fucking point.
Windows 10 RTM will have no such requirement.