When Is the Right Time to Upgrade to Windows 10?
Published on 21 April 16
Barry1
1
Before you read, please note we can't be held responsible if something goes wrong if you try to implement or decide not to implement any of the below suggestions. This information is provided as-is and without warranty of any kind and at the sole discretion of the reader.
You are running Windows 7 or Windows 8 and you keep getting these nagging
pop-ups to upgrade to Windows 10. Maybe you're tempted but you just don't
know if you should or not?
More recently, on some computers, Microsoft started including Windows 10 as
a recommended update that will get installed unless you uncheck it. Once
this update is uninstalled you have to continuously opt out of the End User
License Agreement (EULA) that pops up after each reboot or you will kick off
the update sequence that will start installing Windows 10.
So the big question is should I just let it happen or should I resist the
upgrade and for how long?
This question is really best answered by the individual and their needs as
well as the computer they are operating on.
The first question should be, is my system even compatible with Windows 10?
If you are running Windows 7 or Windows 8 (not 8.1) you can run the Windows
8.1 upgrade assistant. If the Windows 8.1 upgrade assistant says your
computer is compatible with Windows 8.1 then it is most likely compatible
with Windows 10 as well. The Windows 8.1 upgrade assistant will tell you
component by component what is supported and what is not. If for example
your video card is not supported, you don't necessarily need to throw away
the whole computer, but instead simply upgrade the video card.
The upgrade assistant can be found
here http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/upgrade-assistant-download-online-faq.
If you are unsure about what version of Windows you have, first hit 'Windows
key' + 'X'. On a Windows 8 or 8.1 system this will bring up a menu in the
lower left corner of the screen. Here you will choose 'system' and look
under 'Windows Edition'. If your computer is Windows 8 run the upgrade
assistant just to be sure. If it's Windows 8.1 you should already be ok to
upgrade to Windows 10.
If 'Windows key' + 'X' is not doing anything you are probably running an
earlier version of Windows. In this case hit the start button, right click
'computer' or 'my computer' and then check your version again under 'Windows
edition'. If are running Windows 7 run the Windows 8.1 upgrade advisor. If
you are running something earlier like Windows XP, still run the advisor but
consider an upgrade at this point because your system is probably quite old
and spending the time to upgrade and then work out the kinks may not be
worth your time if the computer is prone to failure in the near future based
on its age.
Now that you know whether or not I can upgrade, should I?
Consider that Microsoft is asking you to do an in-place install of Windows
10. This means they are asking you to upgrade Windows 10 on-top of your
current version of Windows 7 or 8 so that your data and applications stay
intact as they are. In the past we have found that this is not as "clean" or
problem free a way to upgrade a system as a full wipe and reinstall of the
operating system. For example Windows Vista allowed an upgrade path to
Windows 7 in the same fashion. What we found is that many of the drivers had
to be updated and some programs had to be uninstalled and reinstalled and
then even then there were lingering issues with crashing programs, error
messages, printer issues, etc.
This more recent upgrade path from Windows 7 / Windows 8 / Windows 8.1 to
Windows 10 does seem to be a lot more reliable of an upgrade vs the Windows
Vista to 7 upgrade. None the less, we have seen issues that simply cannot be
fixed after the upgrade. Most of these issues stem around printing and
sometimes even a manual rebuild of the printing service does not fix the
issue.
When there is a potential for issues that take hours to fix or that cannot
be fixed it makes sense to start from scratch. This involves backing up your
data, making sure you have the proper media and keys to properly reinstall
all your necessary software, wiping Windows 7 or 8, installing Windows 10,
installing any drivers that Windows 10 does not automatically find,
reinstalling all of your programs, and restoring all your data back to the
clean build of Windows 10. Although this sounds like a pain, long-term this
is going to be a much more satisfying experience with fewer bugs and
possibly even better performance.
Final Decision based on the type of computer(s) you own
One more thing to consider before taking the plunge is whether or not
Windows 10 will provide benefit.
If you own a tablet running Windows 8 or a laptop with a touchscreen (that
you actually use), then you will most likely find a lot of benefit from
Windows 10. The interface tends to make a lot more sense for more people.
Transitioning between tablet based apps vs desktop based apps is a lot more
intuitive of an experience.
However, if you are running a non-touch laptop or desktop, in our opinion,
you could upgrade to Windows 10 but you aren't going to find a ton of
benefit from doing so. In fact, we believe that Windows 7 Pro is the most
productive operating system for business-users ever designed when it comes
to the traditional laptop / desktop environment. The traditional style start
menu, coupled with an intuitive search interface just makes sense for day to
day work under most situations.
If you are concerned about Windows 7 support ending like it did with Windows
XP back in April of 2014, extended support for Windows 7 won't end until
January 14th of 2020. This means they will still be patching the OS for a
long time to address security concerns.
Please note you do need to be running Windows 7 with service pack 1 for
extended service to apply, so this update should be applied immediately if
you haven't done so already.
By the way, if you are already running Windows 8 or 10 and miss that Windows
7 start menu, look no further than Classic Shell which you can download
here http://www.classicshell.net.
What if I decide I don't want to upgrade to Windows 10 right now?
You need to stop the nagging pop-ups because it will become easier and
easier to accidentally install Windows 10 as time goes on.
GWX control panel to the rescue. This program allows you to remove any
Windows 10 installation files that may have already been downloaded (waiting
to be installed), prevent Window 10 pop-ups, and remove Windows 10 updates
as 'recommended' updates so they aren't automatically marked for
installation without manual intervention.
You can download GWX control panel
here http://ultimateoutsider.com/downloads/.
Please note this is a cat and mouse game and GWX control panel may need to
be updated and re-implemented in the future to stop future attempts at
getting you to upgrade to Windows 10.
So there you go, you should now have a much better idea as to whether or not
upgrading to Windows 10 makes sense for you or not. It may make sense for
one device but not another. It may make sense for part of your business but
not all of it.
If you have any questions about this or anything else tech related, please feel free to call or email us. We can be phoned or emailed via our website at Colbatech.com.
pop-ups to upgrade to Windows 10. Maybe you're tempted but you just don't
know if you should or not?
More recently, on some computers, Microsoft started including Windows 10 as
a recommended update that will get installed unless you uncheck it. Once
this update is uninstalled you have to continuously opt out of the End User
License Agreement (EULA) that pops up after each reboot or you will kick off
the update sequence that will start installing Windows 10.
So the big question is should I just let it happen or should I resist the
upgrade and for how long?
This question is really best answered by the individual and their needs as
well as the computer they are operating on.
The first question should be, is my system even compatible with Windows 10?
If you are running Windows 7 or Windows 8 (not 8.1) you can run the Windows
8.1 upgrade assistant. If the Windows 8.1 upgrade assistant says your
computer is compatible with Windows 8.1 then it is most likely compatible
with Windows 10 as well. The Windows 8.1 upgrade assistant will tell you
component by component what is supported and what is not. If for example
your video card is not supported, you don't necessarily need to throw away
the whole computer, but instead simply upgrade the video card.
The upgrade assistant can be found
here http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/upgrade-assistant-download-online-faq.
If you are unsure about what version of Windows you have, first hit 'Windows
key' + 'X'. On a Windows 8 or 8.1 system this will bring up a menu in the
lower left corner of the screen. Here you will choose 'system' and look
under 'Windows Edition'. If your computer is Windows 8 run the upgrade
assistant just to be sure. If it's Windows 8.1 you should already be ok to
upgrade to Windows 10.
If 'Windows key' + 'X' is not doing anything you are probably running an
earlier version of Windows. In this case hit the start button, right click
'computer' or 'my computer' and then check your version again under 'Windows
edition'. If are running Windows 7 run the Windows 8.1 upgrade advisor. If
you are running something earlier like Windows XP, still run the advisor but
consider an upgrade at this point because your system is probably quite old
and spending the time to upgrade and then work out the kinks may not be
worth your time if the computer is prone to failure in the near future based
on its age.
Now that you know whether or not I can upgrade, should I?
Consider that Microsoft is asking you to do an in-place install of Windows
10. This means they are asking you to upgrade Windows 10 on-top of your
current version of Windows 7 or 8 so that your data and applications stay
intact as they are. In the past we have found that this is not as "clean" or
problem free a way to upgrade a system as a full wipe and reinstall of the
operating system. For example Windows Vista allowed an upgrade path to
Windows 7 in the same fashion. What we found is that many of the drivers had
to be updated and some programs had to be uninstalled and reinstalled and
then even then there were lingering issues with crashing programs, error
messages, printer issues, etc.
This more recent upgrade path from Windows 7 / Windows 8 / Windows 8.1 to
Windows 10 does seem to be a lot more reliable of an upgrade vs the Windows
Vista to 7 upgrade. None the less, we have seen issues that simply cannot be
fixed after the upgrade. Most of these issues stem around printing and
sometimes even a manual rebuild of the printing service does not fix the
issue.
When there is a potential for issues that take hours to fix or that cannot
be fixed it makes sense to start from scratch. This involves backing up your
data, making sure you have the proper media and keys to properly reinstall
all your necessary software, wiping Windows 7 or 8, installing Windows 10,
installing any drivers that Windows 10 does not automatically find,
reinstalling all of your programs, and restoring all your data back to the
clean build of Windows 10. Although this sounds like a pain, long-term this
is going to be a much more satisfying experience with fewer bugs and
possibly even better performance.
Final Decision based on the type of computer(s) you own
One more thing to consider before taking the plunge is whether or not
Windows 10 will provide benefit.
If you own a tablet running Windows 8 or a laptop with a touchscreen (that
you actually use), then you will most likely find a lot of benefit from
Windows 10. The interface tends to make a lot more sense for more people.
Transitioning between tablet based apps vs desktop based apps is a lot more
intuitive of an experience.
However, if you are running a non-touch laptop or desktop, in our opinion,
you could upgrade to Windows 10 but you aren't going to find a ton of
benefit from doing so. In fact, we believe that Windows 7 Pro is the most
productive operating system for business-users ever designed when it comes
to the traditional laptop / desktop environment. The traditional style start
menu, coupled with an intuitive search interface just makes sense for day to
day work under most situations.
If you are concerned about Windows 7 support ending like it did with Windows
XP back in April of 2014, extended support for Windows 7 won't end until
January 14th of 2020. This means they will still be patching the OS for a
long time to address security concerns.
Please note you do need to be running Windows 7 with service pack 1 for
extended service to apply, so this update should be applied immediately if
you haven't done so already.
By the way, if you are already running Windows 8 or 10 and miss that Windows
7 start menu, look no further than Classic Shell which you can download
here http://www.classicshell.net.
What if I decide I don't want to upgrade to Windows 10 right now?
You need to stop the nagging pop-ups because it will become easier and
easier to accidentally install Windows 10 as time goes on.
GWX control panel to the rescue. This program allows you to remove any
Windows 10 installation files that may have already been downloaded (waiting
to be installed), prevent Window 10 pop-ups, and remove Windows 10 updates
as 'recommended' updates so they aren't automatically marked for
installation without manual intervention.
You can download GWX control panel
here http://ultimateoutsider.com/downloads/.
Please note this is a cat and mouse game and GWX control panel may need to
be updated and re-implemented in the future to stop future attempts at
getting you to upgrade to Windows 10.
So there you go, you should now have a much better idea as to whether or not
upgrading to Windows 10 makes sense for you or not. It may make sense for
one device but not another. It may make sense for part of your business but
not all of it.
If you have any questions about this or anything else tech related, please feel free to call or email us. We can be phoned or emailed via our website at Colbatech.com.
This blog is listed under
Operating Systems
and Mobility
Community
Related Posts:
You may also be interested in
Share your perspective
Share your achievement or new finding or bring a new tech idea to life. Your IT community is waiting!
Updating Windows forcefully is not a good idea as you might lose your data. Microsoft keeps generating updates for Windows and when an update is available for your system, you can download and install it. It cannot be defined as the right time to update windows. Microsoft will notify when an update is available and then you can go for it. But before updating always backup the data. As downloading and installing windows update takes time so, it is better to do it when you are not in need to use the computer or laptop.