For those who did the free upgrade to Windows 10

Twister said:

What method do you use to keep windows 10 in case you need to restore or format your computer because of malware or viruses? With the restore you'll go back to 7 or windows 8 but after the end of july you can't download it anymore.

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Download the Media Creation Tool and then open it and select Perform a clean installation using a usb or dvd. That will allow you to download Windows 10 to a usb drive or an iso for you to burn to dvd.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/software-download/windows10

Thanks b4u. But will clean installation wipe out your existing programs and data?

Yes the "checking for Update" screen can be a real b*tch, it can take hours. I did mine at night, and I hit the pillow when the "Check for Updates" screen appears. If you use a laptop disable all the power savings (run it in presentation mode) so it won't go to sleep. When you wake up in the morning it should be all done!

b4u said:

Download the Media Creation Tool and then open it and select Perform a clean installation using a usb or dvd. That will allow you to download Windows 10 to a usb drive or an iso for you to burn to dvd.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/software-download/windows10

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It worked out for me, even better I think is to make an image, so you don't have to reinstall windows 7 and then 10 in case of malware or virus.

Twister said:

What method do you use to keep windows 10 in case you need to restore or format your computer because of malware or viruses?

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Had W7 which qualified for free W10, so I downloaded free W10 as a bootable ISO onto a thumb-drive so it is easily saved. Then did a clean install of W10 onto a SSD added to my desktop. This way I now have W7, W10 and two versions of Linux on my desktop. In effect the desktop is now a Quad boot system and all 4 Operating Systems run fine when desired.

Twister said:

Thanks will have to try, now its twice I try to upgrade another computer to 10 and it keeps stopping at 99% for many many hours...

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I had the same problem, stayed at 99% for around 10 hours. Based on the number of people commenting on it online, it's a common situation.

Update was problem free and WIN10 fixed allot of my laptop's little headaches, for example the long Windows Update cycle and a missing USB hub driver. Getting 2-3 fps better performance on several games.

I defaulted to the WIN7-like user interface. I see little benefit to Metro other than the live tiles which is pretty useful for at-a-glance viewing for weather, news and stock numbers.

Twister said:

What method do you use to keep windows 10 in case you need to restore or format your computer because of malware or viruses? With the restore you'll go back to 7 or windows 8 but after the end of july you can't download it anymore.

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I suspect Windows 10 will be free to download for a long time because Microsoft wants everyone on Windows 10 desperately.

Edging said:

The last free update day for Windows 10 is July 29, 2016

A tech guy on one of the stations (Carmi Levy) said if you've got Windows 7 or 8 machine that's a couple of years old and are happy with it, stick with it because
sometimes updating to Windows 10 can cause problems with printers and other stuff.
When you get a new machine in a couple of years with Windows 10 already installed, it's a better bet.

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Thanks for that info. My Windows 7 desktop, is over 4 years old. Therefore, I'll just stay with Windows 7.

Twister said:

A clean install? Didn't it ask you for a serial number?

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Don't recall it doing that. However believe M$ had some way of verifying my W7 copy was legit and allowed W10 to install and run with no problems. Have toyed around with W10 some and have no problems with it. W10 is nice and not that different from W7 once you get familiar with it. When you use the 'desktop icon' W10 gives you a look similar to W7.

That said free Linux remains my primary OS of choice now.

Didn't think you could run the pre-upgraded Windows 7 after activating and installing Win 10. I know you can restore back to Win 7 if you don't like Win 10 but I thought I read that you can't have both installed at the same time because Win 10 is an upgrade so the previous Windows no longer works (presumably can't be activated again so long as Win 10 is activated).

Still can get it for free here..... https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/accessibility/windows10upgrade


Backup and clone your hard drives is the way to go.

Keebler Elf said:

Didn't think you could run the pre-upgraded Windows 7 after activating and installing Win 10. I know you can restore back to Win 7 if you don't like Win 10 but I thought I read that you can't have both installed at the same time because Win 10 is an upgrade so the previous Windows no longer works (presumably can't be activated again so long as Win 10 is activated).

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Not true.
I can run either W7 which came with my PC and was saved, or W10 that was upgraded as a clean install, whenever desired as stated in Post 7 above.

Edging said:

The last free update day for Windows 10 is July 29, 2016

A tech guy on one of the stations (Carmi Levy) said if you've got Windows 7 or 8 machine that's a couple of years old and are happy with it, stick with it because
sometimes updating to Windows 10 can cause problems with printers and other stuff.
When you get a new machine in a couple of years with Windows 10 already installed, it's a better bet.

Click to expand...

This is what I decided to do. I like my windows 7 so I figure I should stay with it till it's time to get another computer.

Yeah I'm just staying with Windows 7 on my laptop. I'll get version 10 with my next purchase although I find sometimes a couple of days goes by and I don't use it I just rely on my smartphone.

As noted above, I also stuck with Windows 8 until I decide to purchase a new machine. I tried the free upgrade and had issues with. So I re-set my laptop back to Windows 8.

For me, Windows 10 is an unadulterated piece of crap. I had Windows 7 on my desktop and was receiving the daily offers to upgrade to Windows 10. I cancelled them whenever they showed up and then, on its own, my computer started the conversion to W10. My computer is now slower, there are sound problems and a couple of days ago the Windows START button (bottom left corner) has stopped working. I think it might be time to buy an Apple.