Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7 and Windows 8.1
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@David_CSG said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
If a Microsoft licensing audit ever occurs, blame for the resulting fines will rest squarely on your shoulders. Don’t let it happen
This is scary but you can say this about all licensing and make it seem like you should never do anything. But in this case, we are talking about Microsoft issuing a new EULA... https://odinlaw.com/the-differences-between-a-eula-tos-and-sla/
The EULA is a new license and comes from Microsoft. I don't see how you are any less protected than if purchasing any other way. No matter how you do it, it's the EULA that let's you use the software and you get a new EULA this way. So it's just as newly "licensed" as any other method.
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So try to picture a real MS audit situation assuming this is done. MS isn't out to "get you", that's foolish for them. They want you compliant, they want to work with you, they just don't want things being missed. They aren't into trickery because that would land them in incredibly how water in court. Attempting to trick or defraud customers isn't good in court, or in the press. MS doesn't play that game.
So you get audited. The auditors can't see your licenses. No one has them for Windows desktops, no one. MS doesn't provide them for OEM machines. All you have is the EULA agreement and the key on the hardware. You can't even see that, you just know that it is there.
So the auditor asks:
- Does each machine have a valid license at the time of purchase? Yes, they are OEM or Retail box at time of purchase. Everything is licensed.
- Have they been upgraded? Yes, presumably we've upgraded them to Windows 10 using the MCT method.
- Do they have a license for the upgrade? Yes, MS provided me a new EULA to which I (and MS) agreed and they upgraded my keys (which doesn't matter, but they do.)
- Did you do anything to work around licensing problems? No, just followed the MCT upgrade tool.
- Any issues with key updates or activation? No, they all came back clean.
Imagine the auditor coming after you for buying Windows, upgrading as recommended, using Microsoft's own tools to do so, getting a valid license from Microsoft at the time that you do it, then claiming that the license that they provided to you was a scam and not valid.
Guess who is going to lose in court. The auditor who just claimed that they were handing out fake EULAs and that the license that they made an agreement over wasn't valid.
This seems like a huge stretch to consider potentially happening. You follow every rule, do everything by the book, have a valid license in every step, and the auditor claims that Microsoft is in the scam license business or that at best their licensing method is "accidental" and they "didn't mean it."
Audits are a two way street. You'd be in the position to sue here. Which MS is never going to let happen. They are not going to hire auditors to try to shake people down over a falsely issued license. They have nothing to win, everything to lose and no matter how much you dislike or distrust Microsoft or just feel that they aren't very competent, they just aren't this level of evil.
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@srsmith said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
Nice timing for this - we currently have around 2 dozen machines still on Windows 7 for various reasons. We were planning on buying new Windows 10 machines to replace all of them by the end of the year. I admit, I didn't look into it further than seeing the free upgrade offer was no longer officially on the table. If I can upgrade these Windows 7 machines for free, other than my time and an SSD for those that don't already have one, management will be very pleased.
Yes, try it on one. Download the MCT. Upgrade the PC and see if it activates. If so, you can then install a fresh bare metal install of Win10 after the upgrade.
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@Obsolesce said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@srsmith said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
Nice timing for this - we currently have around 2 dozen machines still on Windows 7 for various reasons. We were planning on buying new Windows 10 machines to replace all of them by the end of the year. I admit, I didn't look into it further than seeing the free upgrade offer was no longer officially on the table. If I can upgrade these Windows 7 machines for free, other than my time and an SSD for those that don't already have one, management will be very pleased.
Yes, try it on one. Download the MCT. Upgrade the PC and see if it activates. If so, you can then install a fresh bare metal install of Win10 after the upgrade.
Yup, once you upgrade (which gives you the new license, and then the activation which is additionally required) you are fully set up with a new Windows 10 license. So you can do fresh installs on that box after that.
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@JasGot said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@Pete-S said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@scottalanmiller said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@Pete-S said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
Or MCT will give you a fresh install compared to an upgrade?
No, it's still an upgrade just the same. But it does it with a huge amount of prep so the process is pretty reliable.
But if you use MCT to upgrade do you then get a Win10 license key as well? Or do you still have to use whatever old whatever version key you have?
I'm thinking if you have to reinstall everything after the upgrade to Win10. Do you have to go back to old windows again and start over?
Your Key from the prior version is re-assigned/changed/converted; use whatever term you wish; let's say you upgrade your Windows 7 Pro to Windows 10 Pro. After activation of Windows 10 with your Windows 7 key, your Windows 7 license is no longer a Windows 7 license key, it is a Windows 10 license key. This license "change" may have stopped occurring after the end of the free upgrade period (even though it still activated). Make sure you are compliant with licensing before upgrading.
And you are 100% allowed to downgrade if you wish.
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@Obsolesce said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
And you are 100% allowed to downgrade if you wish.
I didn't see that in the EULA, but wasn't looking for it. Are you sure that they allow a downgrade when upgrading from this path? That seems odd since the underlying goal would be the upgrade itself.
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@scottalanmiller said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@Obsolesce said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
And you are 100% allowed to downgrade if you wish.
I didn't see that in the EULA, but wasn't looking for it. Are you sure that they allow a downgrade when upgrading from this path? That seems odd since the underlying goal would be the upgrade itself.
Yes I remember skimming over a downgrade section, and seeing that it was stated you can. I will look again because I also was not looking for that specifically, so I don't remember the exact wording.
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@Obsolesce said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@scottalanmiller said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@Obsolesce said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
And you are 100% allowed to downgrade if you wish.
I didn't see that in the EULA, but wasn't looking for it. Are you sure that they allow a downgrade when upgrading from this path? That seems odd since the underlying goal would be the upgrade itself.
Yes I remember skimming over a downgrade section, and seeing that it was stated you can. I will look again because I also was not looking for that specifically, so I don't remember the exact wording.
Just have to make sure that it is the EULA generated by the MCT as the EULAs can differ depending on the source. Might all be the same, but I doubt it.
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@scottalanmiller said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@Obsolesce said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@scottalanmiller said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@Obsolesce said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
And you are 100% allowed to downgrade if you wish.
I didn't see that in the EULA, but wasn't looking for it. Are you sure that they allow a downgrade when upgrading from this path? That seems odd since the underlying goal would be the upgrade itself.
Yes I remember skimming over a downgrade section, and seeing that it was stated you can. I will look again because I also was not looking for that specifically, so I don't remember the exact wording.
Just have to make sure that it is the EULA generated by the MCT as the EULAs can differ depending on the source. Might all be the same, but I doubt it.
Yes that's where I seen it, in the one in my screenshots above.
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Interesting. Also interesting to note that downgrade rights expire when the support expires, which we never really talk about. So by using the MCT upgrade path, your rights to downgrade will vanish in a few months.
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@scottalanmiller said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
Yup, once you upgrade (which gives you the new license, and then the activation which is additionally required) you are fully set up with a new Windows 10 license. So you can do fresh installs on that box after that.
And this is how we know the key is fully associated with Windows 10. Your key, when it was a Windows 7 key would not allow a bare metal install of Windows 10. But after the MCT process, it will (on the same hardware, of course). So now we know that the MS activation servers have acknowledged your Windows 7 key was upgraded to a Windows 10 key. Make sure you are compliant with the EULA before upgrading.
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@scottalanmiller https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/12435/windows-10-upgrade-faq
Just because you can does not mean you are allowed. From MS own page
Do I still qualify for the free upgrade offer if I've already downloaded Windows 10 to a USB drive, but haven't yet upgraded my device?
All upgrades must have completed and reached the "Welcome" screen by 11:59 PM UTC-10 (Hawaii) on July 29, 2016; this is one worldwide point in time -
@wayneh_nz This specifically applies to the program that MS ran at the time. Read the additional details.
Is the Windows 10 free upgrade offer still available?
The Windows 10 free upgrade through the Get Windows 10 (GWX) app ended on July 29, 2016.
And thus that specific program is closed and the MCT method is the official path to getting Windows 10 for free.
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Here is the all important bit of information, directly on the MCT website.
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@DustinB3403 said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
Here is the all important bit of information, directly on the MCT website.
Right, which I interpret as you have a valid Windows 10 license AND you're upgrading from 7, 8, 8.1. Just like when you buy an Enterprise or Volume License, the machine must already have a valid copy of windows AND the new Volume license.
EDIT: I clearly don't get it and I'm no expert, just a layman reading things... I know, I know, your 7, 8, 8.1 license IS your 10 license... blah blah
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@DustinB3403 said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
Here is the all important bit of information, directly on the MCT website.
Also, this picture can be 100% ignored because it's not the EULA. This cannot be submitted as evidence. There is another page directly saying that the free upgrade period has ended and that you have to buy a Windows 10 license if you're upgrading from 7. Which was immediately dismissed as it's not EULA. :winking_face:
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@bnrstnr said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
@DustinB3403 said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
Here is the all important bit of information, directly on the MCT website.
Right, which I interpret as you have a valid Windows 10 license AND you're upgrading from 7, 8, 8.1. Just like when you buy an Enterprise or Volume License, the machine must already have a valid copy of windows AND the new Volume license.
EDIT: I clearly don't get it and I'm no expert, just a layman reading things... I know, I know, your 7, 8, 8.1 license IS your 10 license... blah blah
Exactly - and the EULA says the same thing - though it's more simply states - have a license - it doesn't say a license for what - and it doesn't mention upgrading until another section.
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@bnrstnr said in Free Upgrade to Windows 10 in 2019 from Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1:
Also, this picture can be 100% ignored because it's not the EULA. This cannot be submitted as evidence. There is another page directly saying that the free upgrade period has ended and that you have to buy a Windows 10 license if you're upgrading from 7. Which was immediately dismissed as it's not EULA.
That page is the allowance to download the MCT. When you run the MCT, it gives you the EULA. This is all covered in the thread. I'm not sure why pointing out something random is not the license, when we keep showing the actual license and explaining where it came from, comes up.
And correct, any random web page that isn't part of the license path doesn't matter. The one you just showed, though, is part of the path and if that page said that you could only download this and run it under certain circumstances, that would have legal teeth. But it does not, so while it is not the EULA, does matter, unlike a random web page you are under no obligation to read.
