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I wrote and published the first version of this post in early , several months after Microsoft's initial free upgrade offer ended. The free upgrade offer had just ended, and when I downloaded the Windows 10 upgrade tool and ran it on an old Windows 7 PC, I fully expected that the upgrade would fail activation and I'd be asked for a product key. Over the next four-plus years, I repeated those steps on test PCs at regular intervals and confirmed that the free upgrade tool still works.

I continue to receive email messages regularly from readers offering firsthand reports that their free upgrades were successful, with no purchase or product key required. A small number of readers have reported that the upgrade fails because of a Setup error or a compatibility block.

For details on how to troubleshoot these errors, see "This free Windows 10 upgrade offer still works. Here's why - and how to get it. Whether you're looking for a tablet to stream videos or to replace your laptop, here are some compelling options.

Before getting started, I recommend a few preliminary tasks that can head off potential problems:. With those preliminaries out of the way, go to the Download Windows 10 webpage and click the Download tool now button.

After the download completes, double-click the executable file to run the Media Creation Tool. That option installs the most recent version of Windows It typically takes about an hour, depending on your hardware. Having an SSD as your system drive is the best way to speed up the process. If you know you'll want to upgrade to Windows 10 on more than one PC, or if you just want more flexibility in the event that the instant upgrade fails, choose the second option and save the installation files to a USB drive or as an ISO file.

The download takes a little time but when it's complete, you can run the Windows Setup program manually to install Windows 10 on any PC running any supported Windows version sorry, this won't work with PCs running Windows Vista or Windows XP.

The exact steps depend on which download option you chose:. Then just follow the prompts to complete the upgrade to Windows All your apps and data files will be available. The digital license is associated with that specific device, which means you can reformat the disk and perform a clean installation of the same edition of Windows 10 anytime. If you're thinking of upgrading your old system drive to an SSD, perform the upgrade to Windows 10 on the old hardware; after confirming that the new Windows 10 version is properly activated, install the SSD and then either restore from a backup image or boot from the USB flash drive to do a clean install.

You won't need a product key, and activation is automatic. And now the big question: If you avail yourself of this upgrade to Windows 10, is the resulting license valid? The entire "free upgrade" offer was always accompanied by language that was, to put it politely, a bit squishy. And the language around the end of that offer was similarly vague.

That's very odd language. The free upgrade through the Get Windows 10 app ended on July 29, Likewise, the discussion of product keys says a key will be necessary "for this tool to work" not true but doesn't say a word about licensing. And unlike the weaselly "Genuine Windows" label on older upgrades, the activation screens for a Windows 10 upgrade specifically confirm the existence of a "digital license.

Anyway, the free upgrade offer was extended briefly, at least for people who use assistive technologies. The FAQ on a separate page even called it a "free upgrade offer extension" and pointedly noted that it was not limited to specific assistive technologies. I regularly use the Magnifier utility in Windows, which is indisputably an assistive technology. Of course, I'm not a lawyer, and this column isn't legal advice. But I will say that I am personally confident in the activation status of any PC upgraded using the tool on that page during the eligibility period.

The Starter edition is a stripped-down version of Windows 7 meant for low-cost devices such as netbooks. In comparison to Home Premium, Starter has reduced multimedia functionality, does not allow users to change their desktop wallpaper or theme, disables the "Aero Glass" theme, does not have support for multiple monitors, and can only address 2GB of RAM. All editions aside from Starter support both IA and x architectures , Starter only supports bit systems.

The installation media for consumer versions of Windows 7 are identical, the product key and corresponding license determines the edition that is installed.

The Windows Anytime Upgrade service can be used to purchase an upgrade that unlocks the functionality of a higher edition, such as going from Starter to Home Premium , and Home Premium to Ultimate.

Support for Windows 7 without Service Pack 1 ended on April 9, , requiring users to update in order to continue receiving updates and support after 3 years, 8 months, and 18 days. Mainstream support for Windows 7 ended on January 13, Extended support for Windows 7 ended on January 14, On September 7, , Microsoft announced a paid "Extended Security Updates" service that will offer additional updates for Windows 7 Professional and Enterprise for up to three years after the end of extended support.

Variants of Windows 7 for embedded systems and thin clients have different support policies: Windows Embedded Standard 7 support ended in October Instead, a more complex method, that typically involves the utilization of a patching tool, allows the installation of pirated Extended Security Updates.

This solution ended up being the only solution to allow consumer variants to continue to receive updates. This will mark the final end of the Windows NT 6. In March , Microsoft announced that it would display notifications to users informing users of the upcoming end of support, and direct users to a website urging them to purchase a Windows 10 upgrade or a new computer. In August , researchers reported that "all modern versions of Microsoft Windows" may be at risk for "critical" system compromise because of design flaws of hardware device drivers from multiple providers.

In September , Microsoft announced that it would provide free security updates for Windows 7 on federally-certified voting machines through the United States elections.

Additional requirements to use certain features: []. The maximum amount of RAM that Windows 7 supports varies depending on the product edition and on the processor architecture, as shown in the following table. The x86 editions of Windows 7 support up to 32 logical processors; x64 editions support up to 4 x In January , Microsoft announced that it would no longer support Windows platforms older than Windows 10 on any future Intel-compatible processor lines, citing difficulties in reliably allowing the operating system to operate on newer hardware.

Microsoft stated that effective July 17, , devices with Intel Skylake CPUs were only to receive the "most critical" updates for Windows 7 and 8. Microsoft and their hardware partners provide special testing and support for these devices on 7 and 8. On March 18, , in response to criticism from enterprise customers, Microsoft delayed the end of support and non-critical updates for Skylake systems to July 17, , but stated that they would also continue to receive security updates through the end of extended support.

However, the restrictions on newer CPU microarchitectures remain in force. Security updates released since March contain bugs which affect processors that do not support SSE2 extensions, including all Pentium III processors. Microsoft initially stated that it would attempt to resolve the issue, and prevented installation of the affected patches on these systems. However, on June 15, , Microsoft retroactively modified its support documents to remove the promise that this bug would be resolved, replacing it with a statement suggesting that users obtain a newer processor.

This effectively ends future patch support for Windows 7 on these systems. A beta was released on July 12, In addition, it adds support for Advanced Format e as well as additional Identity Federation Services. In Europe, the automatic nature of the BrowserChoice. This update backports some features found in Windows 8.

Windows Management Framework 5. It was released on February 24, [] and was eventually superseded by Windows Management Framework 5. The rollup is not available via Windows Update, and must be downloaded manually. This package can also be integrated into a Windows 7 installation image. Since October , all security and reliability updates are cumulative.

Downloading and installing updates that address individual problems is no longer possible, but the number of updates that must be downloaded to fully update the OS is significantly reduced. In June , Microsoft announced that they'll be moving Windows 7 to a monthly update model beginning with updates released in September [] - two years after Microsoft switched the rest of their supported operating systems to that model.

With the new update model, instead of updates being released as they became available, only two update packages were released on the second Tuesday of every month until Windows 7 reached its end of life - one package containing security and quality updates, and a smaller package that contained only the security updates.

Users could choose which package they wanted to install each month. Later in the month, another package would be released which was a preview of the next month's security and quality update rollup. Installing the preview rollup package released for Windows 7 on March 19, , or any later released rollup package, that makes Windows more reliable.

The last non-extended security update rollup packages were released on January 14, , the last day that Windows 7 had extended support. On January 14, , Windows 7 support ended with Microsoft no longer providing security updates or fixes after that date, [] except for subscribers of the Windows 7 Extended Security Updates ESU , who can continue to receive Windows 7 security updates through January 10, In a support document, Microsoft has stated that a full-screen upgrade warning notification would be displayed on Windows 7 PCs on all editions except the Enterprise edition after January 15, The notification does not appear on machines connected to Active Directory, machines in kiosk mode, or machines subscribed for Extended Security Updates.

Windows 7 received critical acclaim, with critics noting the increased usability and functionality when compared with its predecessor, Windows Vista. PC Magazine rated it a 4 out of 5 saying that Windows 7 is a "big improvement" over Windows Vista, with fewer compatibility problems, a retooled taskbar, simpler home networking and faster start-up.

No version of Windows is ever perfect, but Windows 7 really is the best release of Windows yet. Some Windows Vista Ultimate users have expressed concerns over Windows 7 pricing and upgrade options.

The changes to User Account Control on Windows 7 were criticized for being potentially insecure, as an exploit was discovered allowing untrusted software to be launched with elevated privileges by exploiting a trusted component. Peter Bright of Ars Technica argued that "the way that the Windows 7 UAC 'improvements' have been made completely exempts Microsoft's developers from having to do that work themselves.

With Windows 7, it's one rule for Redmond, another one for everyone else. In July , in only eight hours, pre-orders of Windows 7 at amazon. On March 4, , Microsoft announced that it had sold more than 90 million licenses.

As with other Microsoft operating systems, Windows 7 was studied by United States federal regulators who oversee the company's operations following the United States v. Microsoft Corp. According to status reports filed, the three-member panel began assessing prototypes of the new operating system in February Michael Gartenberg , an analyst at Jupiter Research , said, "[Microsoft's] challenge for Windows 7 will be how can they continue to add features that consumers will want that also don't run afoul of regulators.

In order to comply with European antitrust regulations, Microsoft proposed the use of a "ballot" screen containing download links to competing web browsers, thus removing the need for a version of Windows completely without Internet Explorer, as previously planned. As with the previous version of Windows, an N version, which does not come with Windows Media Player , has been released in Europe, but only for sale directly from Microsoft sales websites and selected others.

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Windows vista ultimate oem key free -

 

Download offers the opportunity to buy software and apps. When you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Deserved or not , Microsoft had dug itself a cool, deep, dark hole with Windows Vista. Users demanding that Redmond extend the life of Windows XP wasn't exactly something they could be proud of, either.

Bombarded by complaints and negative press even after the first service pack was released, the bar had been set high for Vista's successor: Windows 7. Luckily for Microsoft, Windows 7 is more than just spin.

It's stable, smooth, and highly polished, introducing new graphical features, a new taskbar that can compete handily with the Mac OS X dock, and device management and security enhancements that make it both easier to use and safer.

Importantly, it won't require the hardware upgrades that Vista demanded, partially because the hardware has caught up, and partially because Microsoft has gone to great lengths to make Windows 7 accessible to as many people as possible.

It's important to note that the public testing process for Windows 7 involved one limited-availability beta and one release candidate, and constituted what some have called the largest shareware trial period ever. As buggy and irritating as Vista was, Windows 7 isn't. Instead, it's the successor to Windows XP that Microsoft wishes Vista had been, and finally places it on competitive footing with other major operating systems like OS X and Linux. The three versions that Redmond will be promoting most heavily are Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate , although Starter will also be available to consumers.

Windows 7 will support both bit and bit systems. A touch-screen monitor is required to take advantage of the native touch features. Do note that some users have claimed to have limited success running the Windows 7 beta with less than 1GB of RAM, but that's not recommended. Installation Microsoft is offering several paths to install Windows 7. People can buy a new computer with the operating system already installed, upgrade from Windows XP or Vista, or do a clean install on a computer the user already owns.

The clean installation took us about 30 minutes, but that will vary depending on your computer. Vista users merely need to back up their data before choosing the Upgrade option from the install disc. Custom will have the same effect as a clean install, although it'll save your old data in a folder called Windows. Once you choose Custom, you'll need to select the partition of your hard drive that contains Windows XP, and then follow the instructions to enter your product key and allow the computer to reboot as needed.

If you're not sure if your current computer can run Windows 7, you can download and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor from Microsoft. Features: Taskbar and Aero Peek Although the look of Windows 7 may seem to be nothing more than some polish applied liberally to the Vista Aero theme, make no mistake: This is a full replacement operating system, and more than just "Vista done right. The first thing that should stand out is the new taskbar. This is one of the best improvements Microsoft has made--third-party program dock makers are going to have to do some serious innovation when Windows 7 goes public.

Besides incorporating the translucent style of Aero, the new taskbar is arguably even better than the Mac OS X dock. It features pinned programs using large, easy-to-see icons. Mouse over one and all windows associated with that program appear in preview.

Mouse over one of those preview panes to reveal an X to close the window. Hover over the preview to show a full-size preview of the program, or click on the window to bring it to the front. Because of the button size, people with touch screens should find it especially easy to use.

Jump lists are another new taskbar improvement that make recently opened documents easier to get to. Right-click or left-click and drag on any program icon pinned to the taskbar to see a list of files that you've recently used in that program. In Internet Explorer, this will show recently visited Web sites, although it doesn't yet seem to work in Firefox.

If you've noticed the missing Show Desktop icon, that's because it's been baked into the taskbar itself. Mouse over to the right corner. Hovering over the Show Desktop box reveals the desktop, and then hides it when you mouse away. Click on the box to minimize all your programs. Resizing programs has been simplified and improved by the capability to drag a window's title bar. Drag a program window to the top of your monitor to expand it to full screen.

If you want to work in two windows simultaneously, drag one to the left edge and one to the right edge of your screen, and they'll automatically resize to half the width of your monitor. Dragging a program away from the top or sides will return it to its original size. Theme packages also make it much faster to change the look of Windows 7.

From the Control Panel, you can change the theme under Appearance and Personalization. Microsoft has created several theme packages to give people a taste for what the feature can do. Click on one to download it, and it instantly changes the color scheme and background--no need to reboot. Users can create their own themes, as well. Windows Media Player and Device Stage One of the biggest new features makes Windows Media Player useful again: you can now stream media files from one Windows 7 computer to another, across the Internet and out of network.

Even better, the setup procedure is dead simple. When you open Windows Media Player, there's a new Stream option on the toolbar. Click it, and you're presented with two choices. Both require you to associate your computer with your free Windows Live ID. When you've associated a second Windows 7's WMP with that same ID, you can remotely access the media on the host computer. Windows Media Player's mini mode looks much slicker, emphasizing the album art--sometimes at the expense of clearly seeing the controls, but it's a definite improvement.

The new Device Stage makes managing peripherals significantly easier, combining printers, phones, and portable media players into one window. A large photo of the peripheral summarizes important device stats and makes it easy to identify which devices you're using. Device Stage can also be used to preset common tasks, such as synchronization. Device Stage support for older devices makes one of Windows 7's best features applicable to peripherals and externals that don't need to be upgraded.

One annoying change is that Bluetooth driver support no longer comes baked into the operating system. If you need a Bluetooth driver, you'll either need the installation disc on hand or you'll have to go download it. Search, touch screens, and XP mode Windows 7's native search feature has been improved. Files added to the hard drive were indexed so fast that they were searchable less than 5 seconds later.

Search result snippets now include a longer snippet, and highlight the snippet more clearly. This should appeal specifically to people who juggle large numbers of long documents, but it's a useful feature for anybody who wants to find files faster. However, the search field is available by default only in the Start menu and in Windows Explorer, and cannot be easily added to the taskbar. Touch-screen features worked surprisingly well.

The hardware sometimes misread some of the multitouch gestures, occasionally confusing rotating an image, for example, with zooming in or out of the image. Overall, though, there were few difficulties in performing the basic series of gestures that Microsoft promotes, and this places Windows 7 in an excellent position for the future, as more and more computers are released with multitouch abilities.

Experts and people or companies who hope to use Windows 7 for business situations will appreciate the new XP Mode. It doesn't have much of a practical application for the home consumer, but if you need to access programs designed for Windows XP that have not been upgraded to Windows Vista or 7, XP Mode creates a virtual environment within Windows 7 that should assuage any fears of upgrading without backward compatibility.

It's not easy to set up once you've downloaded the XP Mode installer. You'll need to double-check that you have the right hardware, and can get the right software.

Motherboards older than two years probably won't work, and even if you do have a newer one you might have to go into your BIOS and activate Hardware Virtualization. CPU-identification utilities are available from Microsoft that can tell you if you're in the clear or not.

However, if compatibility is the issue, this hassle will be worth it to you. Users will have full access to peripherals connected to their Windows 7 hardware, including printers, and the clipboard can be used to cut and paste between the virtual operating system and the "real" one.

Microsoft has tweaked the feature so that it's less intrusive, but it's not clear whether that means you're actually more or less secure than you were in Vista. UAC was one of the biggest changes in Vista. It tightened program access, but did it in such a way as to frustrate many owners of single-user computers.

Windows 7 provides more options for user customization of UAC. The default setting is to notify users only when programs try to make changes to the computer, one step below the most restrictive setting of Always Notify. Under Always Notify, anytime a program tries to access the Internet, or you try to make changes to the computer, Windows 7 will require user confirmation. The second-least restrictive option doesn't dim the desktop when UAC is activated, and will only notify the user when programs try to make changes to the computer.

When the desktop dims, Windows 7 is locking it down and preventing access. Never Notify is the most relaxed option, and is only recommended by Microsoft for programs that aren't compatible with UAC. UAC also displays a blue banner when confronted with a program from a known publisher versus a yellow banner and exclamation point when the program is from an unknown publisher. The number of clicks it should take to use UAC safely has been reduced, However, it's important to note that it's a less aggressive default posture by UAC.

A less glitzy, but no less important, change to how removable drives are handled also can affect your media. This kills off a risky vector for malware infections that has been the bane of many security experts. Although Microsoft is working on a revamp of its antivirus and antimalware program, now called Microsoft Security Essentials, it won't be bundled with Windows 7.

Users are still required to download a third-party antivirus and antimalware program, although the Windows Firewall remains intact. As with many features in Windows 7 that have been carried over from Windows Vista, people will notice there's far more granular settings control than before. Features like filtering outbound traffic, which were available in Vista but not exposed, are easier to access in Windows 7.

Comparing Windows: XP vs. Vista vs. Performance Windows 7 feels faster than Windows XP and Vista, but it turns out that's not always the case--sometimes, it's the slowest out of the three operating systems.

However, it was slower than XP and Vista for both booting up cold by a bit more than 1 second, and slower than either of its predecessors in its Microsoft Office performance. After having used Windows 7 beta, RC, and now the RTM for more than six months combined, it still feels faster for us when launching programs, opening the control panel, and dragging icons, files, and folders around than XP.

That's not to denigrate the value of the benchmarks, but keep in mind that the perception and reality might differ based on hardware and usage.