Microsoft is retiring Windows Vista on April 11, which means that if you're using a computer with the decade-old version of the OS, the time has come to upgrade. However, this is not to say that Windows Vista will stop working after its life support cycle ends. After April 11, 2017, your device will no longer receive any more maintenance, including security and performance updates, and Microsoft won't provide any kind of support.
If you want to avoid your computer quickly becoming vulnerable to viruses and other security risks, you should start planning to upgrade. Unfortunately, Microsoft doesn't provide a direct path to upgrade to Windows 10, but you can still make the jump and leave behind Windows Vista for good. However, it's a process that requires that you do a full backup of your data and perform a clean installation of Windows 10. We've got you covered with all the steps.
In this guide, we walk you through the steps to upgrade Windows Vista to Windows 10 using a clean installation.
Before you begin
If you're still using Windows Vista, it's likely that your computer has low hardware specifications, considering today's standards. Before going through the upgrade process, you have to make sure your device meets the minimum hardware requirements to install Windows 10.
These are the official minimum system requirements to run Windows 10:
Once you know that your device can handle the new OS, you'll need to purchase a genuine copy of Windows 10. You can get a copy of Windows 10 Home or Windows 10 Pro at the Microsoft Store.
Additionally, you'll need a USB flash drive with 8GB of storage to create a bootable media.
How to create a full backup on Windows Vista
Football manager 2008 full crack sinhvienit. Upgrading Windows Vista to Windows 10 requires a clean installation, which means that everything on your computer will be erased. As such, it's a good idea to make a full backup of your data and the entire computer.
To make a backup of your personal files, you can simply connect a removable storage and copy the files over. Once you complete backing up your files, make sure you have the installation files and product keys to reinstall any applications you're currently using.
You can also connect an external hard drive with enough free space and use the Windows Vista backup utility to create and restore a system image, which is a form of backup that includes a copy of everything on your computer. If you want to use this tool, do the following:
Once the full backup is complete, disconnect the removable storage, and you can proceed with the upgrade process. In case you need to restore the previous version, remember that you'll need a bootable media with the Windows Vista files to use the recovery option.
How to upgrade Windows Vista to Windows 10
While there is not a direct path to upgrade a decade-old OS, it's possible to upgrade Windows Vista to Windows 7, and then to Windows 10. But that's not an ideal approach, as you'll be wasting time and additional licenses.
The best way to upgrade Windows Vista to Windows 10 is to start fresh with a clean installation, which you can do with the following steps:
Once you complete these steps, the setup will take over and finish installing Windows 10 on your Windows Vista machine. After the installation, simply follow the on-screen directions to complete the out-of-box-experience (OOBE) with the settings you want.
During the OOBE, you'll be asked to set up an account with a Microsoft account. As such, you should make sure to have this information handy. Alternatively, you could use a local account, but you'll miss out on many advanced features, including the ability to sync settings between devices.
After you finish configuring Windows 10, you'll be presented with the new experience, and the only thing left to do is to restore your files from backup, and reinstall any app you were using on Windows Vista.
It's also recommended to go to Settings > Update & security > Windows Update, and click the Check for updates button to make sure your device has the latest security and performance updates.
Additionally, you may want to use Device Manager to double-check that all your hardware and peripherals are correctly installed on your machine. If something didn't install correctly, make sure to use your manufacturer's support website to download and install the latest drivers.
If you can't find a driver compatible with Windows 10, sometimes drivers designed for the previous version of the OS will still work. But only try this as a last resort.
More Windows 10 resources
For more help articles, coverage, and answers to common questions about Windows 10, visit the following resources:
This post may contain affiliate links. See our disclosure policy for more details.
How to upgrade an old PC to Windows 10 - free
[This article has been completely rewritten to incorporate developments in later updates to Windows 10. The most recent review and update was published August 1, 2018.]
How to install nvse for fallout new vegas. If you purchase a new PC with Windows 10 Home preinstalled, prepare to be annoyed. This down-market edition (maybe we should just call it Windows for Cheapskates) doesn't have the features you need for getting real work done: Remote Desktop server access, BitLocker disk encryption, group policy support, and control over when updates get installed, just for starters.
You could pay $99 for an upgrade, but before you reach for your wallet, consider a less expensive option.
Do you have an old product key from Windows 7 Pro, Windows 7 Ultimate, or Windows 8/8.1 Pro lying around? Those keys can be reused to enable an upgrade from Windows 10 Home to Windows 10 Pro, potentially saving you the upgrade fee. In fact, you can use a product key from any of these older Windows versions to perform a clean install or to upgrade to Pro.
It's worth rummaging through your garage, storeroom, or email archives to see if you can locate one of those old keys. Maybe you still have a key for one of the heavily discounted upgrades to Windows 8 Pro that Microsoft offered in the first few months after that product's ill-fated launch in 2012.
Or perhaps you have a shrink-wrapped retail copy of Windows 7 Professional or Ultimate, where the license associated with the product key is no longer in use.
In fact, you only need to use the older product key one time. After you upgrade from Windows 10 Home, the Windows 10 Pro digital license is attached to the specific hardware you just upgraded, allowing you to reinstall that edition of Windows on that hardware anytime, without the need for a product key.
This scenario worked during the early Windows 10 upgrade program, and after some testing and multiple reports from independent testers worldwide I can confirm that it still succeeds in mid-2018.
Microsoft first made this option available in Windows 10 version 1511. Since then, they have simplified the process dramatically.
I've been testing upgrade/activation scenarios on a wide variety of hardware recently to see how things work. Here's the scoop.
UPGRADING A NEW PC FROM HOME TO PRO
Let's say you buy a new PC with Windows 10 Home installed by the OEM. Some vendors offer an upgrade option as part of the purchase, but many PCs sold in the retail channel are preloaded with Home edition.
This could also be the case if you took advantage of the free Windows 10 upgrade offer on a PC running a Home edition of Windows 7 or Windows 8.x.
In either case, the upgrade takes just a few minutes. Start at Settings > Update & Security > Activation, where you should see a screen that looks something like this:
If you don't have a Pro product key and you want to buy one, you can click Go to the Store and purchase the upgrade for $100. Easy.
But if you have a product key for Windows 10 Pro, Windows 7 Professional or Ultimate, or Windows 8/8.1 Pro, you can click the Change Product Key button and enter that 25-character key here.
How To Upgrade Windows 8.1 To Windows 10
Using an older version's product key to perform this upgrade used to require two steps. Fortunately, in recent feature updates this two-step process isn't necessary.
After entering the product key, follow the prompts to perform the upgrade.
You'll see a succession of progress screens and your system will restart. After the upgrade completes, you should see a Success notification. Check the Activation screen again to confirm that you're now running Windows 10 Pro.
CLEAN REINSTALL
After you've successfully performed a Home-to-Pro upgrade, you can safely throw away the key. Your upgrade is now a digital license, attached to your unique hardware. If you perform a reinstallation of Windows, Microsoft's activation servers will recognize the hardware and activate Windows 10 automatically.
I tested this scenario by upgrading the SSD in an HP Spectre x360 that originally shipped with Windows 8.1 Home and had then been upgraded to Windows 10 Pro. After the upgrade was complete, I used a USB flash drive to reinstall a clean copy of Windows 10 Pro.
Twice during the installation process, I was prompted to enter a product key. Both times I chose the option to skip entering the key. When prompted, be sure to choose Windows 10 Pro as the edition to install.
When setup was complete, I signed in and checked the activation status (Settings > Update & Security > Activation). The system was properly activated, because Microsoft's servers recognized the hardware and used the digital license.
CLEAN REINSTALL, WITH EDITION UPGRADE
The one gotcha in this series of scenarios comes when you have a system that includes digital licenses for both Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro. In that scenario, you can inadvertently restore Windows 10 Home.
This happened during my testing when I used the recovery image for a PC that originally shipped with Windows 8.1 Home and then upgraded the restored PC using Windows 10 recovery media. Not surprisingly, I ended up with an installation of Windows 10 Home.
If that happens to you, don't bother searching for your original product key. Instead, use Microsoft's generic product key to force the upgrade.
Go to Settings > Update & Security > Activation and click Change Product Key. Next, enter the default Windows 10 Pro product key:
VK7JG-NPHTM-C97JM-9MPGT-3V66T
Follow the prompts to upgrade from Home to Pro. Because your hardware already has a digital license for the Pro edition, it will activate automatically.
That generic product key isn't magical, of course. If your hardware doesn't already have a Pro license, you'll get an activation error and you'll need to supply a proper product key or pay for an upgrade.
Any questions?
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There are any number of reasons why someone might want to download Windows 8, or maybe the newer Windows 8.1. Most obviously, if you don't have Windows 8, getting your hands on the operating system via a download is much easier than buying a boxed copy.
Even if you already have Windows 8 on a computer, most manufacturers don't include a copy, making a clean install of Windows 8 or 8.1 pretty much impossible. Plus, having a copy of Windows 8 makes some kinds of troubleshooting a lot easier.
Finally, maybe you just want to give it a try on a spare computer or on a virtual machine. You've seen the prices for Windows 8 and it isn't cheap. There are probably free copies of Windows 8 floating around somewhere, right?
Windows 10 is the most recent version of Windows available and can be upgraded to from a currently installed Windows 8 or Windows 7 OS. See Where Can I Download Windows 10? for help.
Where Can I Download Windows 8 or 8.1?
There are several ways to download Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 online, but of them are only a couple completely legal methods.
There is a Windows 8 trial option, as well as some not-so-legal methods of downloading Windows 8, all of which is discussed below.
If you do have a copy of Windows 8 or 8.1 (in ISO format or on a disc or flash drive) and also have that copy of Windows 8 installed and working but you've lost your product key, there may be a way to find it. See How to Find Your Windows 8 or 8.1 Product Key for help.
There are three, completely legal ways to download a full copy of Windows 8.1.
If you're new to Windows 8, purchasing Windows 8.1 (Windows 8 with the 8.1 update already included) is probably the smartest choice. Sometimes you can find a less expensive boxed copy of Windows 8 (before the 8.1 update) from general retailers like Amazon or from an electronics outlet like NewEgg, which you can then update to Windows 8.1 for free after installation.
Your second option, useful if you have experience working with ISO images, is to download Windows 8.1 directly from Microsoft. Please note, however, that unlike buying Windows 8 new, a Windows 8 download from Microsoft doesn't get you the product key you need to activate Windows.
Your final option is to download Windows 8.1 or Windows 8 for 'free' as part of a paid Visual Studio subscription (previously called an MSDN subscription), which runs for several hundred dollars per year. You'll get a copy of Windows 8.1 in ISO format, ready for burning to a disc or transferring to a USB device.
This is a professional subscription program available for purchase by anyone, but designed for software developers. You get access to all full versions of Windows 8 & 8.1, including valid product keys, in addition to software and keys for almost every software and operating system Microsoft has ever created.
The Visual Studio subscription program is anything but cheap. Unless you're a software developer or some other professional IT person that needs access to multiple operating systems, a Visual Studio subscription probably isn't a cost effective way to legally download Windows 8.
Upgrade Windows 7 To Windows 8 Without Losing Data
If you already have a Windows 8 or 8.1 disc or ISO and are only trying to download Windows 8 because you need to install it on a computer without an optical drive, there is a way to get the files from the disc or ISO onto a flash drive. See How to Install Windows 8 or 8.1 From USB for a complete tutorial.
It's important to follow the disc or USB creation instructions linked above if you want to put your Windows 8 download on a DVD or flash drive. You can't boot to the Windows 8 media just by downloading the ISO directly onto the disc or drive. A very specific process, explained in those links, is what you need to follow to make the Windows 8 download bootable.
Any other free or incredibly inexpensive Windows 8 or 8.1 download you find online is almost certainly illegal, including Windows 8 ISO files you might find on torrent sites. Legal issues aside, these Windows 8 downloads, unlike the official ones from Microsoft, run the very serious risk of containing a surprise or two.
For example, a number of Windows 8 & 8.1 downloads available from unofficial sources are 'cracked' versions of Windows 8 installation discs, meaning that they've been changed for one reason or another and could easily contain malware. It would be very unfortunate to install Windows 8 on your computer and be automatically infected with a virus.
Please know that when you pay for Windows 8, what you're actually paying for is the product key used to activate Windows 8. In other words, even if you do download Windows 8 from someone other than Microsoft, whether it's a clean and legitimate copy of Windows 8 or not, you'll still need a valid Windows 8 product key to use the operating system.
Don't Download Windows 8: Replace It
A much better option for those of you with lost or broken, but valid, copies of Windows 8 or 8.1 is to order replacement media. In your case, there's no reason to pay full price for another copy of Windows 8 or risk being infected with malware.
If Windows 8 came preinstalled on your computer, and you did have DVD or flash media but now it's damaged or lost, contact your computer maker for a replacement. Depending on their policy, your computer maker might provide you with Windows 8 media for free or a small fee.
If you purchased a retail Windows 8 DVD, you can contact the Microsoft Supplemental Parts team and request a replacement.
While not a replacement for Windows 8, please know that you also have the option to create a Recovery Drive for Windows 8 using a friend's Windows 8 PC, all for the cost of a small flash drive. Your Recovery Drive can be used to perform all the diagnostic and repair functions that a full copy of Windows 8 can. See How to Create a Windows 8 or 8.1 Recovery Drive for instructions.
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