Preliminary information
Prima di enter the dettaglio della procedura su how to upgrade from windows 7 to windows 10 for free, I think it might interest you to know more about this possibility.
Well, you need to know that Microsoft has finished the Windows 7 support il January 14 2020, as described on the official website of the Redmond company. In view of this, initiatives have been taken cyclically to have the computers of as many people updated as possible.
For example, from 2015 to 2016 Microsoft had allowed, for limited periods of time, thefree upgrade to Windows 10 to anyone who had a valid Windows 7 or Windows 8 / Windows 8.1 license. With the end of support for Windows 7 in, January 2020, despite not having communicated it with great fanfare, the Redmond company has again offered the possibility to upgrade your computer to Windows 10 without having to purchase a new license.
In fact, therefore, in February 2020 Windows 7 is still upgradeable for free to Windows 10. However, Microsoft has never disclosed detailed information about this possibility and therefore there are also those who are wondering about the possibility that later in time it may users who have upgraded in this way be required to purchase a license for Windows 10 (although some argue this is unlikely).
In short, it is a possibility that is present and works but of which there are no certain details, so I advise you to keep this in mind. For the rest, another aspect that you have to take into account is the fact that not all uses installed on your computer may work on Windows 10: for this reason, I recommend that you inform yourself well about i compatible software.
Also, even if upgrading to Windows 10 doesn't involve fully formatting the drive, I highly recommend you save the data you care about most on an external device, such as a portable hard drive or USB stick, or to perform a backup total. The tool of updating declares that it is possible keep all your files and there is also the possibility of go back to Windows 7 in case of problems, but you know, caution is never too much!
In case you want a hand in saving your data, I suggest you take a look at my tutorials on how to backup Windows 7 and how to transfer files from PC to USB stick. As for program compatibility, I also recommend that you take a look at Microsoft's guidelines, in which essentially the Redmond company recommends, once the update is done, to re-download applications from the Windows 10 official store or to search for updated versions via the developer site of a particular program.
How to upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 for free
Having made the necessary premises relating to the possibility of upgrading to Windows 10 for free, I would say that you are ready to take action. Below you will find all the information you are looking for.
Minimum requirements
Of course, not all computers sold with Windows 7 can run Windows 10 properly, since this operating system is newer than Windows 7. For this reason, I recommend that you take a look at the minimum requirements disclosed by Microsoft and compare the specifications with those of your computer.
- Processor: 1 GHz o superiore;
- RAM: 1GB for 32-bit systems or 2GB for 64-bit systems;
- Disk space: 16GB for 32-bit systems or 32GB for 64-bit systems;
- Video Card: equipped with DirectX 9 or later support with WDDM 1.0 driver;
- Screen resolution: 800 x 600 or higher;
- Other: An active Internet connection is required.
In any case, the installation program will perform one automatic scan of your PC to figure out if this is compatible or not with Windows 10; first, however, I recommend that you make some manual checks.
In particular, I invite you to press the button Home present at the bottom left (the flag icon) and click on the item computer, in the menu that opens. In the next window, you will be able to see it free space for each memory unit used by the computer. Verify, therefore, that the GB required from Windows 10; then press on the item System properties and some main indications related to your system will appear on the screen, such as those relating to processor, RAM e system type (32 bit o 64 bit).
To verify the screen resolution, you must press with the instead right mouse button on desktop I will select the voice Screen resolution from the context menu. If you want to get more information, just search "dxDiag"Through the search bar button Home and open the relevant program. In this way, all the specifications you are looking for will appear on the screen, DirectX version used included. For more details on the technical characteristics required by Windows 10, I suggest you consult the official Microsoft website.
How to upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 for free
After verifying that all the requirements are met, you can move on to the download andWindows 10 installation.
To do this, you need to connect to Microsoft's official website and press the button Download the tool now. After that, start the file MediaCreationTool [version] .exe obtained and press on Yes. Then wait for the various to be completed preliminary operations and click sul pulsating Accept, obviously reading what Microsoft proposed.
You may be asked to wait for some time. At this point, check the box Update your PC now I awarded her NEXT. Perfect, now the installer will do download Windows 10. It may take up to a few hours, depending on the speed of your internet connection.
The check for updates and you may be prompted to press again Accept as regards the condizioni d'uso. Then click Install, to update your computer without losing your files, or press on Change items to keep, to choose what to delete and what not (personal files, apps and settings, personal files only or nothing).
The will then be displayed on the screen installation screen genuine, which will do everything in automatic. You just have to do that wait for that the computer completes all the necessary operations (it will restart several times). You may then have to press on NEXT e Yes, to proceed.
Initial configuration
After completing the installation, the computer will do its own first boot with Windows 10. You will then be asked to make one basic configuration. Below you will find all the indications of the case, but if you don't want to waste too much time you can skip everything by pressing on Use quick settings, in order to use the default ones.
The first option simply asks you to specify whether the computer is intended for a personal use (therefore it belongs to you) or if it is of acompany or of an educational institution. Once you have selected the correct option, click on NEXT and you will be prompted to run the login with Microsoft account, to take advantage of the cloud functionality of the operating system.
You can log in by entering the username and Password of yours Microsoft account, but if you do not have this need (or you want to do this later) you can click on Ignore this step and fill in a module to configure the local profile with which you will access your computer. For all the details of the case, I recommend that you consult my tutorial on how to switch accounts on Windows 10 and how to create a Microsoft account.
After configuring your profile, the Windows 10 desktop. You just have to choose whether to make your computer identified by other computers and devices connected to the same network. Perfect, you have correctly configured Microsoft's operating system and now you can use it!
Although this should not happen since you have updated for free, in case you are asked to enter a product key (license code), try typing what you got that came with your PC (for example, in notebooks it is often indicated in a sticker) and ad activate it through Windows 10.
To do this, you need to go to the Settings di Windows 10 (key Start> gear icon), press on Update and security, move to the tab Activation, select the item present for enter the product key e activate your copy of Windows. If everything has been done correctly, you should notice the appearance of the writing Windows is activated at the field Activation.
In the event that the product key does not really want to know that it works or Microsoft informs you that it is license required, you need to purchase a license for the operating system. In this case, you can go to the official Microsoft store or, if you want to save money, to external sites: I recommend Amazon.
In case of problems
How do you say? Were you able to upgrade to Windows 10 following my guide but not everything went as expected? Well, then let me give you some pointers that may be useful to you.
Well, you need to know that you have 30 days time to retrace your steps e restore Windows 7. You can do this by going to the Settings di Windows 10by pressing on Update and security, by moving to the tab Restoration and clicking the button Start present under the heading Return to Windows 7. All your data will be kept. For more details, I invite you to check out my tutorial on how to uninstall Windows 10.
They could also arise problems of various kinds during the installation process. We are in fact talking about an operation in which there are myriads of variables at stake. For example, on some computers I have personally encountered problems related to driver o Outdated BIOS, antivirus o firewall that went in conflitto with the operating system and details errors related to Windows Update. Unfortunately, I cannot give you precise indications, since there are many possible problems and each error requires a different procedure to be solved.
If you fall into one of these cases, all you have to do is arm yourself with patience, search for online feedback by searching on Google and put in place all the precautions of the case. In fact, as mentioned above, unfortunately, that handy tool that provided further details on the compatibility issues and therefore you must carry out all the necessary checks by yourself.
For the rest, I suggest you take a look at the page of my site dedicated to Windows 10, where you can find countless tutorials related to this version of Microsoft's operating system. I also invite you to consult the official Microsoft guidelines.
How to upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 for free