Windows has discontinued free updates. Microsoft is ending an important program

Microsoft has long allowed you to upgrade your older operating system to the newer Windows 10 or Windows 11. This option has now been discontinued in most cases, although one exception has been retained.

End of free updates to Windows 10 and 11

When Windows 10 was released in 2015, Microsoft offered users an interesting solution – they could upgrade their existing Windows 7 or 8 to the latest edition, completely free of charge.

Initially, this program was supposed to be quite time-limited and updates on paper were only available until July 29, 2016. However, Microsoft did not turn off this option for many years to come, constantly encouraging users to improve the system. Moreover, even after the release of Windows 11, owners of older systems could update the software to Win 10 or Win 11.

However, all good things must come to an end. So the company announced the end of the program and confirmed that the promotion was scheduled to end over seven years ago. According to official data, users can no longer perform updates, but is that true?

Win 7 and Win 8 users without free updates – MIcrosoft is closing the gate

Journalist Paul Thurrott tested the Microsoft system and discovered that currently you can still use a Windows 7 or 8 license and go through the installation process of the system with an upgrade to Windows 11 (but not Windows 10). However, it is worth hurrying with it.

As reported by the specialist, the same activation key will no longer work in the currently tested Windows 11 Insider Preview Canary edition. For now, this is only a beta version of the system, but over time it will become a standard for all users. Then the window for upgrading old systems to the latest Win 11 will close for good.