14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has just announced that Windows 10 is available as a free upgrade for customers with Windows subscriptions, as it’s trying to offer a smoother transition to the new operating system for as many machines as possible.
After previously offering Windows 10 as a free upgrade for Windows 7 and 8.1 consumers in the first 12 months of availability, the Redmond-based software giant is announcing today that the operating system can also be installed by Windows subscribers at no additional cost.
Specifically, customers subscribed to Windows 10 Enterprise E3 and E5, and Secure Productive Enterprise E3 and E5, can upgrade Windows 7 and 8.1 computers to the latest operating system completely free of charge.
“This is an important benefit addition to Windows cloud subscriptions in CSP as it enables customers who have yet to purchase a new Windows 10 device, or who missed out on the free upgrade to Windows 10 campaign, to take advantage of enterprise-grade security, managed by a trusted partner, for the price of coffee and a donut,” Microsoft says.
Continued push for Windows 10 adoption
In order to perform an upgrade, customers need to log in to the Office 365 Admin center with the Azure Active Directory account and initiate the upgrade for the device they are using. It goes without saying that the process takes some time to complete, so make sure you have enough time to finalize the install.
Customers can also share the download link of Windows 10 with other users in the same organization, but also create installation media to streamline the deployment process.
Microsoft plans to bring Windows 10 on as many as 1 billion computers, and the company originally aimed to reach this goal by FY2017. More recently, however, the firm admitted that it could take longer than initially planned to do this, so free upgrade offers like the one announced today is playing a key role for this short-term mission.
At this point, Windows 10 is running on approximately 23 percent of the desktops worldwide, while Windows 7 continues to be the preferred choice with more than 45 percent market share.