Windows 8.1 to Windows 10.

Dale.

Dale.

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Dale.
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I've been thinking about it for a while now. I'm happy with 8.1, it does what I want but I am considering installing noise reduction software, upgrading my editing software etc but newer versions need Windows 10 to make the most of them.

Anyhoo, the update to 10 is still free. I am thinking about it but is it as straightforward as downloading, installing?

I would of course back up all my files etc, just in case but would I lose them during the upgrade? From what I've Googled, it seems not. :thinking:

I'm not IT, I can get about on a PC but once I have to dig, I soon get lost.

Any help appreciated before I get in too deep.

thanks.
 
I've done it and it was pretty smooth. See:
www.zdnet.com

Can you still get a Windows 10 upgrade for free in 2025? Short answer: Maybe

Microsoft kept giving away free upgrades to Windows 10 on old hardware for more than eight years. The upgrades officially ended in 2023, but I've seen scattered reports that it still works for some people. But should you even bother?
www.zdnet.com www.zdnet.com
As you say, back up everything first. I use this for backing up files as individual files:
freefilesync.org

FreeFileSync

Download FreeFileSync 14.8. FreeFileSync is a free open source data backup software that helps you synchronize files and folders on Windows, Linux and macOS.
freefilesync.org freefilesync.org
and this for cloning entire disks as images:
www.macrium.com

Macrium Reflect Free Trials

Macrium Reflect - Incredibly powerful software that allows you to create and schedule effective backups
www.macrium.com www.macrium.com
 
MS have/had a W10 checker tool.....as in is your hardware W10 capable/compatible.

As I recall my W7 system was not ok for some months....... eventually I bit the bullet and all went well.
 
It should be painless, other than just getting used to a new user interface. W10 is nicer than 8.1, and if you spend a few minutes tidying up the start menu and ditching the junk.

Just to add, if you can, swap out the hard drive, install to a new one (SSD) and then add back applications and data.
 
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Upgrade is straight forward but if possible keep a full backup of your current win8 HDD in case you need to revert back.
 
I upgraded my laptop from W7 to W10 a couple of years ago, and it all went smoothly. No complaints.

I bought my Sony Vaio in 2010. It came with 4GB of RAM and a 250 GB HDD, and I've upgraded it to 8GB of RAM and a 500 GB SSD this year. It runs very well and I'm hoping it continues to do so for a few more years. I like it and it's more than capable of doing anything I need a computer for.
 
The only real niggle with W10 is you can no longer stop the constant updates, unless you don't go online.
After a few days any minor differences will be forgotten, especially coming from Windows 8
 
I updated a Camera Club Laptop from W8.1 to W10 recently with no issues. We needed to upgrade LR/PS to the latest version so it was necessary to have W10.

Dave
 
4wd said:
The only real niggle with W10 is you can no longer stop the constant updates, unless you don't go online.
After a few days any minor differences will be forgotten, especially coming from Windows 8
Click to expand...

Yes, though if running Pro you do have that bit more control over the updates ;)
 
Thanks for the repleies, really helpful and allays my fears. (y)

I will back up everything first. I already have all my images backed up, twice as a matter of course, apart from the most very recent ones.

It will probably be the end of the month before I get really stuck in as it will be then I can start the software upgrades I'm thinking of as most of them ain't cheap.
 
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I have done quite a few w7 or 8 to w10 upgrades and I don’t remember any major problems. These have mostly been for my wife’s machines - my own are left frozen at w7 for my legacy engineering stuff.
Apart from the annoyances of what always feel like too frequent updates, w10 seems pretty good to me but I switched to macos years ago for home computer use.
 
Ok, I think I'm ready to go but won't be until I can have a few uninterupted hours, so probably over the weekend at some point.

Then it will be new Lightroom and Photoshop and DxO noise reduction.
 
Well, that could've gone better.

Tried 4 times and the update failed right at the end. I even re activated my copy of Windows but to no avail. I'm going to try unplugging everything apart from the keyboard and mouse and try again later.
 
What was the error message? If you're confident about your backups, you have installers for everything, and your old software can still be activated, a clean install of W10 could be the way to go.
answers.microsoft.com

How to: Perform a Clean Install or Reinstall of Windows 10

Please be sure to follow me on Twitter @adacosta for the latest tips, tricks and updates in the world of Windows 10. - Technical Level : Intermediate Summary If you have installed a recent release of
answers.microsoft.com
 
I was thinking that too. I only backed up my images and some documents, I didn't go too deeply into that but I would do for a clean install. To be fair, my images are backed up (twice) so it was just the most recent ones.

The message was a box in the centre of the screen saying "Windows Upgrade Has Failed". It downloaded the files and gathered all the information it needed, went through the whole process and then right at what I presume to be the end of the process, I got the failed message.
 
have you got enough space on the hard drive?
 
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