Will I lose Office 2010 if I upgrade? Does it come in a DVD format, as well? Will I have to use an Outlook account? Find out here





If I upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10, will I lose Office 2010 – which I paid for and installed – and other programs? Wolf

In most cases, Windows 10 will be installed as an “in place” upgrade via Windows Update, which is usually used to install security patches. All your existing software should remain in place and should continue to work, with a few exceptions. However, upgrades sometimes go wrong, so back-up your PC first. Also, make sure you have a copy of your Office Product Key. If you have lost the original packaging, Belarc Advisor and many other utilities will find the product keys stored on your PC.

The few exceptions? Windows 10 will remove Windows Media Center, Windows 7’s gadgets (clock, etc), Windows 7 games (Solitaire, Hearts, Minesweeper – already removed from Windows 8), and the OneDrive application from Windows Live Essentials. You can download free replacements from the Windows Store. If you need the PVR (personal video recorder) features in Windows Media Center, then Media Portal is one alternative. If you just want a simple video player, I like MPC-HC (Media Player Classic – Home Cinema), but VLC will do the job. All three are open source and free. However, I expect Microsoft will ship a player along with other upgrades to Windows 10.

Will it run XP programs?

I have some old XP programs running in a virtual machine in Windows 7. I really do not want to upgrade them, and some are not available for newer iterations of Windows. David

Windows 10 will run most old Windows programs. You can check compatibility by running GWX, the Get Windows 10 app (the white Windows icon in your taskbar). Microsoft doesn’t have information on every program or device created for Windows, but it does have a comprehensive list of known compatibility issues. However, XP programs that didn’t run in Windows 7 are unlikely to run in Windows 10.

Microsoft provided a free copy of Windows XP to run in XP Mode in Windows 7 Pro. This gave you several years to transition to updated programs, but it was never intended to be a permanent solution. XP Mode wasn’t provided with Windows 8 Pro, and XP is no longer supported, so you really can’t expect it in Windows 10 Pro.

You can continue to use XP in your current Windows 7 system until 2020, at your own risk. Alternatively, you could run XP in a virtual machine in Windows 10, or use a separate XP PC that, ideally, never connects to the net. But, eventually, you will have to move on….

Store-based activation

I built my own PC two years ago and am thinking of changing my processor. Will I need to buy a new copy of Windows or a new license since the registration key is tied to the motherboard? If Microsoft allows the free upgrade to Windows 10 to be burned to disc, and provides a registration key, will I be able to switch the motherboard and install Windows 10 just like a new copy of Windows 7 or 8.1? Cory

Tricky question. I asked Microsoft UK, which said: “If a customer has already taken the upgrade, they will be able to clean install back to Windows 10 because their device will have been provisioned with the new store-based license. No product key interaction required. Just ‘Skip Key’ and it’ll activate once installed.”

So, keep your current system, and do an “in place” upgrade to Windows 10. Use a Microsoft identity – such as an Outlook.com or Hotmail email address – to create your Administrator account to access the online Windows Store. The store-based license key will supersede the registration key that is locked to your PC’s motherboard. After that, you can change the motherboard, check that activation still works, then do a clean installation to a new drive.

Limited internet connections

My only internet connection is a Verizon MiFi, which can download 5GB per month. The Windows 10 download would take ages and kill our month. Will there be a way to get a DVD? Ladd

Microsoft says: “We’ll have options available for users who can’t download through Windows Update.” These options have yet to be announced.

Using a Microsoft ID

I am a Windows 10 Preview user. When Microsoft releases the final version, will we have choices such as not having to have an Outlook account? I currently use another mail program, with which I am quite happy. Charles

See above: you will need to set up a Microsoft account, such as an Outlook.com email address, with access to the Windows Store, which records your app downloads and looks after your licences. You don’t have to give Outlook.com any details you don’t choose to provide, and you don’t have to use it for email. It’s not really any different from having a Google Account (with access to Gmail and the Google Play store) or an Apple ID (required for iCloud, iTunes, iBooks, the App Store, FaceTime, Messages, iCloud.com and more).

In Microsoft’s case, the integration of Windows 10 PC and phone settings with the Windows Store, OneDrive and the free Office apps is so convenient that it makes no sense to avoid it. The real question is whether you can use an anonymous way to pay for anything you buy.

Windows 10 forever?

We’ve all heard talk of Windows staying at version 10 forever and that it is moving to a “Windows as a Service” business model. Can you clarify what that means? Whiley

Microsoft says: “Our business model for Windows is not changing, and we will continue to charge license fees for our Windows software through our OEM partners [ie PC manufacturers]. We have no plans to charge consumers a subscription for Windows 10. We will continue to keep it up to date for the supported lifetime of the device – introducing new features and functionality over time – at no cost.”

Obviously, Microsoft didn’t comment on your “version 10 forever”, but it could be like Apple’s Mac OS X, which is also staying at “version 10 forever”. The drawback is that users are more or less forced to keep upgrading, and Apple rapidly abandons those who don’t.

By contrast, Microsoft will have three branches of Windows 10. The Consumer Branch (CB) will be updated monthly, but business users can choose a CBB (Current Business Branch) or a Long-Term Servicing Branch (LTSB). The CBB will be updated four months after the CB, by which time any bugs should have been shaken out. The LTSB will be updated with a new snapshot every two or three years, but users will be able to delay updates for up to 10 years.

Why is it free?

Why are we getting a FREE upgrade? Allen

Microsoft is giving up some money from the relatively small number of people who buy Windows upgrades. In return, it hopes to get most people using the same version of Windows, rather than having roughly 1.6 billion users spread over Windows XP (which still has more users than Mac OS X), Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows Phone.

Many businesses will stick with Windows 7, but moving to Windows 10 gets you off the treadmill of rolling out expensive corporate upgrades every three or six years. It could even avoid the insanity of incompetent government organisations paying vast sums to keep running obsolete and vulnerable 14-year-old operating system code.

Microsoft will also benefit from creating a bigger market for Windows Store apps, written to the new Windows Runtime rather than the old Win32 API (applications programming interface). Windows Runtime apps are sandboxed for security, easy to install and uninstall, and easier to control. (They’re much more like Apple iPad apps, except they multi-task, can run in resizable windows, etc.) Google Android and Apple iOS apps can fairly easily be converted to “Universal apps” that run on Windows 10, Windows phones and tablets, and the Xbox One games console.

Finally, Windows 10 will bolster the Microsoft ecosystem built around Windows, Office 365, Outlook.com, OneDrive and Azure. With Windows 10, your Microsoft ID will be much like your Google ID (for Android devices) or your Apple ID (for iOS devices). Microsoft’s ecosystem aims to compete by offering better online and cross-platform support than either Apple or Google: it already has dozens of apps on Android and iOS.

Ask Jack has had an unprecedented number of questions about Windows 10. If yours isn’t answered here, see Microsoft Windows 10 free upgrade: five questions answered and Microsoft Windows 10 free upgrade: 10 more of your questions answered

Have you got another question? Email it to Ask.Jack@theguardian.com

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