"Free" Windows 10

[#1]

Does this mean that I can copy W10 from another machine onto a USB stick?

I've always thought of Microsoft as suffering from a paranoid fear of software theft.

Hence my ignorance of any fixes available via W10.

I'm not used to paying for software.

[#2]

As far as start-up goes, I was urged to make a start-up USB stick at the earliest opportunity.  (It used to be a start-up disk in the old days.)  Although I've never had to use either, it should start up an operating system that is stubbornly refusing to do so in the normal way.

[#3 · Accepted solution]

Its what I did. Selected the repair option and it flagged up that I had an existing Windows 10 on the drive. You do need a large USB stick though.

I don't always pay for software but tools that do the biz, and more importantly, save me time I will buy. Losing 2gb of photos and then recovering them all is well worth it.

[#4]

@VileReynard "Does this mean that I can copy W10 from another machine onto a USB stick?" No, but if that machine has a licenced Windows 10 you can download the required material from MS. It is all spelled out at: https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/windows10

[#5]

@VileReynard  OK... I have just read the linky from your original post.... and it is saying that you CAN get Windows 10 for FREE....   by using the Download link for the .iso file... burn that to a DVD, or a "Live" usbe stick so that you can then "install" it the same way as you do with a Linux Distro..

What the guy is saying that... you get the works... yes... you get a copy of WIndows 10... however, there are a couple of very minor probllems... the first , and most obvious will be a "nag" screen popping up. saying that it is not a "Genuine" copy.. and you may be subect of piracy sofware... you can remove that by clicking on the X as usual... it does come back.. and you will probably have a small "nag" at thebottom of the screen.... the other minor problem is that you cannot have your favourite pic as your desktop background... it will be a plain colour... so what.. who looks at the background for more than a few seconds while deciding on what you are going to do today  ? ? ?

It seem that this process is exactly the same as if you have a copy of (say) Windows 7 pro ( like me ) on a DVD... and it is installed on my main computer... and also used that same copy on a second laptop... the second copy is "not genuine" and shows the "minor problems" as mentioned.

 I have been using the "second laptop" since WIndows 10 came out... with WIN 7 PRO (non genuine) with no problems whatsoever... it updates as normal... and microsoft security essentials (anti virus) also updates properly.   All the functions of WIndows work... as the guy says  "You do not HAVE to activate WIndows"... it is a "harum scarum" thing..... !

Give it a go.... ! 

[#6]

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@idonno wrote:

Its what I did. Selected the repair option and it flagged up that I had an existing Windows 10 on the drive. You do need a large USB stick though.

I don't always pay for software but tools that do the biz, and more importantly, save me time I will buy. Losing 2gb of photos and then recovering them all is well worth it.

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I've (rather arbitrarily) marked this as a fix (although it needs foresight) but many others - too numerous to list! - have provided alternate and useful methods of attack.

I still find Windows massively non-intuitive.

[#7]

deleted!