It’s time to upgrade free to Windows 10

Categories: CNC News

Now is the time for businesses to upgrade free to Windows 10 but before they do, they should check that their business applications are supported by the new operating system.

The free upgrade’s only available for a year and there are many other good reasons to make the change now.

A recent survey of the Spiceworks community of IT professionals revealed that the most enticing reason to upgrade is a very simple one. The Start button has returned! It disappeared with Windows 8 and this was instrumental in deterring many people from adopting Windows 8.

Windows 10 retains many of the useful features from Windows 8 which a lot of companies will be experiencing for the first time when they upgrade.

Many of the Spiceworks survey respondents also liked the fact that there’s a free upgrade available for Windows 7 and 8 users. Other top attractions were its enhanced security, the ability to upgrade as a Windows Update, support for multiple desktops, more update flexibility and a faster update cycle.

Long-term solution

Gary Jowett from Computer & Network Consultants in Brighton says: “By getting the free upgrade to Windows 10 now, you can avoid future costs and you won’t have to make any major changes to your IT for many years to come.”

Some IT professionals are still waiting to see how well Windows 10 performs before taking the plunge. There’s also a question mark over how many organisations will adopt it for their mobile devices.

However, the majority of UK businesses already use Windows 7 so there’s little doubt Windows 10 will be the first choice for most. It also makes sense that their mobile device strategy will also incorporate the new operating system because devices used by field workers need to be compatible with equipment used in the office.

Microsoft expects that 73 per cent of all organisations will have installed Windows 10 over the next two years. Also, aggregated network data from the Spiceworks community suggests that the Windows 10 market share is likely to be higher than Windows 7’s was two years after its launch.

The stark fact is that Windows 7 will eventually be retired and all support withdrawn from it. All businesses that use Windows 7 will have to decide what to replace it with. The easiest answer is a free upgrade to Windows 10.

The first step for businesses in London and the Home Counties before they upgrade is to contact their IT consultant. A good consultant will already have experience of many mainstream business applications and can help a company quickly identify which ones are supported by Windows 10.