Windows 10 as a service

[Dueydoodah]

So, after our free year on Windows 10 and it becomes a service, will we be asked to pay for this service?

 

[Witness]

So, after our free year on Windows 10 and it becomes a service, will we be asked to pay for this service?

No. You will continually receive updates for free.
I'm not sure why there's so much confusion on this (not a knock on you). Paul Thurott was wondering the same thing.

 

[David Feifer]

What the issue is, is knowing what Software as a Service really means. SaaS for the windows operating system to Microsoft is a Development model not a sales model. In the past windows was developed as separate standalone projects it was not unheard of for different project teams to be working on consecutive versions of the OS. This can be quite cumbersome and costly if certain teams fall behind or issues occur. Each labeled os was a stand alone product with a release, support and end life. The SaaS reference for windows 10 means that there is no finished product per se but a constantly evolving system that will be updated constantly over the years.

 

[michail71]

People must think of service as something you pay for on a regular basis I suppose. Like electricity service, cable service, phone service, etc.

Even people that work in the tech industry that should know what SaaS is should know better. Plus people that blog like to think MS has a secret, evil agenda to bait and switch people into a paid subscription.

 

[mj0]

Even people that work in the tech industry that should know what SaaS is should know better. Plus people that blog like to think MS has a secret, evil agenda to bait and switch people into a paid subscription.

People in the tech industry have been watching how previously independent applications and software suites have been transformed into "software as a service" models. Office 365 is SaaS, and so is the Adobe Creative Cloud. You pay a monthly subscription fee and get a constantly evolving system with patches, updates, and upgrades. No wonder some are confused when it comes to Windows 10 and SaaS.

 

[michail71]

Every so often the industry goes through some new buzzwords, sometimes a new one crops up everywhere overnight.

I used to work with a lobbyist that created the term ASP. I had a chance to complain to him it caused problems for software developers because that's what we called Active Server Pages. He sighed and said, "Yeah I've had plenty of developers upset at me about that one", lol.

But it gave me some insight into how the industry's buzzwords come about.

 

[Scott Bradley]

You pay for a license everytime you buy a new PC. They want as many windows 10 PC in service as fast as possible, giving away a free upgrade (for the first year) is the best way to do that.

SaaS simply means no new version updates - No Windows 11... Next computer you buy, you will pay real money for the windows software. If you don't upgrade within the next year, you will pay for that upgrade,

Upgrade now, and you will never pay for another upgrade for the PC your licensed Windows OS is installed on. (You can move a licensed copy of windows to another machine, but most won't)

 

[Robinsonmac]

I don't see what the confusion is either, they said if you upgrade within the year you get updates for the life of the device it's installed on. Period, end of story.....

 

[Cabo Blue]

So in maybe a general thought, using the title Windows 10, for over a duration of time, will be recognized world wide.
By not changing the title Windows 10 to like 11, 12, 13, 14 and so on, it will fully recognizable over time?

 

[David Feifer]

Main thing that I am looking forward to with this is actually being able to have all the systems on our domain on the same operating system. Currently we have a 12 year replacement cycle (Unless something serious happens) we are a production oriented company so little funding for it resources. We buy dell optiplexes and Lenovo t series laptops and the OS they come with is what they are running. Nothing over windows 7. Though I DID manage to get my boss to update his box Friday to the 10240 build so we may be rolling forward systems fairly quickly. Atleast those that can be upgraded for free.