Reinstalls after July 29th

[steve251]

How will reinstalling Windows 10 for users who have upgraded from 7 or 8 work after July 29th?

At the moment there are two options bot clean installs:

1. Install original OS, update and then install W10 when offered
2. Install Wi0 using Microsoft download and input your valid W7/8/8/1 licence key

But how will reinstall work after July 29th for people who took advantage of the free upgrade?

Steve

 

[RumoredNow]

But how will reinstall work after July 29th for people who took advantage of the free upgrade?

Your license for 10 is tied to the machine and your Microsoft Account associated with the device and resides in the cloud.

Reinstall is still free after July 29th.

 

[sinime]

I'm a little curious if it's actually tied to your MS account?... I have a Surface Pro 2 that shipped with 8.1... got the free upgrade to 10... whenever I do go to sell it, will the 10 upgrade transfer with the device to the new owner? I'm talking if they had to wipe it and reinstall 10 from scratch. Would they be stuck on 8.1?

If I'm correct, I think it's only tied to the computer.

 

[thron]

It's tied to the motherboard: Windows 10 Home activation after motherboard change - Microsoft Community

As long as you don't change the motherboard, reinstalling after the deadline would still be free for that device.
So if you sold the device and downgraded to 8.1 before you sold, the new owner could still then upgrade to W10; but you couldn't take the license and use it on an entirely different device to upgrade, is my understanding.

 

[RumoredNow]

Yeah... I guess only parts of it are tied to the Microsoft Account such as Settings Backups, etc... Frills that make it easier to resume where you left off sort of thing.

 

[skydiverian]

Your license for 10 is tied to the machine and your Microsoft Account associated with the device and resides in the cloud.

I take it that this doesn't apply to retail copies of Win7? I have a spare retail copy of Win7 Pro that I should be able to move between PCs no questions asked, I take it that if I upgrade it on an existing install and then move the licence to another computer I'll be good to do so.