Anyone looking to finally upgrade to Windows 11 from Windows 7 and 8 is out of luck, as Microsoft has announced that it is ending free upgrades for those still running the old operating systems.
The announcement by Microsoft was posted quietly on the Windows Device Partner Center, a business hub for technical sales and marketing resources for other corporations and businesses. Within the post, Microsoft iterated, “Microsoft’s free upgrade offer for Windows 10/11 ended July 29, 2016. The installation path to obtain the Windows 7/8 free upgrade is now removed as well.”
Originally, the free upgrade offer for Windows 11 for Windows 7/8 officially ended on July 29, 2016. However, due to a loophole, many were still able to obtain the free upgrade through the use of old Windows 7 and 8 installation keys. According to this announcement from Microsoft, that loophole will no longer work, meaning those who want to upgrade to Windows 11 while remaining on either Windows 7 or 8 will have to buy a brand-new Windows 11 license instead.
German-based website, Deckmodder, was the first to spot the official announcement post by Microsoft, which reveals that those still wanting to make the switch from Windows 10 to Windows 11 won’t be affected. Anyone, still sporting Windows 10, will still be able to make the upgrade to the most recent operating system for free. While there are likely not many of us still using Windows 7 and 8, this news won’t please everyone. However, it could be an indication that Microsoft is shifting its attention to newer and bigger things, like the highly-anticipated release of the next Windows OS, Windows 12.
If you still haven’t made the upgrade to the latest Microsoft OS, you can check out our guide on how to install Windows 11. It’s still free for all Windows 10 owners, but you can always grab a key if you’re building a PC for the first time.