Windows 10 - free upgrade to those with PC using Windows 7 or 8

[Cinisajoy]

Can an update from Win7 to Win 8.1 to Win 10 brick a computer? More precisely is there a way to turn on this computer? It won't even open in safe mode.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Can an update from Win7 to Win 8.1 to Win 10 brick a computer? More precisely is there a way to turn on this computer? It won't even open in safe mode.

Doesn't seem/sound likely to me, but if somehow the OS and/or boot sector of the drive got corrupted, it could happen.

Does it not even give you the firmware options like f3 'boot normally' f12 for 'setup' etc or something like that?

If you don't get that initial firmware screen, something else is probably wrong.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Doesn't seem/sound likely to me, but if somehow the OS and/or boot sector of the drive got corrupted, it could happen.

Does it not even give you the firmware options like f3 'boot normally' f12 for 'setup' etc or something like that?

If you don't get that initial firmware screen, something else is probably wrong.

No it did not even give that screen.
Thanks for the quick answer.
In other words tell the owner to pay an actual IT or get a new computer.

[kennyc]

Sounds like a hardware or power problem.... Hardware if the lights/fans are coming on and no boot/firmware screen .... maybe a power/power supply problem if no lights, no fan...

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Sounds like a hardware or power problem.... Hardware if the lights/fans are coming on and no boot/firmware screen .... maybe a power/power supply problem if no lights, no fan...

Thanks kennyc.
You are appreciated.

[JoeD]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Can an update from Win7 to Win 8.1 to Win 10 brick a computer? More precisely is there a way to turn on this computer? It won't even open in safe mode.

There's a problem that hit some laptop models with certain types of LCD displays (samsung I think?) recently. An update for windows 10 in combination with one of the latest nvidia drivers caused the displays EDID to be corrupted rendering it unusable. Also for what it's worth, the issue was mostly seen by people upgrading to win10 rather than having it pre-installed.

Not saying that's what happened to you, I've no idea what kind of machine you have, but yes it is possible for updates to cause all sorts of problems. Not all that common though.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by JoeD

There's a problem that hit some laptop models with certain types of LCD displays (samsung I think?) recently. An update for windows 10 in combination with one of the latest nvidia drivers caused the displays EDID to be corrupted rendering it unusable.

Interesting.
But those computers still boot normally, right? It's just the display that won't work? So attaching a monitor would let you log in and roll back the update, no? The hardware wasn't actually fried? Or was it?

BIOS updates can and do brick systems but driver issues don't normally go that deep. Software breaking hardware can happen but it is rare and usually on purpose. (STUXNET, for example.)

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Interesting.
But those computers still boot normally, right? It's just the display that won't work? So attaching a monitor would let you log in and roll back the update, no? The hardware wasn't actually fried? Or was it?

BIOS updates can and do brick systems but driver issues don't normally go that deep. Software breaking hardware can happen but it is rare and usually on purpose. (STUXNET, for example.)

And you should be able to boot from a disk or stick into safe mode in that case.

If the machine will not come on at all that's a power or hardware issue.

If the display driver is corrupted there are ways around it.

[Cinisajoy]

Thanks guys. It is a Lenova and not mine. Thought I would ask since every year I seem to know less and less about computers.

[JoeD]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Interesting.
But those computers still boot normally, right? It's just the display that won't work? So attaching a monitor would let you log in and roll back the update, no? The hardware wasn't actually fried? Or was it?

BIOS updates can and do brick systems but driver issues don't normally go that deep. Software breaking hardware can happen but it is rare and usually on purpose. (STUXNET, for example.)

It was laptop based, so I assume* you could connect an external display as long as your laptop had a suitable video port, but, the only way to fix the corruption would be to flash the correct EDID back. Unless you happen to have already backed up your monitors EDID or have access to the correct info to flash back, it's a problem. It's not fried but it's also not just a simple driver uninstall/rollback fix.

There's a bit more info (at least in the latter parts) in this thread and this one.

BTW I'm not suggesting this is/was Cinisajoy's issue. I posted it really as an example that updates can cause "damage" that isn't fixable by safeboot or reinstalling.

* The second post of this thread suggests that booting with an external display may be possible in some cases but not in others. If it's possible to boot without a display, then it should still be fixable, but if you just get stuck in post due to no display connected, it'll be beyond the ability of many to resolve.

[fjtorres]

The next update to Win10 will allow activation using win7 or Win8.1 product keys:
http://www.zdnet.com/article/next-bi...tag=TRE17cfd61

The product key changes coming in Threshold 2 offer a third alternative. Here's the official announcement:

We have received a lot of feedback from Insiders on making it easier to activate Windows 10 on devices that take advantage of the free upgrade offer to genuine Windows by using existing Windows 7, Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 product keys. If you install this build of the Windows 10 Insider Preview on a PC and it doesn't automatically activate, you can enter the product key from Windows 7, Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 used to activate the prior Windows version on the same device to activate Windows 10 by going to Settings > Update & security > Activation and selecting Change Product Key. If you do a clean install of Windows 10 by booting off the media, you can also enter the product key from prior Windows versions on qualifying devices during setup.

More at the source.

[MickiTee]

A word of warning. I logged onto my PC & netbook this morning and found that Microsoft are trying to install Windows 10 automatically via Windows Update. This has happened sometime in the last month.

If you open Windows Update via the Control Panel you are now being presented with the current screen instead of the number of items waiting to be installed:


If you then click on 'Show all available updates' and select 'Optional' you will then see the Windows 10 Update selected by default. In my view this does not make this optional.


If you hide the update then it automatically reappears in the Optional list the next time you open Windows Update!


I DON'T want to update to Windows 10 at the moment. I can see no point for me personally to upgrade to Win10, but if I did decide to do so I wouldn't do it until Easter of next year.

Why can't Microsoft let us make our own decisions as to when or whether we want to grade? Win10 offers me no benefits just lots of headaches from trying to teach my 91 year old father what the changes are and how they affect him.

[HarryT]

Yes, it is a little annoying, isn't it? Especially the fact that if you hide the update, it automatically unhides itself again.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by MickiTee

A word of warning. I logged onto my PC & netbook this morning and found that Microsoft are trying to install Windows 10 automatically via Windows Update. This has happened sometime in the last month.

If you open Windows Update via the Control Panel you are now being presented with the current screen instead of the number of items waiting to be installed:
Attachment 142864

If you then click on 'Show all available updates' and select 'Optional' you will then see the Windows 10 Update selected by default. In my view this does not make this optional.
Attachment 142865

If you hide the update then it automatically reappears in the Optional list the next time you open Windows Update!


I DON'T want to update to Windows 10 at the moment. I can see no point for me personally to upgrade to Win10, but if I did decide to do so I wouldn't do it until Easter of next year.

Why can't Microsoft let us make our own decisions as to when or whether we want to grade? Win10 offers me no benefits just lots of headaches from trying to teach my 91 year old father what the changes are and how they affect him.

Yep, I got a pop-up notice on my W7 laptop dedicated to being a DVR....PITA
they really are trying to force the update on everyone....

Very annoying.

There was a 'cumulative update' to windows 10 (KB3097617) that got installed on my other machines yesterday.

[JoHunt]

Originally Posted by MickiTee

If you hide the update then it automatically reappears in the Optional list the next time you open Windows Update!

I had the same problem until I uninstalled Windows update KB3035583. Full instructions here:

http://winsupersite.com/windows-10/h...ng-your-system