TECHNOLOGY: Still have a Windows 10 PC - You have 5 Options Before Support ends next Year.

Microsoft will officially end support for its most popular operating system in a little over a year. Here's what you should do with your Windows 10 PCs before that day arrives.

America - Have you decided what to do with your Windows 10 PCs when they reach their official end-of-support date just over a year from now.

I know some people who are convinced that Microsoft will back down at the last minute and extend that deadline.

We are betting against that happening. The end date is right there on the Microsoft Support document that lists "products retiring or reaching the end of support in 2025." 

If you're holding out for an extension, prepare to be disappointed.

The schedule is defined by Microsoft's Modern Lifecycle Policy, which is documented on the Microsoft Lifecycle page: "Windows 10 will reach end of support on October 14, 2025. 

The current version, 22H2, will be the final version of Windows 10, and all editions will remain in support with monthly security update releases through that date."

When a Windows version reaches its end-of-support date, the software keeps working, but the update channel crush to a stop.

[There will be no new security updates, non-security updates, or assisted support. Customers are encouraged to migrate to the latest version of the product or service. Paid programs may be available for applicable products.]

That part in the middle sounds encouraging,  "Customers are encouraged to migrate to the latest version of the product or service."

Unfortunately, that's not a supported option for customers running Windows 10 on hardware that doesn't meet the strict hardware compatibility requirements of Windows 11. 

If you try to upgrade one of those PCs to Windows 11, you'll encounter an error message. In a separate support article, Microsoft reiterates that as of October 14, 2025, they will no longer provide technical support or security and reliability fixes for PCs running Windows 10.

For older PCs that were originally designed for Windows 7 or Windows 8.1, you might need to use a third-party tool called Rufus to bypass installation challenges. That's especially true on PCs that use a legacy BIOS instead of UEFI firmware and for those that don't have access to a TPM.