Microsoft announced that small businesses and other small entities will soon be able to take advantage of the free Windows 10 upgrade following the overwhelming response from consumers who have already installed the company's latest OS offer.
With more than 200 million devices worldwide running the new Windows 10, Microsoft has attributed the OS' popularity to its free upgrade offer, which has been made available to certain qualified Windows devices. These include Windows 7 and 8.1 devices running Windows Home and Pro editions.
"Many consumers have taken advantage of this offer thanks to an easy-to-use app called 'Get Windows 10,'" wrote Matt Barlow, general manager of product marketing for Windows at Microsoft, in a new company blog post. "This app introduces users to Windows 10, checks their PC for compatibility with Windows 10, and notifies the user when their PC is ready to upgrade. The Get Windows 10 app has been a popular method for consumer to quickly and easily upgrade to Windows 10."
The latest announcement is the company's response to requests from customers who have small businesses and want to see the Get Windows 10 app in their PC's system.
Microsoft said that soon, business users will be able to receive Windows 10 upgrade notifications while ensuring that the upgrade will be a no-brainer since users will be able do it through the app's user-friendly interface.
In order to make sure that one's device is qualified for the upgrade, Microsoft revealed certain criteria that customers should be aware of.
First, the device should be running valid Windows 7 Pro or Windows 8.1 Pro. Next, the device should be configured to receive these updates straight from the Windows Update service. Third, the device must be connected to an Active Directory domain.
Microsoft said that it's rolling out the "Get Windows 10" app to those devices that meet the above-mentioned criteria, reaching customers in the United States later in January and other markets thereafter.
The move can be seen as part of Microsoft's strategy to push Windows 10, which has now been available for half a year. Soon, a number of computers will be able to receive the update through an automatic download while prompting consumers to install and start using the OS. Users will be allowed to choose whether or not they want to switch. They are also given the liberty to go back to their former OS within the first month of Windows 10 use.
"We believe these changes balance the needs of small businesses and organizations that want to take advantage of the free Windows 10 upgrade offer to do so more easily, while providing organizations of all sizes the tools and controls they need," added Barlow.
