New Delhi: Microsoft announced last year that it would charge consumers $30 per year for extra security updates for Windows 10. Now, they have allowed consumers to enrol in its Extended Security Updates free of cost ahead of the Windows 10 end of support on October 14th. But there is a twist.
Consumers will have three options to get Extended Security Updates on their personal Windows 10 PCs, and the free option involves enabling Windows Backup to sync users’ settings and folders to the cloud. Windows Backup uses OneDrive, so while it’s possible to stay below the 5GB of free storage, if users have a lot of files stored locally in the Documents folder, they need to purchase additional space for Windows Backup to work fully. That’s catchy for free extended updates on Windows 10.
The other two options for getting extended security updates on Windows 10 involve paying the $30 fee for a year of updates or redeeming 1,000 Microsoft reward points. Microsoft is adding an enrollment wizard to Windows 10 in July, which will offer these three options. Once the user selects an option and follows the on-screen steps, their PC will automatically be enrolled, according to Yusuf Mehdi, executive vice president and chief marketing officer at Microsoft.
Consumers will only receive extended security updates for Windows 10 until October 13, 2026, but businesses have the option to purchase up to three years of essential security updates. Microsoft is also making the extended security updates free for Windows 10 devices that access Windows 11 Cloud PCs through its Windows 365 and Virtual Machines.
Microsoft wants people to stop using Windows 10 and has already called 2025 the year of the Windows 11 PC refresh. Windows 11 became the most popular OS for PC gaming late last year, but 37% of Steam users are still using Windows 10, so users expect to see more full-screen prompts to alert them about the end-of-support cutoff.
