If you are worried about telemetry, like some people are, the only version that allows completely disabling it is Windows 10 Enterprise.

Having said that, the main reason for at least initiating the update is to mark your existing key as "Windows 10 eligible". After the upgrade is complete, you can easily roll back to the previous OS version (from within Windows, trivial and no side effects) and you can continue working on Windows 8.1 while now having a valid Windows 10 key for the future.

You can also perform the above procedure using a VM snapshot, upgrading, and then simply using your snapshot instead.

If you are a developer using Windows as your main OS, a very strong reason to upgrade and not roll back is the upcoming Anniversary Update. This will bring the "Windows Subsystem for Linux" which means you can natively run the entire Ubuntu userspace, like bash, tmux etc. That is pretty exiting!

IMO if you rarely use the VM in question, your top priority should be future-proofing your Windows 8 key.

Thanks. It is literally months since I last launched the VM, so I am not that worried about telemetry. I guess I am balancing between wasting some time now to make the upgrade vs. being pissed at myself in a few years time when I suddenly need to do something on windows 10 and need to purchase the license.

I primarily run Ubuntu on two different machines. Both have Windows installations as well. I upgraded both and the two other PC's around the house to Windows 10.

All the telemetry can be turned off. Except for one of my machines all of it is (but for the peer to peer upgrade delivery). The other machine I turned most of it off but I used a Microsoft associated email account and the PIN sign in rather than local sign in because I wanted to have a better experience.

Windows 8 defaulted to collecting data via the login. Ubuntu defaults to collecting data and sending it to Amazon and which ever search engine is currently paying for product placement. Apple and Google collect data by default with their operating systems. Use apt on Debian, or NPM, or Github or Facebook or Linkedin, everyone is collecting data.

The reason to upgrade to Windows 10 is that it's a better Windows. Now that it has multiple workspaces I might even switch back because the interface is gorgeous. On the scale of companies I trust with my data, Microsoft is higher than those which have a first order business plan based on monetizing it. Mostly, I'm a Microsoft customer not a Microsoft product and that creates a slightly better alignment with whatever interests I might have in regard to confidentiality.

Good luck.

Well for me, my Macbook Air will not boot Windows 10. The nVidia graphics card panics because of something to do with VGA-emulation under EFI booting.

In theory there is a magic incantation of hex in an EFI startup script that will turn back on the necessary emulation, I dunno.... As soon as Windows installed the nVidia driver, the next boot would never succeed.

Plenty of CPU/GPU power to run it, but I just couldn't get it to work. I had to go back to 7 (please don't mention 8).

I think it's worth updating to Windows 10, because it's the first version of Windows that was built in a more open-to-feedback way. Microsoft started listening to its customers during beta so there are a lot of small nuisances fixed and useful features added. Trivial things like proper full screen for the terminal.

You're going to have to upgrade eventually. You either do it for free now, or you pay later.

I would disagree. Depending on what you use your computer for you may find an alternative operating system that suits your needs. If you have Windows dependant software or workflows then you will eventually find that support for your preferred version of Windows is withdrawn. Microsoft will offer extended support for a minimum of 5 years from the date of a product's general availability. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/13853/windows-lifec...

Windows 7 has extended support through January 14, 2020[1], so even if he was forced to do so for some reason, it likely wont be years. And with the rate things are changing, who is to say that Windows will even be a requirement for him in 2020?

[1] https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/13853/windows-lifec...

I upgraded to Windows 10 twice, both times I had wifi issues. So I downgraded it.

Telemetry.

If someone worries about telemetry why use windows at all?

If someone is really worried about telemetry, that person should probably avoid connecting to the internet because the internet operates with reasonable efficiency by collecting data. My browser sends way more telemetry than Windows ever will.

I do not like Windows 10 interface.

agreed. the inconsistency between old and new UI is distracting