Changing from Linux to Windows

Lennys_Shinpad

Hi, I have a laptop that runs nicely with Linux. It's a Lenovo machine and it runs absolutely fine for me. I recently purchased some software that is only available on Windows so I want to switch to Windows. I want to spend as little as possible on this. I've had a look at various options and could do with some advice on what to go with. It's been a while since I purchased windows and I am a bit lost with all of the licencing issues.

Options I can think of:

1 - buy a second hand / refurbished laptop which has windows already installed (then sell my current one).

2 - buy a Windows licence that online somewhere. I have seen all sorts of prices for this on Amazon and eBay. Ideally what I want is a DVD with a Windows ID that definitely works. If this comes in at over £50 then it is probably easier just to go the second-hand route.

3 - bite the bullet and buy a new laptop as part of all these Black Friday deals.

I think my ideal option would be to spend as little as possible on a licence to upgrade my existing laptop. I have seen some on offer on Amazon for as little as £10 but suspect they aren't legit.

Any advice on this would be much appreciated.

mksysb

Firstly, have you tried running it with wine? That;s a linux program that will enable some windows programs to run.
Next, if your laptop supports it, you could use kvm (or virtual box) to run a windows session in a virtual machine.
Lastly dual boot your current laptop with Windows and linux.

that

too carry on from mksysb's comment, secondly have you thought about virtualbox if wine does not work, and run windows on that?

Licenses are cheaper on ebay. Also MS allows the installation of windows for a limited time before you must get a key. You could snapshot the install via virtualbox pre-completion and get a continually rolling month for nothing, but you will gave to keep rolling back and also have to re-install the software .... and ms updates :0 Still could be worthwhile for one off usage?

Frozen_up_north

I don’t know the legitimacy of the eBay Win 10 licence keys, there are a lot with positive feedback that cost less than £10. My guess is there is a huge profit associated with Windows and OEM builders of PCs pay very little per installation...

You can download the Windows 10 installation DVD “iso” file from Microsoft for free. If the laptop originally came with Windows it may work without needing an extra key. Make sure you have the drivers for the laptop as generic Windows drivers are often an issue with laptops.

that

Frozen_up_north wrote: »

I don’t know the legitimacy of the eBay Win 10 licence keys, there are a lot with positive feedback that cost less than £10. My guess is there is a huge profit associated with Windows and OEM builders of PCs pay very little per installation...

So many company PCs get scrapped - quicker than ms can create a new os. With 7 expiring soon, could possibly make a large amount of 7 keys available to convert to 10?

The reality for MS is a constant yearly subscription generates more than a large upfront purchase, so 365, and azure are the flavour. If the masses moved to linux, this may no longer be the case.

EveryWhere

If it does not already have an SSD fitted, take this opportunity to fit one; https://www.7dayshop.com/products/patriot-memory-burst-ssd-solid-state-drive-2-5-sata-iii-internal-120gb-pbu120gs25ssdr £14.99 delivered.

You'll need a USB Flash drive of at least 8 GB in capacity.
Then;

Creating the Windows 10 USB flash drive
Visit the Microsoft Media Creation Tool website; https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/windows10
Click Download Tool Now.
Save the Application.
Plug your USB Flash Drive into the PC where you saved the application.
Run the Application.
Accept the EULA
Select Create installation media for another PC and click Next.
Choose the correct settings for your version of Windows 10
Language (Country)
Windows 10
64-bit (x64) or 32-bit (x86) dependent on model of laptop.
Click Next.
Select USB Flash Drive and click Next.
Select the Flash Drive and click Next.

Allow the application to complete. You will be prompted when it is finished and has successfully created the bootable drive.

Lennys_Shinpad

Thanks, that's great advice. I didn't realise you could get an SSD so cheaply.


Just one question on this - wouldn't I still need a Windows 10 licence ID? If so, where do I get one and how much would it cost?


Thanks.

Frozen_up_north

Lennys_Shinpad wrote: »

Thanks, that's great advice. I didn't realise you could get an SSD so cheaply.

Just one question on this - wouldn't I still need a Windows 10 licence ID? If so, where do I get one and how much would it cost?

Thanks.

eBay... less than £5 for a Win 10 Pro key from a Microsoft Partner

Lennys_Shinpad

Great. Thanks for everyone's help.


I looked into the Wine idea but my install file is an MSI, which I believe needs a proper Windows licence.

Neil_Jones

Lennys_Shinpad wrote: »

Great. Thanks for everyone's help.


I looked into the Wine idea but my install file is an MSI, which I believe needs a proper Windows licence.

Does it? MSI files in Windows are just installers, nothing special about them, certainly no licence needed - the software you're installing might need its own licence but that's an entirely different thing.

This is for Ubuntu but a similar principle might apply for your flavour of Linux:
https://askubuntu.com/questions/671277/is-it-possible-to-run-a-windows-msi-installer/671280

Lennys_Shinpad

Cheers Neil.


Will look at that too.