Preparing for Windows 11

goodValue

My technical experience is limited so I am apprehensive about the coming need to upgrade to Windows 11.

What preparation can I do so that I can revert to Windows 10 if I encounter problems?

Years ago, I was donated an old hard drive and caddy, so I have something to store anything from Windows 10.

What is it I need to save, and what Microsoft tools do I need to become familiar with?

MattMattMattUK

goodValue said:

My technical experience is limited so I am apprehensive about the coming need to upgrade to Windows 11.

Do you mean upgrading on an existing device, or moving to a new computer with W11 on it? Is your device eligible for the W11 upgrade? It is pretty simple, but as usual backing up any files would be sensible.

goodValue said:

What preparation can I do so that I can revert to Windows 10 if I encounter problems?

If upgrading on the device it generally allows you to roll back if the install fails, it does not remove the W10 install until the W11 install is up and running.

goodValue said:

Years ago, I was donated an old hard drive and caddy, so I have something to store anything from Windows 10.

What is it I need to save,

Backup your personal files, documents, pictures etc. 

goodValue said:

and what Microsoft tools do I need to become familiar with?

None, the entire process is automated and just requires you to click next and accept a few times. 

ButterCheese

Do you have the license key for your windows 10 version?  This at the very least will be needed to re-install Win10 again (else you'll need to buy it).  Having said that, there are loads of PCs for sale now with Win10 already on them, as offices are getting rid of older stock to buy Win11 machines.  I've also seen Win10 license keys on Amazon for £20 (with good reviews) so obviously people are selling recycled codes for cheap rather than just chucking their old PC in the bin.  These are very often from businesses who tend to upgrade machines after 5 years.

What sort of problems are you worried about?  You may get a message to say that the spec of your PC is not high enough to install Win11, so you'll have to stick with 10 and then later (when support for Win10 is withdrawn) think about getting another machine.  It may also install Win11 but give you a message to say your machine is not optimal to run it.  Many people just put up with this until they have the money or motivation to get a higher spec machine.

When I went from WinXP to Win7, I stored all my important files on an external hard drive.  I needn't have done that though, as the person who upgraded for me said all my files would be retained, and they were.

Neil_Jones

ButterCheese said:

When I went from WinXP to Win7, I stored all my important files on an external hard drive.  I needn't have done that though, as the person who upgraded for me said all my files would be retained, and they were.

There was no official upgrade route from XP to Windows 7 that didn't involve a clean install - from XP Home anyway.  For Pro you could have upgraded to Vista Business and then to 7 Pro from there.

Solutions were available, though I usually found the easiest and most reliable solution was just to clean install 7 after copying off anything needed to keep and set it all up again.

goodValue

Its an Acer Swift that I believe I need to upgrade due to Win10 coming to the end of its support life.

In Settings>Windows Update I hit the View optional updates link, and it showed

Windows 11, version 23H2

Does that confirm the machine is suitable for Win11?

The paperwork I have is: receipt/two manufactuer booklets/conformity sheet.

I cannot see a Win10 licence key on any of these.

Where should it appear? Will it be stored somewhere on the machine itself?

My main worry is that if there is a problem in the upgrade, I will be left with an unusable machine and because it would probably take a long time for me to find a solution, I might miss something critical.

But if there is a foolproof rollback system, do I need to worry at all.

Does this rollback system need any prior setup?

HillStreetBlues

goodValue said:

Its an Acer Swift that I believe I need to upgrade due to Win10 coming to the end of its support life.

In Settings>Windows Update I hit the View optional updates link, and it showed

Windows 11, version 23H2

Does that confirm the machine is suitable for Win11?

The paperwork I have is: receipt/two manufactuer booklets/conformity sheet.

I cannot see a Win10 licence key on any of these.

Where should it appear? Will it be stored somewhere on the machine itself?

My main worry is that if there is a problem in the upgrade, I will be left with an unusable machine and because it would probably take a long time for me to find a solution, I might miss something critical.

But if there is a foolproof rollback system, do I need to worry at all.

Does this rollback system need any prior setup?

In settings check  Activation, if it states it's activated with a digital licence, it should automatically transfer licence to Win11

goodValue

On the Activate page in Settings>Update, it says   Windows is activated with a digital licence.

Further on it suggests that a Microsoft Account is needed for this.

As far as I know, I don't have a Microsoft Account. Do I need to get one in case of problems with updates?

Neil_Jones

goodValue said:

On the Activate page in Settings>Update, it says   Windows is activated with a digital licence.

Further on it suggests that a Microsoft Account is needed for this.

As far as I know, I don't have a Microsoft Account. Do I need to get one in case of problems with updates?

No.You don't need MS accounts for anything in stock Windows 11 never mind what the blurb says.

goodValue

No.You don't need MS accounts for anything in stock Windows 11 never mind what the blurb says.

I went back and looked at the details of requiring a combination of activation and a Microsoft account, and it was for hardware changes.

So, it's not relevant for a Win10 to Win11 upgrade, or subsequent upgrades of Win11.

A couple of years ago I saw posts about a Restore system that would do a rollback if an update failed.

But the user was required to take a snapshot before attempting the update.

Has that system been upgraded such that the user no longer needs to do the snapshot?

Tassie_Devil

goodValue said:

The paperwork I have is: receipt/two manufactuer booklets/conformity sheet.

I cannot see a Win10 licence key on any of these.

Where should it appear? Will it be stored somewhere on the machine itself?

Use something like Magical Jelly Bean Keyfinder which is freeware. 

Olinda99

upgrade to windows 11.

if you want to roll back to windows 10 you can easily do this within 10 days


https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/all/downgrade-from-windows-11-to-windows-10/84a2416d-ccfb-4d87-9eee-e1056591e91f
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