Windows 10 version confusion

Hi folks,


I am confused about what version of Windows 10 do I have...can you help?


I wiped my 6 years old Lenovo desktop pc. Then , I installed something like "technical alfa" Windows 10 version. That was in early 2015.


I dont remember if I downloaded image or installed Vista first and then installed W10. Then, I gave it to my wife.
Its October now and its still working somehow but I dont believe its legal since I didnt pay for it...


When I go to Settings->System->About->System Info it says Edition: Windows 10 Home; Under activation it says: Windows activated. Below it, there is a product ID.


When I go to Settings->Windows update->Advanced options- Get Insides builds, I am not in any since there is a button "Get Started".


So I dot get this...it seems like I have regular Windows 10 installation and its activated. But is there a way to double check? Maybe I still have some pre release version that is no longer supported and one day it will say goodbye and my wife will loose all data?


Thanks for some tips or opinions!


br
Calix

Hi Calix!

What you installed back in early 2015 was a Technical Preview. Newer technical previews are called Insider Builds. These are development versions, which update themselves automatically once a new developer version is out. Legally this is no problem: When you use such a version, you are some kind of beta tester for Microsoft. You get new features, but they might also be incomplete or somehow broken. Basically, Microsoft offers you these Insider Builds for free at the price of you being the one who potentially has to deal with brokenness. And Microsoft gathers vast amounts of user data in Insider Builds; way more than it gathers in the release version of Windows 10.

Note that only because you have done these beta tests, Microsoft does not give you a licence as a present or so. If you want to use the release version of Windows 10, then in order for it to activate, you must have had Windows 7 or Windows 8(.1) installed on the according PC. The release version has the build number 10240.

In order to check the Windows version you are on, you can run the "winver" application. It will display a small window with the name of the operating system ("Windows 10" obviously) and with the build number in it. In case of an Insider version or an evaluation version, it will also contain an Expiration date. See here for an example output:
http://www.windowscentral.com/sites/...?itok=3WRMD9fP

Hi Joergi,

thanks a lot for answer. Do I understand correctly that my installation is somewhere in the middle? I dont have insider build nor I paid or upgraded from W7/8. Please check my winver output:

I would say it looks like official released version. Maybe I really did install W7 there and I dont remember :)
Anyway, if I decide to reinstall this PC lets say in December, how do I keep this version? Do I have to note product ID somewhere (Settings->System->About->System Info). In certain step during new installation it will ask me for some ID, right?

Thanks a lot
br
Calix

Calix said:

Anyway, if I decide to reinstall this PC lets say in December, how do I keep this version? Do I have to note product ID somewhere ([COLOR=#333333]Settings->System->About->System Info). In certain step during new installation it will ask me for some ID, right?

If you're on a legit activated copy of Win 10 (which it appears you are), it will be activated automatically for all installs of Win 10 in the future, without the input of a key or ID. To double check if your copy is activated go to Settings -> Update & Security -> Activation; it should look like the following:

What you have there is the release version of Windows 10. Feature-wise that also is the version which I would recommend for the ordinary end user.

Yes, since it's also activated properly, I think it's likely you came from Windows 7 then. That means that with regards to the licence everything is fine.

Btw: Should Windows not be activated or should it expire (this is what evaluation copies do, it is not what the release version does), then you also would not lose any data. I think Windows would then start becoming annoying - well some people say, that would not be such a change...
Anyway, that's not a problem for you.