Tired of hearing that Windows 10 support will end next year? Bad news: Microsoft has stepped up its Windows 11 upgrade campaign
- The Help page for Surface devices has a new banner for Windows 11 upgrades
- The report states that Microsoft has modified “hundreds” of support documents in this way
- Expect this promotional activity to kick into high gear in 2025
Microsoft appears to be on another note to remind Windows 10 users that their operating system will no longer be supported next year, and they should think about what to do about it.
We’ve seen a number of such initiatives lately (with Windows 10 having less than a year left in October) and Windows Latest indicated a new impetus of activity on this front.
The tech site noticed that on one of Microsoft’s help pages, in this case for troubleshooting the installation of updates for Windows 10 on a Surface device, there is a new banner at the very top of the page that states: “Windows 10 support ends in October 2025.”
That’s followed by a short message advising users: “After October 14, 2025, Microsoft will no longer provide free Windows Update software updates, technical assistance, or security fixes for Windows 10. Your PC will still work, but we recommend moving to Windows 11.”
“Recommend” is putting it mildly: if you don’t have security updates in place to fix vulnerabilities as they arise, you’re really exposing yourself to some big risks when you’re online.
There’s also a ‘Learn More’ button below the banner that links to the Microsoft hub for advice on operating systems that are no longer supported (or platforms that are soon to join this club, namely Windows 10).
Windows Latest further notes that Microsoft recently updated “hundreds of support documents” related to Windows 10 to include this banner or similar efforts.
Analysis: Time to take action
So the idea is clear enough. As 2025 approaches, Microsoft is updating virtually every Help article and support page for Windows 10, reminding those still on the older operating system that it’s time to think about migrating to Windows 11.
Of course, there are more options available than simply upgrading to Windows 11 – which may not be possible for some people with older PCs that don’t meet the hardware requirements for Microsoft’s latest operating system – and we discuss those in our article on preparing for End of Life of Windows 10.
They include switching to another operating system entirely – such as a Linux distribution (perhaps one that’s somewhat similar to Windows) – or paying for an extra year of support (a choice Microsoft has only introduced for Windows 10 consumers).
As 2025 progresses, we can no doubt expect to see more of these banners appearing on Microsoft’s various web pages – and Windows 10 users will no doubt be seeing some pretty big nag screens too, especially as October 2025 draws near.