Windows 10 was officially released on Wednesday andI know you’re totally having a great time with it right? Well I mean if you were able to download it that is. According to reports, some 14 million PCs have downloaded Windows 10. While that is a staggering number it still doesn’t include everyone, myself included. According to my Windows 10 update, my update (and maybe yours as well) is not ready as this is the biggest software release ever, causing a lot of us to have to wait in a queue that could take as little as a couple days to as long as a couple weeks! However, if you’re impatient like me then thankfully there’s a solution.
The first thing you have to do is back up your PC. Before you perform any OS upgrade you should back up your computer. This is something that you should do regularly regardless, but it is even more paramount when upgrading should something go wrong during the process or if you don’t like Windows 10 all that much. So back up anything and everything you don’t want to run the risk of losing.
Once you’ve done that the next step is downloading the Media Creation Tool. By going to the Windows 10 download page and get the Media Creation Tool. From here you’ll need to choose either the 32-bit version or the 64-bit version to begin your download. If you are unsure as to which version to get well here’s some tips. Grab the 64-bit version if you’re already using a 64-bit version of Windows 7 or 8/8.1 or if you don’t care about running into issues with legacy hardware or software that you use. Go with the 32-bit version if you’re running a 32-bit version of Windows 7 or 8/8.1 and want to avoid problems with your current setup.
Once you’ve decided on a version open the Media Creation Tool and select “Upgrade tie PC now” to start the upgrade process. Some of you may be looking to do a clean install, but you still need to run the upgrade first in order to properly activate Windows 10. You’ll perform the clean install when you’re done. The Media Creation Tool will download Windows 10. Once it’s done accept the EULA and then choose what you want to keep when upgrading. If you want to keep everything the same then select “Keep personal files and apps”. Once you’ve made your choice the Media Cration Tool will show you a confirmation of the settings you’ve picked for the upgrade. Once you see that everything is correct click Install.
Once your upgrade is complete, verify that your copy of Windows 10 has been activated by going to the Control Panel > System. If everything looks good then you’re all set. If you have an Xbox One you can get started by checking out the Xbox App and trying your hand at the game-streaming feature. And that’s pretty much all there is to it!
Once you’ve done all of this and you’ve come to the realization that Windows 10 isn’t your cup of tea then you can revert back to your old operating system, though that will come with a bit of cleanup. If you want to go back simply go to Settings > Recovery and choose the middle option (it should say something like “Go Back to Windows 7 or 8/8.1). Please note that this option is only available for 30 days after you upgrade to Windows 10 so if you decide you really don’t like then don’t wait to go back to your old OS.
Content originally published here
