Unfortunately I have to admit that to write this article I could not reproduce the case of a PC not activated with Windows 10 for a long period and I did not find precise indications about it, so it is not said that after a year of use it can display pop-ups that ask to activate Windows 10 or that security updates will always be downloaded on time with Windows Update.
The situation with Windows 10 not purchased under license can change at any time and if security updates were interrupted then it would be a big problem. Though Windows 10 can be used without paying for it and without activating the licensehowever, activating it is recommended if you use the PC for work or study or if it is used to save important data.
In this regard, I refer to the guide on how to download Windows 10 updates. As for the Windows 10 system updates, they can be done manually by downloading them through the Media Creation Tool.
This could also change in the future, so be careful for Windows Update to download the patches every week, otherwise your PC will be at serious security risk. Other limitations of Windows 10 without activation are some security settings in the Windows 10 security center, do not disturb mode that cannot be activated and then access via facial recognition (Windows Hello) does not work either.Īside from these basic limitations, the PC with Windows 10 installed not activated will continue to run forever and may also receive critical security updates. If you want to use one of the backgrounds included in Windows 10, you can use the trick seen above using the files in the folder C: Windows Web Wallpaper. You can also open an image in the Photos app or in another program such as Irfanview and use the menu to find the button Set as wallpaper (This type of limitation was also present in Windows 7 where any change then reported the black background, but Windows 10 does not seem to do it and still remains the chosen background). However, you can change the background in other ways for example, you can right-click on an image or photo icon in a folder and then choose the option Set as your desktop wallpaper. Going in Settings> Personalization, you will notice that the options for changing the wallpaper are disabled, as well as others such as the one that activates the Dark mode for applications and Windows Explorer. In this regard, in another article we have seen some tricks for remove the “Activate Windows” message in Windows 10.Īnother limitation is that of not being able to change the desktop wallpaper and not being able to customize the graphics settings. However, there will not be (at least not at the moment) pop-up warnings that can disturb the use of the computer. Initially, you won’t notice any difference, only that one appears on the PC desktop background fixed writing which warns the user and says Windows not activated. An inactive or unlicensed version of Windows 10 doesn’t have many restrictions.
If you install Windows 10 without a key, you can still use the computer freely and without any risk that it will stop working suddenly (as was the case with Windows 7 and XP). Windows 10 limitations without activation
We have seen in another article the differences between Windows 10 Home and Pro and it is also important to consider that if you intend to buy the regular license to activate the installation of Windows 10, the Home version costs much less. If this option does not appear, you can still continue the installation by writing a KMS client configuration key that Microsoft publicly provides on this page.Īn important thing to decide when installing Windows 10 is the choice between the “Windows 10 Home” or “Windows 10 Pro” version. However, you can simply click on the “ I don’t have a product key“at the bottom of the window for go ahead and complete the installation. One of the first screens of the installation wizard will ask you to enter the product key so that you can “Activate Windows”. By starting the PC from the USB stick created by the Microsoft program, you can proceed with the clean installation on any PC in a normal way, without any difficulty. To download Windows 10 just open the Microsoft website and click the button to download the Media Creation Tool, the tool that then allows you to download the installation files and copy them onto a USB stick. How to download Windows 10 and install it without license or activation