Windows 10 Upgrade Fever

By Jeralyn, Section Blog Related
Posted on Wed Jul 29, 2015 at 06:36:28 PM EST
Tags: windows 10 (all tags)

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I do not like upgrades, but there were so many positive things being said about the new Windows 10, and my 6 month old desktop was having so many problems and freezing so often, I decided to see if it would work.

Last night, it didn't work. It said "still working" but never went anywhere. 7 hours later, same thing. I asked Microsoft to call me, and they did, and were very nice, but they couldn't figure it out and "escalated my request" saying someone would call again tomorrow.

Finally, I found a possible solution, and I'm shocked, it worked. Not only that, it's is really a step up from Windows 7 in every way. With none of the bad features of Windows 8.

The Edge browser is really nice. Much faster and less cluttered than Chrome and Firefox. More later, I'm going to play around with it some.

Have any of you tried upgrading? Was it a success or are you stuck in failed update or error mode?

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Windows 10 Upgrade Fever | 19 comments (19 topical)

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I'm going to wait (5.00 / 1) (#8)
by Reconstructionist on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 10:06:17 AM EST

I reserved the upgrade and it is waiting, but I am always leery about being among early adopters. I prefer to wait to see if problems that eluded beta testing come to light among the initial mass of upgraders and then fixes are then incorporated into the initial install rather than doing them piecemeal.

: same here (none / 0) (#9)
by CST on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 10:08:32 AM EST

I'm always a late adopter.

I am (none / 0) (#1)
by Ga6thDem on Wed Jul 29, 2015 at 07:12:29 PM EST

having the same freezing problem but have not upgraded. I have a desktop but I also have a geek squad membership so I was thinking about calling them with the problem. It sounds as though it might be a windows 8 issue. I did ask them if they had had any problems with windows 8 freezing and they looked at me like I was off or something and said well, maybe you got a bad computer. I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one with these problems.

I never did find the cause (none / 0) (#3)
by Jeralyn on Wed Jul 29, 2015 at 08:22:24 PM EST

of the freezing. I did system restores back to earlier dates, had Dell "takeover" the computer and make sure the drivers and bios were up to date and the graphics settings and sleep/hibernate/power settings weren't causing a conflict, uninstalled my virus protection, and checked the system error logs. It's taken hours and hours this past week.

It may or may not have been a windows problem, but whatever it was, it seems to be gone with Windows 10.

Windows 10 has a good anti-virus program built in so you don't need another one. The "notification" section is also much better than the Windows 7 "action center". It will show when there's a conflict with an app or process in the startup folder and you can disable them right in the notification screen.

I also backed up everything on both drives of the computer to an external hard drive before upgrading, just in case.


by "both drives" (none / 0) (#4)
by Jeralyn on Wed Jul 29, 2015 at 08:24:50 PM EST

I mean the two hard drives -- the solid state "C" drive with the operating system and programs, and the "D" regular hard drive that holds everything else.


So you're... (none / 0) (#5)
by unitron on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 01:14:13 AM EST

...definitely talking about 2 separate physical drives and not one drive with 2 partitions?

Were you installing 10 from a DVD, or was it some sort of download, and if so, do you know where it got put so you can be sure to have a backup copy of it?


: Go To windows and reserve one (none / 0) (#7)
by Jeralyn on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 06:48:13 AM EST

its free. When you do, it will show up in your task bar. Wait for it to say it's ready to be downloaded (not just that it is there.) They are rolling it out over a few days or weeks.
If you aren't around when it starts to automatically download, it might fail, and the first time you will know it was ready is when you you see in your update history, "failed to install properly."
What this error means is, your Windows 10 installation folder is unfinished and/or corrupted. Now, how do you fix that?
Go into "C:WindowsSoftwareDistributionDownload" and delete everything in that folder.
Now, run the command prompt as an administrator. Type in "wuauclt.exe /updatenow".
Go to your Control Panel > Windows Update and your Windows 10 should start re-downloading from scratch, hopefully without flaws this time.
Don't delete the software distribution folder, just the contents.
This fix is for those whose computers show a failed update for Windows 10 or whose machines got stuck forever on the loopy circles, or wouldn't complete the upgrade.
When you have some time to install it properly, try disabling your virus and malware protection, and then re-running "check windows update" so a fresh copy appears as an optional update. Then try to install. If it hangs or doesn't finish, do the reddit fix and try again. After doing the reddit fix, I was up and running in 20 minutes. And it fixed all the problems I was having with freezing and shutdowns and blue screens in Windows 7.

I'm going to upgrade to Windows 10 ... (none / 0) (#2)
by Donald from Hawaii on Wed Jul 29, 2015 at 07:29:53 PM EST

... after I finish my two current federal grant applications. I'm too close to the August 13 deadline to change operating platforms right now. In fact, I have an appointment scheduled with an MS technician for August 20. (I'll pay the $20.99 fee, because I don't want any screw-ups, particularly if it's self-inflicted.) It's good to hear that it marks a significant upgrade from Windows 7 and 8.

About freezing on W10 install (none / 0) (#6)
by jginnane on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 06:34:01 AM EST

The glitches I fixed were related to "checking for updates"; the Windows Update service and BITS (Background Intelligent Transfer). Go: Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Services, then find these two, "Stop" them and restart. It's probable you have leftover things from Win 8.1 et al that never got installed and that's what causes the glitch.

Updated two desktops Wednesday, 2 more this morning and 2 laptops. Everything looks good so far. You'll have to do the usual like install an upgraded Adobe Flash Player, adjust keyboard response, maybe some graphics tweaks, etc.

Note that if you had "Pro" before you'll get Win 10 Pro now as well. However, Media Center has gone away.

That is Good to Hear (none / 0) (#10)
by ScottW714 on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 11:28:14 AM EST

My laptop is getting old, it's running Windows 7, which I really like. I hate upgrades as well, especially on a machine that is older. Beyond the upgrade, the constant checking for updates on Windows takes up a lot of resources, so much so that I shut it off and manually check a couple times a month.

My GF had Windows 8, and because I know my way around a computer, I was constantly messing with it. It came with either programs that allowed viruses to get on it quickly, or it actually came with virus from Samsung. But I had restored it a couple times from factory, and the viruses were there instantly. It took a lot of effort to track them down and remove them.

I hated Windows 8, the best thing about Windows was the Windows button, and they removed it. The upgrade, which I am assuming was Windows 9, worked enough that I didn't have to mess with it at all, but she was saying she disliked it a lot.

I hate that we have Window 7 Enterprise at work, but you can't buy it for home use. Talk about a racket, how is it even legal that a company can dictate what operating systems you can purchase for home use. I don't like touching my screen because it leaves prints. I keep a microfiber cloth in the drawer of my coffee table so my screen is always clean and Microsoft releases an operating system that requires touching the screen. So you can't even buy a laptop that doesn't have the additional cost of a touch screen with Windows 8/9.

It's not that I want Windows 7 specifically, I just don't want the cr@ppy alternatives. So if Windows 10 works, then I can finally rid myself of my older laptop, finally.
----------------------

Funny story, yesterday, I thought my laptop hard drive was toast. It froze, which it does occasionally for a couple minutes, usually because of Flash. Anyways, I set it down and closed the lid, it started making these grinding sounds and just unpleasant sounds. Since the HD has the only moving parts(no CD drive) I was thinking, new computer or solid state drive? It kept going and I was like, dang that thing is going start smoking with all the racket.

Anyways I finally picked it up, and the screen was fine and I could hear someone talking. Dummy me forgot, the thing that locked it up was a video on how to make a beach cart, which was what the odd noises I was hearing. Cutting and drilling of PVC pipe. The HD is fine.

Here is the VIDEO with the sounds I was hearing. The volume was just right so I didn't hear the dude until I picked up my computer.

there was no windows 9 (none / 0) (#11)
by CST on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 11:43:53 AM EST

just windows 8.1

They skipped 9 because it was "too close to '95" or something. Or maybe it was too close to 8, which they wanted everyone to forget.

I have 8.1, which isn't terrible, but isn't great. I'm glad to hear 10 is better. But given what a disaster windows 8 was, I'm gonna wait and see if they need a 10.1 or if 10 is in fact what it's supposed to be.


So Windowns 8.1 (none / 0) (#13)
by ScottW714 on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 02:14:23 PM EST

...was the version that brought back the Windows button ? Not sure why I was thinking that was was 9.

I really just want what everyone has at work, 7.


: yes (none / 0) (#15)
by CST on Fri Jul 31, 2015 at 11:22:12 AM EST

honestly windows 8.1 basically was windows 9. I have 8.1 because I got a new machine around that time. I don't know about touch screens though, pretty sure my laptop doesn't have that. Unless it does and I just never noticed or used it...
I don't hate 8.1 but I don't love it either. It came with a bunch of cr@p pre-installed, which I then uninstalled most of. And I don't love the weird dual interface between normal windows and a smart phone. But it's a hell of a lot faster than the old machine I had before, and it's functional.

We're going to buy new equipment for work ... (none / 0) (#14)
by Donald from Hawaii on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 04:01:52 PM EST

... as well, and we've been waiting until the Windows 10 is rolled out, and it's pre-loaded on new computers so we don't have to do the upgrades ourselves. I agree with you about touchscreens; I hate that, and I like my screen to be clean, too. We're not the only ones who feel that way, evidently, given that Windows 8 generally proved to be a flop.


I never used 8 (none / 0) (#12)
by Reconstructionist on Thu Jul 30, 2015 at 12:21:23 PM EST

I'm still on 7. I have no real problems with it and I don't do anything arcane. I actually have I set to the classic theme and when I use someone else's computer it takes me longer to find things. What I don't want to happen is be way behind the curve when MS stops supporting 7 and then have to learn a new quickly when it could happen when impressed for time with important matters.

One thing I want to know before I take the plunge is whether there will be compatibility issues with older software I still use or my office peripherals.

Wen I went to 7, I was still using an old HP all-in-one printer/scanner/fax/copier and it would not play nice in 7. I was able to find forums through google where people who were having the similar issues got answers and just followed the steps people laid out and got everything but the scanner working fine. But scanning was important, so I ended up buying a new one that I really don't like as well even though he old one was otherwise working fine (and to me it seemed better built and more "solid" than the new one.

I must say I'm often amazed not only how there are people out there who know ho resolve those issues with one particular model but are also willing to give help to total strangers for free.

I also use couple of older programs that I have to run I n compatibility mode in 7 and don't know whether they will run that way on 10.

I'll wait a bit then check user forums and find out.

One thing tha

I have had no compatibilithy (none / 0) (#16)
by Jeralyn on Wed Aug 05, 2015 at 05:44:54 AM EST

problems with my other programs, either work stuff like Adobe, wordperfect, word and quicken, printer, scanner, speakers, etc., or my TalkLeft software programs. It actually makes me happy to sit and work on that computer ow. Mine has a 24 inch display and its so much clearer and prettier than Wndows 7. All the features you like are still there.The new stuff like popups with news briefs you can turn off. Their news comes with pictures, not videos for the most part so its rare I get an autoplay video. Just make sure you back everything up first, and unplug your usb devices and (scanners, printerss, etc.) and do it. You won't be sorry.


: Thanks for the info (none / 0) (#17)
by Reconstructionist on Wed Aug 05, 2015 at 10:27:26 AM EST

I did install W10 on my daughter's laptop Monday, and have been testing it out. She had 8 (she hated it which was why she wanted to update right away) not 7 as I run, and there have been no problems at all. I even brought it to the office yesterday to see how I interacted with my peripheral hardware and if anything it seemed a little faster scanning and printing.
I have been googling and have not seen much in the way of people having problems once it is installed (It took quite a while on her laptop but there were no glitches) and both consumer users and tech heads seem to be very pleased, so I will likely upgrade soon especially since for the first 30 days there will be a simple uninstall and restore to 7. (DO NOT RELY on this. I am informed that even past 30 days it will be easy as long as you copy the "windows.old" that the install creates to an external device."
It does look as if there is going to be a problem with the calendaring software (I'm still using the organizer in the Jurassic Age Lotus 1-2-3 SmartSuite which even though IBM stopped supporting it a while ago has served my needs since the 90s. I like the look (it emulates an old-fashioned spiral bound planner like we all used to use way back when.
The software runs fine in compatibility mode in 7 but would not run properly when installed on the laptop running 10. It installs and opens and I could read anything previously entered after opening a copy of the data file copied from my computer, but you can't edit or add new appointments. It's probably time to step into the 21st Century on that in any event because there are free apps which while not as "elegant" in my opinion make syncing among multiple devices much easier.
My billing software is a also ancient (Timematters) and it will not even install. Changing that is a bigger deal than the calendar and will require some research and at least some money. I think what I will do for now is plug back in an old desktop that has it installed and just use that for the time being. It will be a little cumbersome but not too bad because I never entered my time directly into the software anyway. I just keep track during the day in a notepad file as I work then have my AA enter it in the program.
BTW, Windows 10 does have a notepad, but they keep it well hidden. It does not appear under "notepad" or "windows notepad" in the all apps tab of the start menu. I found it only by typing "notepad" in the search box. You can then then pin it to the taskbar if you want.

Discovered a glitch (none / 0) (#18)
by Reconstructionist on Thu Aug 06, 2015 at 08:09:58 AM EST

My daughter realized yesterday that after the upgrade Windows 10 was not recognizing her optical drive. Not only could she not play cd/dvd/br, but the device was not listed in device manager nor shown on "this computer." Apparently a significant number of people are having this problem with a variety of laptop brands.

It's fixable but it's not easy and requires editing the registry which made the device/drive appear and then manually installing the new drivers. Neither Dell nor MS had any useful information on line but you can find instructions in tech forums if you google.

Just upgraded (none / 0) (#19)
by MKS on Thu Aug 06, 2015 at 02:52:25 PM EST

to Windows 10 because I needed a new laptop.

Edge Browser is new and I have no idea what it is....

I generally do not like upgrades because you have to (re)learn the new system.

But 10 seems okay but then again I am probably missing a lot....