A few weeks ago I wrote a couple of blog posts about the upcoming release of Windows 10.
The first post explained how Microsoft is planning to release Windows 10 to the public on July 29.
The second post explained that the Windows 10 upgrade will be free for PCs running Windows 7 or 8.1.
A few weeks later Microsoft told us that Windows XP and Vista users can also upgrade to Windows 10 for free by jumping through a hoop or two.
Well, today they announced that not everyone will receive the Windows 10 upgrade on July 29 as we had been led to believe. Instead, Windows 10 will be rolled out to various classes of users in “waves”.
The first people to receive Windows 10 will be the folks who signed up for the Windows Insider Program and installed the Windows 10 Preview.
That makes sense to me because it means that the people who possess the skills needed to help Microsoft squash any last-minute bugs and work out any installation glitches will receive the upgrade first.
The next group of users to receive Windows 10 will be the folks who reserved a copy after clicking the little “Get Windows 10” icon that recently popped up in the Windows notification area.
Microsoft probably hopes to resolve at least most of the issues reported by the Windows Insiders before they begin rolling out the upgrade to everyone else. Rolling it out in waves will also likely help ensure a smoother roll-out than we would experience if everyone tried to download the software from Microsoft’s servers at once.
There is no word on how long it will take to get Windows 10 installed on every machine that will be receiving it, but my guess is probably at least a couple of weeks, if not longer.
Bottom line: If you are chomping at the bit to get your copy of Windows 10 installed on your machine, a little patience might be required.
If you’re REALLY chomping at the bit, you can move yourself to the head of the line by signing up for the Windows Insider Program and installing the Windows 10 Preview before the July 29 release date gets here. Just be aware that if you do that, you will quite possibly encounter one or more of the bugs and glitches that Microsoft hopes to squash before rolling the upgrade out to the masses.