Earlier today, we reported on the KB5001716 update that Microsoft has quietly begun pushing out to Windows 10 as well as Windows 11. The company periodically installs this update on systems to encourage users into installing a new feature update. With the upcoming Windows 10 end-of-support date nearing, it looks like the latest KB5001716 release is the final such push before October arrives.
Microsoft, as well as some governments, recommend users embrace Windows 11 for improved security and "better" performance. For those who are not ready to make the move just yet, the company announced an extended security updates (ESU) program earlier, where, as a consumer, you needed to pay $30 to upgrade.
Last month, Microsoft updated this program such that users can now get into ESU for free. Well, the option to pay $30 for the ESU still exists but users can also successfully qualify for ESU two other ways.
To facilitate this, Microsoft has released new enrollment options via a new ESU wizard. Users can choose to either pay 1,000 Microsoft Rewards points for ESU eligibility, or use the Windows Backup app to sync their settings. This essentially makes the option to extend Windows 10 support free at least for another year, till October 2026.
However, the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) is not too happy about the move. The group has brutally slammed Microsoft as it thinks this move is just like a band-aid and that it is too little to actually help save the "400 million" Windows 10 PCs worldwide that are unsupported on Windows 11.
Back in June last year, the PIRG released an article urging Microsoft to extend the support date for Windows 10 where it cited the 400 million figure. At the time, it wrote:
"When free support for Windows 10 ends in 2025, as many as 400 million perfectly good computers that can’t upgrade to Windows 11 will be thrown out. This could be the single biggest jump in junked computers ever
...
About 40% of PCs currently in use can’t upgrade to Windows 11, even if users want to. That means when Microsoft stops providing security updates for Windows 10, those computers will either be insecure and unsafe to keep using, or else turn into junk and get thrown out."
That petition was published before any extended support announcements for Windows 10 were made. In a statement to The Register, following the new ESU changes, the PIRG gave the following statement:
Microsoft's new options don't go far enough and likely won't make a dent in the up to 400 million Windows 10 PCs that can't upgrade to Windows 11.
Other reports, like that from Canalys, had suggested that the number is around 240 million.
Meanwhile, the latest survey data from ControlUp, a digital workspace management firm, shows that a large number of enterprise systems are in fact moving on to Windows 11. This number is based on the analysis of over one million PCs. As you can see in the image below, they are at a crossroads right now.
ControlUp also notes that about 12% of systems across both Europe and North America are unsupported by Windows 11. If we do the math, that equates to around 120,000 systems out of the million analyzed by the firm.
Microsoft is also aware that there are many such systems, including enterprise devices, that can not be upgraded, which is also why it shared
a detailed guide for ESU key activation.
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