Windows 10: Can I use the Windows 10 upgrade on a standalone computer?

Hey all:
I have a question that I REALLY need the answer to. I have done searches regarding this, but so far I have been unable to come up with an answer.

I am responsible for ten laptops for work. These laptops are not used everyday. Currently I am running Windows 7 on them. These laptops are used for volunteers, and these laptops are used mostly as "stand-alone computers". Every once in a while, we do connect them online so that they can all talk to each other and update. These volunteers, some medical and some non-medical, are part of a national health network that are only used if there is a mass crisis of some sort. We need these laptop computers, which are paid for by grants, as tools to enable us to help people in times of medical emergency. (We practice.)

Now for my question: Will Windows 10 work on STAND-ALONE computers? I have been told that Windows 10 has to constantly have the ability to "phone home". Can I update these laptops to Windows 10 or not?

Thank you.

:)

 

Can't upgrade my Windows 10 (build 10240) to Windows 10 (Build 10586)

Microsoft Removes Standalone Windows 10 November Update Install from the Web

http://winsupersite.com/windows-10/...dalone-windows-10-november-update-install-web

Use the "Upgrade Now"

 

Windows 10 Free

Hi,

The link for upgrading to windows 10,tells that windows 10 initially will be downloaded to my PC,then I can upgrade at any time,will I receive new key or can use my previous windows key?

Why do I have to make this upgrade to get full standalone windows 10?can I revert to my previous windows after upgrading?

 

Are you talking about using the free upgrade? Or of buying multiple Win10 licenses, one for each machine, and upgrading that way?

The Free Upgrade will only activate if you do the update from inside Win7 (on these machines), and even though you COULD do the upgrade from a USB stick or a DVD, the problem will be that if Win10 needs new drivers (as most, if not all, of the existing Win7 drivers are likely NOT to work in Win10), with no Internet connect, the installer will have no way to retrieve and install the drivers.

My suggestion would be to do a full image backup of one machine and do the upgrade on it -- and see how it goes. IF it goes well and all the apps work the way they used to, then you could proceed to upgrade all the other machines. But, the machines that have been having the greatest failure rates with the Win10 upgrade are Win7 machines -- and the last thing you want is all of the machines being left in a corrupted, unusable state, by the Upgrade tool.

 

Yes they will work (assuming they are compatible). You'll need to connect to internet to activate Windows 10 but other than that, no.

You should probably (as you do now) connect to internet now and again to get updates but you don't have to - once they are activated they will continue to work.

 

Are the laptops running Enterprise copies of Win 7? The free Win 10 upgrade isn't available for Enterprise.

If they have OEM or retail Win 7, the free upgrade could be applied. Once activated, the machines could be set to use local logins, so they wouldn't need to be online to run.

The main issue I imagine is that the retail version of Win 10 basically forces users to accept Windows Updates. If a machine went online that hadn't been on the net for weeks or months, a ton of updates might download. That could be awkward in a low-bandwidth situation. It also carries some slight risk that an upgrade would render the machine inoperable.

The Enterprise versions are supposed to be managed more in keeping with business standards, where updates are under the control of the IT department.

I think that it'd be a poor idea to go to 10 on those laptops at the moment, even if it's possible.

(I have 3 PCs: two desktops and a laptop. All have 10 at the moment. However, I imaged the old OSes and can return to them in minutes if necessary.)

 

If they work fine now, I wouldn`t even bother upgrading them, leave them alone.

If these volunteers have never touched a windows 10, it could more trouble then it`s worth.

 

The Federal government won't move to Windows 10 for at least a year. I would not upgrade those laptops until about July 15, 2016 - and then only if they are entitled to the free upgrade.

 

I appreciate your input.

 

I'm with Adram, you will gain less than you loose.