Microsoft is pestering Windows 10 users with full-screen pop-ups to upgrade to Windows 11

Microsoft is displaying a full-screen pop-up on Windows 10, to prompt users to upgrade to Windows 11. This is not the first time it has employed this strategy to try and attract users to move to the newer operating system.

Microsoft is resorting to pop-ups again to tell Windows 10 users to upgrade

Windows Latest reports that Windows 10 users are being greeted by an annoying full-screen pop up (refer to the screenshot below), which highlights the free upgrade to Windows 11. The pop-up displays 4 screens, three of which highlight the improvements in Windows 11, while the last screen allows the user to continue with Windows 10.

The pop-up screen is displayed after a Windows update is installed on the computer, and the culprit in question appears to be the KB5034203 update (OS Build 19045.3996). It is available as an optional preview update for Windows 10 users.

Microsoft previously announced that Windows 10 will reach end of support on October 24, 2025. The operating system may be on its last lap, but that has not stopped the Redmond company from porting over features from Windows 11. Microsoft brought its Copilot AI to Windows 10 last year, and is testing a new Weather Widget for the lock screen, this is identical to the one on Windows 11's lock screen.

This might be an interesting strategy from the company, if users get a taste of the features before upgrading, it might make it easier to help them move to Windows 11.

Windows 11 is still behind Windows 10

Windows 11 debuted in October 2021, and over the course of 2 years, it has accumulated over 400 million users (monthly active users). It is expected to cross the 500 million mark in early 2024. The operating system attracted more users in September 2023, when Microsoft introduced Copilot, but it may not be as widely be used as you might think.

Microsoft had revealed last year, that over 1 Billion PCs were running on Windows 10 or 11, though the exact breakdown of the numbers remains a mystery. Statcounter says that Windows 10 still dominates the PC market with a 66.43% share. In comparison, Windows 11 just has a 27.89% share. According to Steam's Hardware & Software Survey for January 2024, Windows 11 boasted a user base of 44.24%, while 51.43% of gamers who took the survey were on Windows 10.

It is likely that the numbers could rise rapidly when Windows 10 reaches its end of life. That said, there may be some hurdles for users to migrate to the new OS. An analysis by Canalys Research revealed that at least 240 million Windows 10 PCs can't be upgraded to Windows 11, due to hardware limitations like the TPM 2.0 requirement. You may of course bypass these artificial restrictions by using third-party tools, but the majority of users will be unaware of such workarounds. So, users may have to stay with Windows 10, or upgrade some parts of their PC, or may have to buy a new computer entirely, to use the latest operating system, browsers, and other apps.

The above screenshot is from one of the computers we have at home, it shows a banner that offers the free upgrade to Windows 11. I haven't received the optional update, nor have I noticed the full-screen pop-up that advertises the upgrade. However, Windows 10 does display some notifications in the Action Center from time to time, pestering me about switching to Windows 11.

Which operating system do you use? Windows 10 or Windows 11? What's keeping you from upgrading to Windows 11?

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