Remember when Microsoft said Windows 10 would be the last Windows? I 'member.
'End of 10' to Windows 10 Users: The Environment Wants You to Use Linux
Submitted 4 weeks ago by Pro@programming.dev to technology@lemmy.world
https://fossforce.com/2025/05/end-of-10-to-windows-10-users-the-environment-wants-you-to-use-linux/
Comments
mwguy@infosec.pub 4 weeks ago
LeFantome@programming.dev 4 weeks ago
I was for many of us. So, they were not totally wrong.
YiddishMcSquidish@lemmy.today 4 weeks ago
So much this. I had dabbled with Linux on various sbc knockoff raspberry pis and put one distro on an old netbook that I have to a friend. Now my main laptop is going full penguin.
LodeMike@lemmy.today 4 weeks ago
They didn’t. They said it was the last version of windows you’d ever need.
hperrin@lemmy.ca 4 weeks ago
Technically, they didn’t, they just never corrected someone who did, and it spread far.
PancakesCantKillMe@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
I’m doing my part!
I’ve loaded Mint on my prime system and a laptop, another laptop with Fedora, Manjaro on another main system I test with and EndeavorOS on all my media systems. I’ve also loaded about 8-10 other distros on Proxmox to play/test with.
Where I had doubts on whether I needed anything off of the old MS system, I P2V’ed the OS and spool it up on Proxmox if needed to review any history within the OS/browser.
I still have a couple of W10 VMs lingering and a Windows server. I’ll “upgrade” the workstation VMs to W11 (and shut them down) since I have the license and I can see sometimes having to use Windows for whatever dumb reasons. I’ll leave the Windows server for now to maintain the domain as that allows me to block telemetry with GPOs. I may tire of that at some point though as MS will further wane away on my network.
My summer task is to convert all my 'Arrr software over to Linux versions. Still on W10 there. Wasn’t sure which distro to go to for that…
FapFlop@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Re: Arr software, spin up an Ubuntu VM and install Docker. Spin up portainer and then use that to spin up all thr arrs. Ezpz
Velypso@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
Windows 10 users encountering this post: this sounds like a lot of work. I’ll just stick to windows 11.
endeavor@sopuli.xyz 4 weeks ago
Disabling all the dumb shit and ads on win11 is less work than switching to linux and learning to use it.
ripcord@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
KDE Neon here. I really really like it.
Gibibit@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Seems like a good website to direct people to via posters in your local community center or church. Or you can call a repair club in your area to ask if they want to be listed. Those are likely to have some Linux enthousiast members and already have a location.
Spacehooks@reddthat.com 4 weeks ago
Im hearing proton is good for games?
binom@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
i second @FrostyCaveman@lemm.ee
it’s fantastic for like 85% of all games, and good to acceptable for like 10%. the only big issue is games with kernel level anti cheats, which is a big problem for many gamers, mainly AAA and fps lovers.NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone 4 weeks ago
Games with kernal anti-cheat should be treated with precisely the level of respect they show to us.
Spacehooks@reddthat.com 4 weeks ago
Ahh what’s what the previous person meant by competitive games.
FrostyCaveman@lemm.ee 4 weeks ago
It’s fantastic. Unless you’re playing a specific few multiplayer competitive games, it’s just like windows (sometimes even better in terms of performance - and sometimes better in terms of retro compatibility)
Spacehooks@reddthat.com 4 weeks ago
Nice! So long as i can still play with by siblings on some private games ill be ok.
prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 weeks ago
It is outstanding
AnarchistArtificer@slrpnk.net 4 weeks ago
Proton is so good that even when a game has a native Linux version, I often opt for the Proton version (so my games are all in one place). I was even able to install mods for games like Baldur’s Gate 3 (albeit with a bit of tinkering)
Retro_unlimited@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
When I installed the Linux version of “7 days to die” the graphics were washed out and bad. I switched to the Linux version with proton and it fixed the game.
utopiah@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Been playing for years on a nearly daily basis, from Baldur’s Gate 3 to Elden Ring to now Clair Obscur… to VR with e.g. Half-life : Alyx. That’s on my desktop and often also on my Steam Deck. So… yes, Proton is very VERY good for games!
bilb@lemmy.ml 4 weeks ago
Clair Obscur is running more smoothly for me on Linux than Windows. That doesn’t always happen, but it’s always satisfying when it does.
Ravenfreak@discuss.online 4 weeks ago
I’m glad people are helping others move to Linux once the EOL support for Windows 10 comes. There’s no reason for good hardware to end up rotting in a landfill. Not only can people use these machines still, it helps the environment since there’s less electronics wasting away in landfills since most people don’t properly recycle electronics.
gamermanh@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 weeks ago
My old gaming PC isn’t “good enough” for Win11 (tpm2 ofc), yet compared to the Win11 PC my wife’s work forced on her you’d think it was some sort of future supercomputer
If enough people actually ditch their hardware then we server admins are going to eat good this year, mmmmmmm
Redfang790@lemmy.zip [bot] 4 weeks ago
I’ll talk there hardware and turn them into servers if they want to throw there old computer away
neon_nova@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 weeks ago
Part of me still does not think Microsoft is going to go through with it. There are too many Windows 10 PCs that will just become infected.
Part of me thinks the government will intervene as I think it could genuinely be a security issue to have so many unsecured devices in the wild.
But, another part of me has no hope for the future.
Sooo… I guess we will just have to wait and see.
Spacehooks@reddthat.com 4 weeks ago
Sadly people said the same for xp and 7 soo…
shalafi@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
No lie. We play this game every 7 years or so. I was training on a Win10 machine at work yesterday. Think they’re updating that? Nah. Hell, it probably could take an 11 upgrade and they haven’t bothered. Why? It’s a locked down machine. And if IT don’t care, home users certainly won’t.
neon_nova@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 weeks ago
At least there was an upgrade path from them.
nothingcorporate@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Been on Linux full time for al about 2 months now… Proton and Bazzite have made the transition soooo much easier as gaming is what was always holding me back.
KumaSudosa@feddit.dk 4 weeks ago
Yea, gaming has come a long long way thanks to Valve. I was also holding back due to this (and not wanting to spend too much of my spare time learning a new OS and commands etc) but I just installed Zorin (chosen for minimal effort) and hardly had to do anything. I struggled a bit to get Proton to work at first but now my entire Steam library works perfectly and I’m so much happier with it than I ever was using Windows. Gonna be getting my friends and some family on it as well!
kemnz@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 weeks ago
I switched in January because my PC doesn’t support TPM 2.0 (gen 1 ryzen) after having not tried Linux since like 2011 gaming honestly kind of blew my mind, basically as “plug and play “ as windows.
neon_nova@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 weeks ago
I’m so happy that I went intel instead of gen1 ryzen that generation.
I still use it for work and would be so pissed if I needed to buy a new computer just to use Windows 11.
I genuinly need windows or mac for my work. I use linux on my personal laptop.
9488fcea02a9@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
I’ve been full time linux since 2017, i think (it was a long time ago)
Honestly, linux gaming with steam/proton has been really good for a LONG time. Like even “AAA” games like RDR2 have been working well whenever i buy them (not on release day, but maybe a year after)
In 2025, there’s really no reason not to go linux unless you play some very specific game that absolutely doesnt work on linux
FireWire400@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
I upgraded my Win 10 laptop to IoT Enterprise LTSC recently which is stupidly easy and grants you support till 2032.
Aside from some weird app incompatibilities it’s been working fine.
purplemonkeymad@programming.dev 4 weeks ago
I don’t think that many people want to buy Windows Enterprise, which they typically want you to also buy a support contract for.
Unless you pirated it, but I don’t think telling people to “just run this pirate code” is that good of an idea.
FireWire400@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Of course it’s up to you whether you want to use something that, according to Microsoft, you’re not supposed to use, but the only “pirate-code” I had to run was to activate it. The upgrade itself was pretty straightforward.
IMO it’s a better option than to buy a new computer to run Windows 11. I’m not including Linux because I specifically wanted to keep Windows on the Laptop to run apps that don’t work on Linux.
JadenSmith@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
I did an upgrade, instead of a clean install, to the same version. I just had to reinstall my graphics driver and everything works as before, I just went through another step to remove some programs and it’s been smooth sailing since.
Massgrave.dev provided what I needed. Was a breeze.
FireWire400@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
I did an in-place upgrade as well. I was surprised how easy it was; it’s just one Registry key and from there you can just do a normal upgrade.
Way easier than installing Windows 11, which wouldn’t even officially run on my ThinkPad T540p…
besselj@lemmy.ca 4 weeks ago
Check out PostmarketOS for older machines/phones too. I got it working on an old Microsoft surface RT that would have been e-waste otherwise
DJDarren@sopuli.xyz 4 weeks ago
I have a 2011 MacBook Pro running MX Linux. It’s no match for my M2 Air, but it’s still surprisingly useful.
Was up the council recycling centre the other day, looking at some of the dumped computers, wondering just how many of them could still be very useful.
terminhell@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 weeks ago
Once it goes eol, get it off the network. But lots of other good ideas already in here.
ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca 4 weeks ago
It really needs to be made louder that if you are stuck on 10 that you should not let it have internet access
monotremata@lemmy.ca 4 weeks ago
Unless you switch to IoT LTSC, which will continue to get security updates until 2032. It’s kinda bullshit that they’re still making the security patches and then just refusing to give them to consumer 10 users.
gandalf_der_12te@discuss.tchncs.de 4 weeks ago
quick question - what the hell do you do with a modern computer without internet access anyways?
terminhell@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 weeks ago
Local services only
electric_nan@lemmy.ml 4 weeks ago
And even if you don’t want to… Find someone who does! Donate that laptop to someone. Find a LUG or Mutual Aid group or a friendly local anarchist :)
RowRowRowYourBot@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
Wait so someone might wasnt the top of the line Macbook Pro from 12 years ago that someone gave me?
codexarcanum@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 weeks ago
A pretty large amount of people don’t own a PC at all, though I’m finding it surprisingly hard to get a good number on it. Just anecdotally, most people I know who aren’t IT professionals have either no PC or 1 old laptop, often from college or on loan from work. Most folks use their phones for everything. People I know with kids have school issued Chromebooks, which barely counts.
As to exact numbers, I’m curious what others can find. I turned up between 74% and 94% of adults in the US owned a PC, which seems insanely high to me. But on the same page claiming that 89% of all households have a PC, I also saw
In the United States, the number of households with computers is projected to surge from 4.7 million to 120.45 million between 2024 and 2029, indicating a substantial increase in computer ownership.
Which… That’s bonkers. They expect the number of PCs (in homes) to go up by a factor of 30 in just 5 years, presumably that guess was before tariffs as well. I’m wondering if these household and per capita numbers somehow include corporate spending because businesses and schools do purchase literal tons of computers.
wanderingmagus@lemm.ee 4 weeks ago
Unironically yes. There’s someone out there who is on the other side of the digital divide that would absolutely want any kind of access to what you currently take for granted.
LeFantome@programming.dev 4 weeks ago
Yes please. 2013 MacBook Pro? I use a 2013 MacBook Air every day. I am sure your MacBook Pro is much better.
LovableSidekick@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Windows 10 end of life is just nature’s way of setting you free.
Yerbouti@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
Quick question. I have a studio pc running win 10, with dozens of audio and video projects. It’s basically impossible to transfer to Linux, macOs or even win 11 since it involves a ton of audio plugins, etc. and my projects would become unsable.
What does end of supports involve for me? I actually disable updates and a while back since it was sometimes screwing things up. My most recent projects are done either on my M1 mac (work thing) or my most recent.Linux station on Nobara. Should I be worried about anything? Should I disconnect my old studio pc from the internet to avoid it being fucked by microsoft?
noxilus@discuss.tchncs.de 4 weeks ago
Get the w10 enterprise edition that gets patched for 4 more years.
crimsonpoodle@pawb.social 4 weeks ago
You should back up your windows 10 pc as an image and use it as a virtual machine on the Mac or some other Linux environment. Once support stops nothing really bad would happen, besides security stuff and maybe perhaps some unexpected hugs. So you could just disconnect it from the internet too but the VM option isn’t reliant on the hardware which could go bad.
Yerbouti@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
Intetesting, I didn’t thought of that. I’ll give it a try. If I can get an image to run in a VM to allow me to access archived project when needed, that would be the perfect solution. I’m just worried about all the plugins activation, etc. Hopefully it will work. Thanks!
agelord@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Unexpected hugs are the best kind of hugs.
Yerbouti@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
krakenx@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Once updates end in October, Windows 10 won’t be secure and probably shouldn’t be allowed to connect to the internet. It will still continue to function though. You can buy a year of extended support for Windows 10 for $30, but it’s unclear whether there will be support after that.
Probably best to start switching to something else, or plan to run that PC offline.
Smoogs@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
That seems silly to be running offline. There are some businesses that still run windows 98. So why would windows 10 suddenly be way off worse ?
MrScottyTay@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
It shouldn’t get fucked by MS they’ll just stop adding things to it to prevent outsiders from fucking it up. You’ll be alright for now, but keep an eye out for any potential vulnerabilities that get found after end of support. Then that’s when you can start thinking of disconnecting it from the internet. That is if you can’t risk yourself being patient 0. Then in that case you should disconnect as soon as end of life comes around.
TheRealKuni@midwest.social 4 weeks ago
or even win 11 since it involves a ton of audio plugins, etc. and my projects would become unsable.
Have you looked into this? Because Windows 11 is so much Windows 10 with a UI change that they didn’t even update the NT number.
Like, Windows 2000 was NT 5, and XP, which was very similar to 2000, was NT 5.1.
But Windows 11 isn’t NT 10.1, it’s still NT 10.
At their core they’re very similar. I’d be shocked if something designed for 10 wouldn’t work with 11.
Godric@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Whatever will I do without my deshittified emotional support laptop :'(
fne8w2ah@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Hopefully many more Windows refugees would embrace the Kingdom of Torvalds.
buddascrayon@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Show me how to use the Xbox app in Linux and I will switch today.
GoodOleAmerika@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Among lot of distro, Linux mint has to be the closest to windows and more refined
Smoogs@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Can’t you just install bit defender? It’s just that one chip on the board that was added about 10 yrs ago to prevent hackers using that desktop tunnel on the elderly. So dumb that they had to promote large scale computer waste over a piece of hardware smaller than a thumb drive.
Enkrod@feddit.org 4 weeks ago
Never felt so much more in control than when ditching Windows and installing first Linux Mint and later Kubuntu. Gonna try Arch in the future to feel like a god and completely in control over what happens on my machine.
FreedomAdvocate@lemmy.net.au 4 weeks ago
Just an FYI - you don’t have to throw away computers that can’t upgrade past Windows 10. They will keep working.
neon_nova@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 weeks ago
Long story short, my Dad just got a new computer. (His old was was actually really old, but he could have used Linux.)
Anyway, I told him not to throw out the old computer and that I would take it. He was baffled that I would want it or could even do anything with it.
I am going to set it up as a backup server in the house for my parents and myself as it will be a nice way to have an offsite backup for free.
shalafi@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
So many use cases! I’m giving an old NUC to a kid at work who’s learning Linux. Jesus, the kid bought a copy of Linux from “the best/most-famous hacker in the world!”. We had a come-to-Jesus talk about that horseshit.
Taleya@aussie.zone 4 weeks ago
I recently virtualised an XP machine that had been running since me immemorial, and will continue to (virtually) do so.
bollybing@lemmynsfw.com 4 weeks ago
But you don’t want to do anything that requires security on them like shopping, email, or anything that requires you to log into to an account that you dont want stolen.
DosDude@retrolemmy.com 4 weeks ago
You can, if you install Linux
FreedomAdvocate@lemmy.net.au 4 weeks ago
Not true. As long as you keep updating your browsers etc you’re going to be generally ok.