But what if you are an IT expert and are not very comfortable with computers? Can you try Windows 10? Yes, you can. Though we, to repeat what Microsoft says, suggest that you stay away from it if you believe BIOS is a new plant-based fuel.
But in case you do know your way around BIOS and are looking for a safe method to try Windows 10, we can help. Follow the steps here:
-- Download and save Windows 10 Technical Preview. The 32-bit version is here and the 64-bit version is here . This is an ISO file and rather large so it may even take several hours before download finishes if you have a slow-speed internet connection.
-- Download Microsoft USB Tool from here and install it. It says Windows 7 in its name but dont worry about it.
-- Find an 8GB pen drive. Make sure it is empty. Plug it in your PC.
-- Once the pen drive is recognised, open USB Tool. Browse to the Window 10 ISO file you had downloaded. Follow instructions. This will convert your pen drive into a bootable drive.-- Go to Control Panel > System and Security > Administrative Tools > Format and create hard disk partitions.
-- Select the hard disk on which you want to install Windows 10. We suggest that if possible you dont install it on your primary hard disk. But in case you have only one hard disk, make sure it has at least 30 to 40GB free space.-- Right click on the hard drive where you want to install Windows 10 and select "Shrink Volume"
-- In the space for "enter the amount of space to shrink in MB" write 40,000 or 30,000. Here 1000 = 1GB.
-- Depending on how big is the hard drive, the computer will "shrink" the new partition. Computer moves a lot of bits from one place to other (nothing changes for you. It is all internal) so this step may take from several minutes to a few hours.
-- Once the partition is created, it will show up as unallocated space on the disk management window. Right click on it and select New Simple Volume. Follow onscreen steps. For the size of the volume, keep the default number which is already there. For the drive letter, you can keep the default letter or change it to whatever you want. Dont format the volume. Finish the process to create simple volume.
-- Once the simple volume has been created, it will show up as a disk on your My Computer window.
-- Put the bootable pen drive that was created earlier in your computer and reboot. The computer will boot from the pen drive. If it doesnt, you will have to go into BIOS by pressing a specific key - your motherboard manual will tell you which key that is - and change the boot priority to make the pen drive as the first choice.
-- Once your computer is booting from the pen drive, follow onscreen instructions to install Windows 10. When asked for where to install, select different drive/volume and choose the volume that was created earlier.
-- Depending on the speed of the pen drive, hard drive and your computer, Windows 10 will install in 10 minutes to 50 minutes on your computer. When the computer restarts, pull out the pen drive or else it will boot again from the pen drive.
-- If everything was done properly, you will see this screen when you boot your computer. Select the first option to try Windows 10.-- If you boot into Windows 10, you may have to install a few drivers, programs and change settings to properly use it. It is like any other fresh OS install.
How to remove Windows 10 Technical Preview
Once you have played around with Windows 10 and no longer need it, you can remove it by using following steps.
-- Click on the search menu and type msconfig in the search bar. Click on the Boot tab and then select your older Windows. Make it Default.
-- Select Windows 10 Technical Preview and delete it.-- Reboot. Your computer will load the earlier Windows.
-- To reclaim the hard disk space used by the Windows 10, select the volume on which it has been installed and format it. You can also delete and merge this volume with an existing volume from the disk management console.
Disclaimer: Modifying operating system and hard disk properties is fraught with danger of losing data and files. It is extremely unlikely but possible. We are not responsible if you lose your data or if your computer fails to boot while you are trying to install Windows 10 Technical Preview.
