Microsoft extends free Windows 10 security updates into 2026, with strings attached

Free* updates

It's worth noting that the Windows Backup and Microsoft Rewards methods for getting these updates require the use of a Microsoft Account, something Microsoft has been pushing with slowly increasing intensity in Windows 11. Windows 10 pushed Microsoft Account usage in various ways, too, but it was generally easier to create and sign in with a local account; for those people, the "free" update offer seems like another effort from Microsoft to bring them into the fold.

The Windows Backup option seems intended to ease the migration to a new Windows 11 PC when the time comes. The company may be offering a short reprieve for Windows 10 users, but the goal is still to shift them to Windows 11 eventually.

"To help make your move to a Windows 11 PC, as simple and secure as possible, we recommend using Windows Backup—built right into Windows 10," writes Microsoft Consumer Chief Marketing Officer Yusuf Medhi in Microsoft's blog post. "It’s an easy way to help you safely and securely transfer your data, personal files, and most settings and applications, so everything’s ready for you the moment you sign in."

People with existing Microsoft Accounts who don't want to use Windows Backup may already have the 1,000 Microsoft Rewards points you would need to enroll in the ESU program; my Microsoft account has 3,411 points attached to it for some reason despite an 18-month expiration window and even though I’ve never taken any intentional steps toward earning any. Users creating a new account for the first time can accumulate that many points fairly trivially over the course of a few days, including by downloading the Bing app and doing various Bing searches.

A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed to Ars that Microsoft Account sign-in will be required to enroll a PC into the ESU program. If you reset or reinstall a fresh copy of Windows on a new Windows 10 PC, you'll need to sign back in with a Microsoft account to re-enroll the PC in the ESU program.

But "once a Windows 10 PC is enrolled in ESU, it remains enrolled in the program," the Microsoft spokesperson told Ars. Once enrolled, if you sign out of your Microsoft Account, or if you stop using the Windows Backup app, your PC will continue to receive the security updates afterward.