A legal action has been initiated against Microsoft by Lawrence Klein, a Windows 10 user, following the company’s announcement to discontinue official support for the operating system. Klein uses two laptops that do not meet the requirements for upgrading to Windows 11.
Approximately 240 million computers cannot upgrade to Windows 11. The complaint alleges Microsoft’s decision aligns with a strategy to drive adoption of AI-powered features such as Copilot, which is integrated into Windows 11.
Microsoft offers Extended Security Updates (ESU) for Windows 10 at $30 per year, extending protection until October 2026. Users may also apply Windows Backup to OneDrive or use Microsoft Rewards points to obtain updates for free.
Klein argues these options should have been provided at no cost and maintained until Windows 10 usage declines significantly. The suit claims OEMs and Microsoft did not disclose potential costs or consequences related to the end of support.
The lawsuit states that Microsoft is effectively requiring users to purchase new devices by ending Windows 10 support. It highlights that 43% of desktop users globally still run Windows 10, according to July 2025 data from Statcounter, despite Windows 11 surpassing it in market share.
An advocacy site, End of 10, advises users that older PCs can continue operating with free GNU/Linux-based operating systems. LibreOffice joins this initiative.
The plaintiff seeks an extension of Windows 10 support until usage drops below a reasonable threshold.
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It will be interesting to see what happens here. But I suspect it won’t change much.
For comparison, ask yourselves:
– Did Microsoft continue to support the then 10 years old Windows 95 in 2005? No, IIRC
– Did Microsoft continue to support the then 10 years old Windows Vista in 2017? No
Although Windows XP did get 13 years of support, it was probably the exception rather than the norm.
If Microsoft does end up doing an about-turn and supporting Windows 10 for, say, 3 more years, it will raise some eyebrows. Let us see how this plays out.