Generally speaking selling a new Windows version to home users is not a really hard task since ordinary users seldom keep crucial data on their hard drives, besides using a new Windows version at home gives users the chance to play and experiment with it. Things are much more different when it comes to business users, though – the cost of deploying a new Windows version can be very high, not to mention there may be other problems as well as program incompatibilities that might arise and then there’s always the risk of losing important data. So in a few words businesses do not upgrade Windows that often.
This is what worries Microsoft the most and that’s why the US software giant has a special treat for companies that hesitate to upgrade – businesses can now use Windows 10 for free for up to 90 days in order to try the new operating system. Here’s what Microsoft has to say about the situation:
This is evaluation software that is designed for IT professionals interested in trying Windows 10 Enterprise on behalf of their organization. We do not recommend that you install this evaluation if you are not an IT professional or are not professionally managing corporate networks or devices.
Windows 10 Enterprise should work with the same devices and programs that work with Windows 8.1. In some cases, a device or program might not work or may require an update, or you might need to uninstall some programs and then reinstall them after installing the evaluation.
Businesses will have access to Windows 10 Enterprise or Windows 10 Enterprise Long Term Service Branch (LTSB) in either 32-bit or 64-bit packages that will arrive as ISO files. You will also not need a product key to install the operating system but Microsoft requires that you activate the software.
“If you fail to activate this evaluation after installation, or if your evaluation period expires, the desktop background will turn black, you will see a persistent desktop notification indicating that the system is not genuine, and the PC will shut down every hour,” Microsoft warns.
Source: Hothardware.com