Windows 7 Won’t Update to Windows 10: Try These 7 Fixes

We are sure you were delighted when you discovered that you’d be able to upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 for free. But that didn’t happen as expected for many. Some users reported that they can’t upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10.

This could be due to many reasons, and the failed upgrade process can throw several error messages or, in some cases, even fail without one.

Why can’t I update my Windows 7 to Windows 10?

Here are a few possible issues why you can’t upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10:

• Computer doesn’t meet the requirements – If your computer doesn’t meet the system requirements for Windows 10, there could be an issue upgrading it.
• Outdated drivers preventing the installation – Keeping all your system’s drivers updated ensures that no issues might occur as a result.
• Certain applications (usually a third-party antivirus) may conflict with the upgrade process – If that is the case, the only way to resolve this issue is to temporarily disable your antivirus protection and see if that changes the situation.
• Enough storage space is not available (16 GB for the 32-bit version and 20 GB for the 64-bit version) – To resolve this problem, you will need to free up some space on your system’s HDD.
• Critical services not running (when upgrading through Windows Update) – This situation can occur if the update process has been interrupted abruptly or if the internet connection has called suddenly.
• External hardware could be the reason Windows 10 updates won’t install – To start resolving this problem, simply disconnect any external hardware from your PC, restart the device, and check.
• Not running the Windows 10 installation media as an administrator – If you have administrator access, then using it is recommended. If you don’t, then you will need to get administrator rights to fix this problem.

What can I do if Windows 7 won’t update to Windows 10?

Before we execute the slightly complex solutions, let’s try a few quick ones and see if these can fix things:

• Disable your third-party antivirus. If that doesn’t work, uninstall it and verify if Windows 10 installation has still failed.
• Remove all non-critical hardware and peripherals connected to the PC. For instance, headphones, speakers, printers, external hard drives, or USB sticks, amongst others.
• Make sure you are running the installation media with administrative privileges. If you don’t see a UAC prompt when running it, right-click on the file and select Run as administrator.
• Free up space on the computer. You typically need around 20 GB of free space to install the 64-bit version of the OS. Use Disk Cleanup or configure Storage Sense to free up additional space.

If Windows 10 upgrade fails and reverts back to Windows 7 after these methods, the ones listed in the next section should get things running. carefully

1. Change the installation settings

In order to change the installation settings for Windows 10 version, you can select different options as described in the steps below. Follow every step carefully to run the installation efficiently.

1. 1. Head to Microsoft’s official website and download Windows 10 installation media.

   

2. 2. Launch the tool and wait for it to get things ready.

   

3. 3. Click Accept to agree to the terms and agreements.

   

4. 4. Choose the Create installation media option and then click Next.

   

5. 5. With the default options selected, click on Next.

   

6. 6. Select the ISO file option and click Next.

   

7. 7. Navigate to the ISO file’s desired location, and click on Save.

   

8. 8. After the ISO file is created, right-click on it, and select Mount.

   

9. 9. Now, launch the setup.exe file.

   

10. 10. Click on Change how Windows Setup downloads updates.

    

11. 11. Finally, select Not right now and click Next.

    

12. 12. Now, proceed with the Windows 10 installation. The Windows 10 installation has failed to upgrade from Windows 7 issue will be solved.

2. Run the Update Troubleshooter

1. Press Windows + I to open Settings, and select Update & Security here.
2. Select Troubleshoot from the navigation pane, and click on Additional troubleshooters.
3. Next, locate and click on Windows Update, and then on Run the troubleshooter button.
4. Follow the on-screen instructions and make the recommended changes to complete the process.

The Windows Update troubleshooter is one of the primary troubleshooting methods since it automatically identifies and eliminates the issue behind the problem. So, if you can’t upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 Home, it should help.

3. Perform a registry tweak

1. Press Windows + R to open Run, enter regedit in the text field, and click OK.
2. Click Yes in the UAC prompt.
3. Paste the following path in the address bar and hit Enter:Computer\HKEY_USERS.DEFAULT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders
4. Double-click on the AppData entry on the right.
5. Make sure the Value data is set to: %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming

This is a known fix to get things up and running when you can’t upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 Pro.

Additionally, you can use a specialized third-party system repair tool that will take care of your PC, including its registries.

4. Start the BITS service

1. Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog box, type services.msc, and hit Enter.
2. Right-click the Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) service, and then click Properties.
3. Select Automatic from the Startup type dropdown menu.
4. Now, click on Start under Service status if the service is not running, and then click OK to save the changes.
5. Restart your computer

BITS (Background Intelligent Transfer Service) allows your computer to receive updates. However, if something is wrong with this service, you probably won’t be able to receive any updates, including the Windows 10 upgrade.

This problem is mainly connected with 0x80246007 because it tells you something is wrong with the update services. Once done, you wouldn’t anymore see that Windows 10 installation has failed with no error code.

5. Use a different user account

Make sure that you’re trying to install Windows 10 using an administrator account. There are two types of user accounts in Windows, Standard and Administrator. And checking for updates using the latter can fix things.

If your computer hosts several user accounts, check for updates using one that has administrator privileges.

6. Remove incompatible software

1. Press Windows + R to open Run, type appwiz.cpl, and click OK.
2. Locate the old applications (those likely not compatible with Windows 10), select them individually, and click Uninstall.
3. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the uninstall process.

In addition to your antivirus, other software can cause issues while upgrading to Windows 10. To fix that, it’s advised that you uninstall all software that you don’t need. Of course, you can always reinstall them later after the upgrade to Windows 10, given they are compatible with the iteration.

7. Check your hardware

1. Press Windows + R, type mdsched.exe in the text field, and hit Enter.
2. Select Restart now and check for problems.
3. Wait for the tool to run and identify problems with the installed RAM.

If Windows Memory Diagnostic fails to identify issues, we suggest you run Memtest86+ for a couple of hours. It’s an advanced tool that can discover many more problems with the installed RAM and get things running for you.

In case the problem lies with the RAM itself, you will need to replace it or get the PC checked by a professional.

That’s it! If Windows 7 won’t update to Windows 10 earlier, you should have fixed things. Besides, in case you can’t upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 from USB, format it and then again create a bootable USB drive for Windows 10.

Also, find out the best ways to boost Windows 10 performance.

If you have any other queries or fixed things with another method, drop them in the comments section below.