Home windows 10 reaches its Finish of Life in October 2025, and a California resident is especially disgruntled about this looming deadline.
He is not alone, in fact, however Lawrence Klein feels strongly sufficient that Microsoft is out of order in bringing the shutters down on Home windows 10 in simply a few months that he has fired up a lawsuit in opposition to the corporate.
As The Register studies, Klein has accused Microsoft of violating shopper authorized code and enterprise code (together with false promoting regulation) by winding up assist for Home windows 10 too early, in his opinion.
You could like
The crux of the argument is that too many individuals stay on Home windows 10 for the working system to have assist pulled (there are nuances right here, which I will come again to). And that some 240 million units do not meet the {hardware} necessities to improve to Home windows 11 – because of Microsoft setting these PC specs at an unreasonable degree – and the potential e-waste nightmare that would immediate.
In brief, the upgrades required for Home windows 11 – together with TPM 2.0 safety, in addition to ruling out some surprisingly current processors – aren’t justified.
Moreover, Klein argues that this improve timeline is all a part of Microsoft’s drive to push of us to make use of its Copilot AI with Home windows 11, in a broader push to get extra adoption for Copilot+ PCs – in different phrases, to purchase new machines and discard previous Home windows 10 {hardware} (and once more, we’re again to that e-waste problem).
You possibly can learn the lawsuit in its entirety (it is a PDF) right here, however that is the gist, and Klein argues that Microsoft ought to postpone killing off Home windows 10 and wait till far fewer individuals are utilizing the older working system.
Because the go well with states: “[The] Plaintiff seeks injunctive reduction requiring Microsoft to proceed offering assist for Home windows 10 with out extra charges or situations till the variety of units working the working system falls beneath an affordable threshold, thereby guaranteeing that buyers and companies are usually not unfairly pressured into pointless expenditures and cybersecurity dangers [of running a Windows 10 PC without security updates].”
Is Klein justified on this lawsuit? In some respects, I feel so, and whereas I do not think about for a minute that this authorized motion will go wherever by way of the end result of the go well with itself, I’ve a sense it might come into play, and be necessary, not directly.
What do I imply by that precisely? Effectively, let’s dive into the pondering behind Klein’s lawsuit, and the important thing explanation why it would pressure Microsoft to take a seat up and take discover.
(Picture credit score: fizkes / Shutterstock)
1. Home windows 11’s {hardware} necessities actually are unreasonable
Do we actually want TPM 2.0 compelled upon us? Sure, it ushers in a greater degree of safety, I do not dispute that – however a whole bunch of hundreds of thousands of PCs probably heading to landfill appears too heavy a value to pay. For me, as already talked about, the choice to rule out some comparatively new CPUs within the Home windows 11 specs is especially baffling.
The important thing level right here is that Microsoft has by no means pushed the PC {hardware} necessities as laborious because it has with Home windows 11, and that leaves it open to criticism, though this commentary is nothing new. What is new, although, is that the dearth of equity in setting this greater {hardware} bar has turn into crystal clear with the variety of people who find themselves nonetheless utilizing Home windows 10, which brings us onto my subsequent level.
(Picture credit score: Microsoft)
2. This near Finish of Life, there are clearly too many individuals nonetheless utilizing Home windows 10
The lawsuit cites outdated figures as to what number of of us are nonetheless on Home windows 10 – an estimate drawn from April 2025 means that 53% stay on the older OS. Whereas that is not the case, the extent stays excessive.
Primarily based on the most recent report from StatCounter (for July 2025), Home windows 10 utilization is 43%, which could be very excessive with the Finish of Life deadline imminent. Usually, an outgoing Home windows model would have approach fewer customers than this – Home windows 7 had a 25% market share when it ran out of assist (and it was a preferred OS).
There are at all times holdouts when a brand new model of Home windows comes out, but it surely’s wanting like that is going to be actually dangerous with Home windows 10’s finish of assist. That is Klein’s central argument, and I feel it is a key issue that Microsoft does not look like making an allowance for – or maybe does not wish to resist.
Perhaps the software program big is pondering there will be a last-minute flood of Home windows 11 migration, however given the outlined {hardware} necessities drawback, I doubt it.
(Picture credit score: NATNN / Shutterstock)
3. Proving the cynics proper?
One other a part of Klein’s case in opposition to Microsoft is the assertion that the corporate is utilizing Home windows 10’s finish of assist and Home windows 11 upgrades to steer folks to purchase new PCs that main in AI, particularly Copilot+ PCs. And certainly Microsoft hasn’t helped itself right here, overtly pushing these Home windows 11 units because the lawsuit factors out – and that features intrusive full-screen ads piped to Home windows 10 machines.
That looks like a crass tactic, and makes it appear to be a part of that is certainly about pushing these Copilot+ laptops. Sure, by all means, promote Copilot+ PCs and their AI skills (that are restricted to date, I ought to word) – however do not do it on this approach, instantly at Home windows 10 customers, and anticipate that to be seen in something aside from a adverse and cynical gentle.
(Picture credit score: Shutterstock)
4. Microsoft has already made a concession, true – but it surely’s not sufficient
It is value noting that not every little thing Klein places ahead on this go well with appears cheap. I do not assume you possibly can argue that 10 years of assist is stingy, which is what Microsoft has given Home windows 10. Nevertheless, Klein picks out ‘transitional’ assist in his lawsuit, that means the size of assist after a succeeding OS has been launched – 4 years on this case – which is not solely honest and appears lean. The issue right here just isn’t the size of time for assist as such, however the completely different circumstances round {hardware} necessities.
Additionally, calling Home windows 11 ‘wildly unpopular’ as Klein does at one level is equally unfair – even when adoption of the working system has been very sluggish, admittedly. There is a particular bias in direction of taking pictures the OS down throughout all fronts, and I feel that weakens Klein’s argument.
However my foremost bone of competition right here is that Klein ignores the concession Microsoft has made by way of the prolonged yr of assist for customers who wish to keep on Home windows 10. Because the lawsuit states, this further assist via to October 2026 will be had for the worth of $30, however not too long ago, Microsoft launched the power to get this extension without cost, properly, form of. (Financially, you will not pay a penny, however it’s good to sync some PC settings to OneDrive, and I do not assume that requirement is simply too onerous myself.)
That was an necessary transfer by Microsoft, which it is not given any credit score for right here, however that mentioned, I nonetheless do not assume the corporate goes far sufficient. As I’ve mentioned earlier than, an additional yr of assist is actually welcome, however Microsoft wants to have a look at an additional prolonged program for customers.
So, whereas the lawsuit does go off the rails (a minimum of for me) round these points, it does successfully put a highlight on how we’re taking a look at measuring assist, and a unique perspective aside from a tough timeframe. As an alternative of speaking about ‘x’ years of prolonged protection, it mentions a degree of Home windows 10 adoption that ought to be reached earlier than Microsoft pulls the plug on assist for the OS.
I feel that is a precious unique approach on this entire affair, and whereas 10% of complete Home windows customers – which is the low bar Klein units for Home windows 10 – perhaps feels too low, there’s an attention-grabbing dialog available right here. (The opposite route Klein’s go well with suggests, which others have raised, is Microsoft merely enjoyable the {hardware} necessities for Home windows 11 – however I feel at this stage of the sport, we will safely conclude that this would possibly not be occurring.)
(Picture credit score: MAYA LAB / Shutterstock)
5. Below strain
My remaining level by way of why this lawsuit might show a compelling kick within the seat of the pants for Microsoft is that whereas, as already noticed, I am unable to see Klein triumphing over the corporate, it is extra gasoline to the fireplace within the marketing campaign to stave off a probably main e-waste disaster.
Merely put, the PR round this – and it has been spinning up headlines aplenty over the previous couple of days – is one more reason for Microsoft to take a seat up, take discover, and perhaps do some rethinking over precisely how Home windows 10’s Finish of Life is being carried out.
We have already seen one concession – the aforementioned free path to get prolonged assist for Home windows 10 – in current instances, which absolutely should have been a response to the frustration that Klein and plenty of others really feel. So, maybe this lawsuit could possibly be the catalyst to prod Microsoft into going additional in its appeasement of the sad Home windows 10 customers on the market – fingers crossed, at any charge.
