How to get back to Windows 10

When Microsoft released Windows 11 , you rushed to upgrade your PC but, as the days went by, you regretted your choice and now you’re trying to figure out how to get back to Windows 10 , aren’t you? In this case I have good news for you, because in the course of this tutorial I will show you just how to do this operation, which is not only feasible, but which if done in the right amount of time, does not even involve data loss. Here are all the details.

Index

• How to get back to Windows 10 from Windows 11
  • How to get back to Windows 10 without losing data
  • How to get back to Windows 10 with clean install

How to get back to Windows 10 from Windows 11

In euphoria, you immediately upgraded your PC to Windows 11 and now you want to know how to get back to Windows 10 from Windows 11 ? No problem, I’m here ready to help you.

How to get back to Windows 10 without losing data

If you have recently upgraded to Windows 10, you should know that there is a very simple method to be able to use Windows 10 again, which does not involve deleting any data.

If you are interested in understanding how to return to Windows 10 without losing data , you should know that Microsoft has introduced a convenient option in Windows 11 to be able to quickly return to Windows 10, which however is only available for 10 days from the date on which you update your PC to new operating system.

There is, however, a little trick that can move the limit from 10 to 60 days , so that you have plenty of time to try the new operating system and evaluate whether it is actually the case to go back to 10 or less.

To implement it, press the Win + X combination on the keyboard (the Win key is the one with the flag) and select the Windows Terminal (Admin) item from the menu that is proposed to you. This will open a PowerShell window (the command line) with administrator rights, in which you will have to type the command dism /Online /Set-OSUninstallWindow /Value:60and press the Enter key . In this way the time limit for returning to Windows 10 will go from 10 to 60 days.

If, on the other hand, you have tried Windows 11, but you just can’t get used to it and want to go back to Windows 10, all you have to do is use the built-in function above. To reach it, click on the Windows Start button (the flag in the bottom bar) and select the Settings application from the menu that opens.

Once you have opened the Windows Settings , click on the System item , then go to Recovery and Back : an option that will allow you to return to Windows 10. Just click on the Back button next to this item to start the process of restore to Windows 10, which will allow you to go back without losing any data .

Once the procedure has started, the system will ask you why you decided to return to Windows 10: put the check mark on the item you prefer and click on the Next button at the bottom right. Next, decide if you want to check for updates (by clicking the Check for updates button or No thanks ) and press the Next button again for the various alerts regarding the applications you installed when you switched to Windows 11 (which will need to be installed again) and remember the password you used on Windows 10: to complete the procedure, click the Back to Windows 10 button .

Now the PC will perform a restart and you will have to wait for the reset process to complete.

How to get back to Windows 10 with clean install

You have been using the new Windows 11 operating system for a few months, but you are not feeling well and for this reason you have decided to go back to Windows 10, with which you were much better in everyday use.

Unfortunately in your case you can no longer use the method to return to Windows 10 without losing the data I told you about in the previous chapter . Alas, if you want to know how to get back to Windows 10 after 10 days the only solution you have left is to proceed with a clean installation of the old operating system, which will make you lose all the data on your PC .

How do you say? By now you are ready for anything and for this you want to understand how to return to Windows 10 with a clean installation ? Well, in this case the procedure first of all involves the creation of a support device, usually a USB key , in which to copy all the files necessary to install Windows 10 on your PC. If you don’t know how to do it, I suggest you take a look at my tutorial on the subject in which I show you all the steps to take to complete the procedure.

After creating the USB key with Windows 10 inside, my advice is to make a backup of all the data on your PC, since the Windows 10 installation procedure will completely format the disk on which it is now installed Windows 11.

My advice, in this case, is to proceed manually, as usually the files you will need to backup are documents, images and videos. You will simply have to move the files you want to back up to a USB stick (not the same one on which you have installed Windows 10), to an external hard drive or, if you do not have any of these products available, to a cloud storage service. .

After creating the bootable Windows 10 USB key and backing up your data, all you have to do is proceed with the installation of Windows 10 . In this case you will have to start the USB key via UEFI / BIOS , wait for the Windows 10 installer to load and follow the instructions on the screen, selecting the option for custom installation and proceeding with formatting the partition where it is installed currently Windows 11.

If you have any problems installing Windows 10 or you simply don’t remember exactly the procedure to follow, I suggest you take a look at my tutorial on how to install Windows 10 , in which you will find everything explained in detail.