{"id":6788,"date":"2014-11-06T10:00:17","date_gmt":"2014-11-06T15:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.nccomputertech.com\/?p=6788"},"modified":"2014-11-06T10:00:17","modified_gmt":"2014-11-06T15:00:17","slug":"microsoft-will-no-longer-sell-retail-copies-of-windows-8-consumer-versions-of-windows-7-to-oems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2014\/11\/06\/microsoft-will-no-longer-sell-retail-copies-of-windows-8-consumer-versions-of-windows-7-to-oems\/","title":{"rendered":"Microsoft will no longer sell retail copies of Windows 8, consumer versions of Windows 7 to OEMs"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

As planned, Microsoft has ended retail sales of Windows 8 as well as stopped offering some versions of its Windows 7 operating system to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).<\/p>\n

This means that retailers will no longer be able to order more copies of Windows 8, which went on sale just over two years ago on 26 October 2012, although it’ll still come pre-installed on new PCs as the software giant will continue to offer it to hardware vendors such as HP, Dell, Lenovo, and more.<\/p>\n

As for Windows 7, the Home Basic, Home Premium, and Ultimate editions of the OS have been withdrawn from sale to vendors, which means that these editions will no longer come pre-installed on new PCs. However, that might not happen any time soon, considering that manufacturers as well as retailers still have large stocks of Windows 7 PCs.<\/p>\n

While the end of Windows 7 will definitely frustrate consumers, given the fact that it still maintains a 53 percent market share, enterprises can relax for now, as Microsoft will continue to supply Windows 7 Professional edition to OEMs. The Redmond-based company says that it will provide one year of notice prior to the end of sale date.<\/p>\n

Another point worth noting is that enterprise customers can still downgrade to earlier versions of the OS they have licensed. “To use prior versions of Windows software on PCs installed with newer versions, it is possible for consumers to obtain a license for downgrade rights. These downgrade rights will vary depending on if the software was acquired via Volume Licensing, OEM, or FPP”, Microsoft said.<\/p>\n

via Microsoft will no longer sell retail copies of Windows 8, consumer versions of Windows 7 to OEMs – TechSpot<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As planned, Microsoft has ended retail sales of Windows 8 as well as stopped offering some versions of its Windows […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[5,9,11],"tags":[764,1217,1218],"class_list":["post-6788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-microsoft","category-software","category-windows","tag-oem","tag-windows-7","tag-windows-8"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/papNkV-1Lu","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9902,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2025\/02\/11\/tpm-2-0-is-not-required-for-windows-11\/","url_meta":{"origin":6788,"position":0},"title":"TPM 2.0 Is Not Required for Windows 11","author":"NCCT","date":"February 11, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/yjjCbOOpREg On Security Now, Steve Gibson talks about Microsofrt dropping the TPM 2.0 requirement from Windows 11.","rel":"","context":"In "Microsoft"","block_context":{"text":"Microsoft","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/microsoft\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/yjjCbOOpREg\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9932,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2025\/05\/16\/microsoft-makes-70-billion-cuts-3-of-workforce\/","url_meta":{"origin":6788,"position":1},"title":"Microsoft Makes $70 Billion, Cuts 3% of Workforce","author":"NCCT","date":"May 16, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/L0nyc9O5qYY On Windows Weekly, Paul Thurrott and Richard Campbell try to comprehend the sweeping employee layoffs happening at Microsoft in the wake of $70 billion in revenue. The company wants to increase its \"agility by reducing layers.\" Is this the return of Dark Satya?","rel":"","context":"In "Microsoft"","block_context":{"text":"Microsoft","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/microsoft\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/L0nyc9O5qYY\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9405,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2018\/10\/07\/odorless-and-weightless-hackers-this-week-in-tech-687\/","url_meta":{"origin":6788,"position":2},"title":"Odorless and Weightless Hackers – This Week in Tech 687","author":"NCCT","date":"October 7, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/lb4rnqfNdas Chinese Spy Chips, Microsoft Highs and Lows, Pixel 3 Event Predictions, and More! Bloomberg reports that China used tiny chips to spy on Apple, Amazon, and the US government. Apple and Amazon deny it. How do we know who is right? All the news from the Microsoft Surface event,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Apple"","block_context":{"text":"Apple","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/apple\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/lb4rnqfNdas\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9655,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2021\/03\/09\/fuquay-varina-and-holly-springs-computer-repair\/","url_meta":{"origin":6788,"position":3},"title":"Fuquay Varina and Holly Springs Computer Repair","author":"NCCT","date":"March 9, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Welcome to our blog. NC Computer Tech services Fuquay Varina, Holly Springs, and surrounding NC areas. We offer prompt, professional, courteous service with over twenty years of experience dealing with residential and small business clients offering them solutions and fixing their computer and network issues at reasonable rates. Our services\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Technology"","block_context":{"text":"Technology","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9472,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2018\/12\/30\/our-years-best-this-week-in-tech-699\/","url_meta":{"origin":6788,"position":4},"title":"Our Year’s Best – This Week in Tech 699","author":"NCCT","date":"December 30, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/gz77WILat9o The Best of TWiT from 2018! Host: Leo Laporte","rel":"","context":"In "Apple"","block_context":{"text":"Apple","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/apple\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/gz77WILat9o\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9320,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2018\/04\/08\/this-week-in-tech-661-the-ant-man-canon\/","url_meta":{"origin":6788,"position":5},"title":"This Week in Tech 661: The Ant Man Canon","author":"NCCT","date":"April 8, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/BOkNYwQ_k1Y Facebook issues the latest in a long string of apologies.YouTube shooter and the lure of fame. Apple plans its own chips for 2020, Mac Pro for 2019. Is Amazon spending too much on video? Terry Myerson out at Microsoft - the end of the Windows era. FBI seizes Backpage.com.","rel":"","context":"In "Apple"","block_context":{"text":"Apple","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/apple\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/BOkNYwQ_k1Y\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6788"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6788\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}