In a fresh development, in other words, you can rest assured that Windows 10 is not one of the many apps and services that Microsoft is discontinuing this year. Microsoft just sent out an email to Windows 10 users informing them that the publisher is extending Windows 10 support by another year.
In a fresh development, this means that, contrary to the original plan, they won’t stop on October 12th, 2026. Of course, this is only true if you’ve actually signed up for the Windows 10 Extended Security Updates program. The email, which you might have missed, begins with the subject “Stay secure for another year.” It explains that the Windows 10 Extended Security Updates (ESU) will keep going until October 12th, 2027.
As part of the ongoing story, as such, many Outlook users might miss this official Microsoft email. According to Windows Current, this email is ending up in the “Other” folder in Outlook rather than the “Focused” folder.
According to the latest update, in the body of the email, Microsoft explains its (sudden) understanding that upgrading to a fresh PC or laptop takes time.
As part of the ongoing story, then came the first extension to October 2026, followed by this one to October 2027. In recent years, Microsoft basically pushed Windows 10 users to toss their old machines and buy fresh ones with Windows 11, forced via Windows 10’s end of support and demonstrating a huge disconnect with users.
According to the latest update, clicking the “Find out more” button in the email takes you to a support page with more information. Microsoft’s change of stance is presumably due to the still-high market share of Windows 10 in the US.
According to the latest update, anyone who hasn’t yet signed up won’t receive this email. According to Windows Current, this email was only sent to users who have already signed up for the Windows 10 ESU program.
According to the latest update, you don’t need to respond to this email in any way or take any action. It’s purely informative. This email is therefore not intended to provide information about the ESU program, but rather to notify current participants of the ESU program’s one-year extension.
Industry observers note that without those updates, your system is now vulnerable to all kinds of security threats, and will only grow more vulnerable as time passes. If you plan to keep using Windows 10, we highly recommend signing up for the ESU program ASAP. That said, the case is different if you’re still using Windows 10 without ESU updates.
In a fresh development, this article originally appeared on our sister publication PC-WELT and was translated and localized from German.
As part of the ongoing story, he has been writing on almost all IT topics for around 25 years, covering everything from news to reviews and buying guides. Hans-Christian Dirscherl began his IT life with Autoexec.bat and config.sys, Turbo-Pascal and C, Sinix and Wordperfect.