Later this year, Microsoft will be releasing Windows 10 and if you are running an older version of Windows, you need to be aware that to make the jump to the new OS, a clean install will be required. While not a total surprise for Windows XP users, this holds true for Windows Vista users as well.
That"s the word from Gabe Aul, the man in charge of the Windows Insider program, as he stated on Twitter that the only upgrade paths supported are from Windows 7 and newer. This should not come as a huge surprise when you look at the desktop OS market share.
For starters, Windows XP is no longer a supported platform and Microsoft has left those bits far behind. Even though the OS still holds an 18% share of the desktop market, according to Net Applications for the month of December, Microsoft is not willing to make the transition easier since the OS is over a decade old which could require a significant amount of work to make this upgrade possible.
And then you have Vista, with only 2.9% of the market, the user base is quite small when compared to Windows 7 (56%) and Windows 8/8.1 (12.5%) which is likely why Microsoft is passing over the OS when it comes to a smooth upgrade path.
While Microsoft has not officially said when Windows 10 will be released, their next major milestone occurs later this month and Neowin will be there. At that event, we will get our first, official, look at the consumer features coming with the new OS.
Source: Gabe Aul