The Windows 10 that was forced on me is so bloated it has no performance and updates will not work - can I get 8?

Thanks Neil

The wiping is what I am trying to avoid

I am making some progress testing Windows dual booted with Linux with a 'borrowed' key

Not  sure whether it will do what I need but it seems like Microsoft are not at all concerned with sorting out this problem that is shared by a very large number of users, many who were forced or bullied onto Windows 10, as 32GB,/2GB still seems to be the standard for netbbooks

Mike

It doesn't really matter at this point. But I never said it was free. What I said was that none of the money you paid went to Microsoft. They were paid before any manufacturer began installing the software in the computers they were making for sale.

Microsoft isn't sitting around waiting to get paid for its O/S until some customer happens to wander into a retail store and buy a computer,

They got their money long before that.

So far as they were concerned it was a done deal.

Any help or support they give you down the line is, therefore, not really something they owe you UNLESS you purchase a support plan from them:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/assure-software-support-plan/cfq7ttc0k637?icid=en_us_software-support_cp_1_assure

Alternatively the Microsoft Store can help you find a few free services as well as help you to schedule premium services at the Microsoft Store in your area and sometimes even on-line.

(Premium Services will, however, cost you).

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/store/locations/answer-desk?icid=MSCOMSearchTopResult

Mike,

I'm not sure if this will help you but Susan Bradley (Patch Lady) had the same difficulty as you trying to upgrade her 32gb HP Envy to 1709. This Link shows you how she did it.

Thanks DP

I have followed the link. I think that I may have already tried that process, but I will give it another shot

That link, and further onward links do highlight just how many recently purchased, current standard spec, state of the art netbooks are being trashed by Microsoft's attempts at trying to force unwanted updates.

I find it incredible that M$ have not taken the relatively simple step of adapting their install service to acknowledge the existence of attached or external storage (My Asus has over 2.5 Terabyes available).  Ah, but of course, that would mean that we would not have to by more PCs with more Windows licenses. For every PC that Windows 'outgrows', they can ring up another Windows sale.  cha-ding !

But I for one, will not be buying another Windows license from them

I think my course of action now will be to load Linux permanently onto the Asus. It flies with even Mint installed. LibreOffice spreadsheets load, save and calculate under Mint about 15 times faster than Excel under Windows 10 

But I will still need some form of windows for our legacy application (note 'application' not 'App'). I will probably load a 'borrowed' copy of Windows 7 as dual boot onto one of our power PCs

Thanks again for the head's up DP

Incidentally

Microsoft's published minimum requirements for Windows 10

Processor =  1 GHz or faster

RAM         =  1 GB for 32-bit OS

HD space =  16 GB for 32-bit OS

Display     =  90 x 600

Asus T200TA specifications

Processor  =  1.46GHz Quad Core    

RAM          =  2 GB LPDDR3

Storage      =  32GB eMMC and 500GB HDD

Display      =  1366 x 768

.........................and for your problem grasping the sale of software licensing, lets try a picture

We won’t differentiate between dealer (shop) and manufacturer as it doesn’t matter a fig about any mark-ups on the Windows OEM price. It is all about how much of my hard earned cash ends up in Microsoft’s a/c

End result ?

License has not cost the dealer/manufacturer one brass cent

the license has cost me $50. Microsoft has that $50

Can you now see how the manufacturer/dealer has $450 of my money and Microsoft have $50 ????

There is nothing wrong with this. This is how software companies make money. They do not make a penny from PC manufacturers or shops. They make it from end users (me, you, businesses, governments etc etc)