Restart Podcast Ep. 102: We’re saying no to Microsoft’s wasteful end of Windows 10

International Repair Day 2025 is almost here! And a lot of our focus this year has been on software obsolescence. It’s been top of mind due to the unprecedented impact that the end of Windows 10 will have on around half of all Windows users.

In early October, with the end of 10 on the horizon, we sat down with Nathan Proctor from US PIRG, Monique Szpak, seasoned laptop tinkerer and volunteer with Community TechAid and Repair Cafe Lambeth, and our own Tech Lead, Neil Mather to get the lowdown on what the resistance has been to this huge obsolescence event that is now upon us. 

The Windows 10 issue is out of this world

On October 14th — ironically on International E-Waste Day and only four days before International Repair Day — Microsoft will end free and automatic support for Windows 10. Nathan and Neil both share the shocking statistics of what the fallout will be. The stand out figure is a potential “1.6 billion pounds of e-waste” generated — if all the laptops impacted by the end of 10 were stacked on top of each other, it would reach beyond the moon. 

So, this issue is huge, but repairers around the world have been trying to do something about it. We mark the small gains that we’ve made and Microsoft’s concessions, but it isn’t enough to solve the problem. Nathan tells us about the open letter that US PIRG recently sent to the company, which was signed by over 500 organisations around the world. Campaigners in Europe are also urging the European Commission to introduce Ecodesign legislation that would require software updates of at least 15 years for laptops, and more. Campaigning can and has worked in the past and Nathan tells us about one of their previous campaigns which ultimately contributed to Google promising 10 years of minimum support for Chromebooks as a requirement. 

Our ‘End of 10’ toolkit

Apart from campaigning, we’re also taking action on the ground. We speak to Neil about the toolkit that Restart put together to help repair groups tackle the end of Windows 10 within their local communities. It’s a resource that was developed with 20 different groups around the world, drawing on the collective experience of our amazing community. 

Neil and Monique both volunteer at their local repair cafes and share with us how tackling Windows 10 has been going so far. They point out that the end of 10 actually isn’t widely common knowledge yet, meaning that sometimes people come in with a laptop that they think is broken but it’s actually Windows 10 or 11 that’s the problem. While fixing up these machines, they’re also having to educate and raise awareness. And they expect that once October 14th passes, and more and more software starts to become out of date, there will be an uptick in the number of people bringing in these machines. 

Is Linux the solution?

There are a few solutions to the end of 10 that the repair community particularly love, one of these is to replace the Windows OS with Linux. But while Linux is popular with “techies”, as Monique says, the average person isn’t too familiar. So this wonderful solution does require more than just installing it on a laptop. Neil and Monique both take us through their working style for helping people who come into their repair cafes move over to Linux. The key, they point out, is communication and time. Our toolkit supports fixers in talking through attendees’ options and needs. Then, it takes time, maybe a dummy laptop with Linux already installed, and probably a few sessions to get them comfortable with the OS — only then can be installed on their device. All in all, it’s a great option and we’re lucky that it’s possible to install a different OS on Windows 10 devices. But as Nathan points out, this solution isn’t workable for this vast issue — for the estimated 400 million laptops that will be left unsecure from the end of 10.

We’ll have to work with a combination of all of the solutions we discussed. This means support in local communities to help people better understand their devices. It means infrastructure in place to continue this support through the life of their device. And it means campaigning for legislation that combats premature obsolescence which is especially important for devices that aren’t laptops — for e-bikes, medical devices and more — which cannot have a new OS installed on them.

Links:

• Explore our global map of over 2000 events for Repair Day!
• US PIRG: Our open letter to Microsoft on the end of support for Windows 10
• R2R Europe: EU urged to act on Software Obsolescence as hundreds of organizations demand long-term Windows 10 support
• The Restart Project: The end of Windows 10: A toolkit for community repair groups
• Restarters Wiki: Windows 10 End of Life
• Nathan Proctor: Why the end of support for Windows 10 is uniquely troubling

[Images courtesy of Right to Repair Europe and Mark A Phillips]

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