The time has come to upgrade your Windows 10 computer to Windows 11 or a Windows 10 LTSC version - the extended support for Windows 10 ends on October 14, 2025 (Windows lifecycle)

Why can I no longer use Windows 10 on the ETH network after the end of 2025?

Only operating systems with vendor-provided security support are allowed to connect to the ETH network.

• ETH Zurich Acceptable Use Policy for IT Resources (BOT) and Appendix

What should I do now?

If you are using a computer with preinstalled Windows 10 for your daily work, please upgrade it to Windows 11 by the end of this year at the latest.
The easiest way is to use the "Microsoft Media Creation Tool" available here.
This process is called an "in-place upgrade". All applications and configuration settings should be preserved.

If your computer is installed with the Windows 10 Education license from the ETH IT Shop, order Windows 11 Education from the IT Shop and use it for the upgrade.

If your computer is located in a lab and needs to be highly available for collecting measurement data, you may use a Windows 11 LTSC version instead of the Education version.
Please contact the IT administrator within your group. They should be able to assist you or contact us if further help is needed.

If you believe you cannot upgrade your computer or need help choosing the right upgrade path, please refer to our README for possible solutions or contact us.

⚠️ Please note: At some point, the network security group of Informatikdienste will begin scanning for remaining Windows 10 computers. These devices will then be disconnected from the network.

Last year, the license agreement between ETH and Microsoft has changed. There are some new terms and conditions which are important if you use a Microsoft product from the ETH IT Shop.

If your hardware came with Windows preinstalled from the hardware vendor, you have your own license for MS Office, or you are using non-Microsoft products like Libre Office, then you are not affected by this new license agreement. No further action is needed in this case.

However, if you use any of the following software products from the ETH IT Shop you have to take action:

• Windows 10 Education
• Windows 10 LTSC
• MS Office XXXX (for example MS Office 2016)
• Microsoft 365
• Microsoft Teams
• ETH Exchange Mail (mail.ethz.ch)

either on a managed Windows workstation from ISG or a self-managed workstation or notebook.

In this case you need to request access for a free Microsoft Cloud Subscription in the IT Shop. See here for instructions. If you already use MS 365 or MS Teams, maybe you already have the Cloud Subscription and no additional step is necessary. This can also be verified in the IT Shop. Remember that you need renew the subscription every year.

The new Microsoft license agreement allows only 1 MS Office XXXX (for example MS Office 2016 or Office 2019) installation per user. If you need installations on multiple computers for example in labs, use MS 365 instead.

Note that you will have to take action if you're affected. You cannot sit this one out. The Informatikdienste license team will be coerced by Microsoft to enforce license compliance, and they will contact you if you don't get your Cloud Subscription.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us in our Matrix chat #D-PHYS ISG Helpdesk or by email isg@phys.ethz.ch

Thank you for your attention, and kind regards.