Many use Windows 10 Home, but is it worth switching to Windows 10 Pro? Here are all advantages. Plus: How to switch favorably.
When is it worthwhile switching from Windows 10 Home to Windows 10 Pro? What advantages does the change offer? We summarize the most important information here.
Windows 10 Home to Pro: Easy change that does not have to be expensive
Microsoft made switching from Windows 10 Home to Windows 10 Pro very easy. Enter new Pro serial number, click "ok" and Windows 10 is already making the transition to the new version. How this works is explained in this article.
In addition, a change is not necessarily expensive. The dealer Lizengo offers, for example, Windows 10 Pro currently for only 39.99 euros . That's only 4 euros more than for the Windows 10 Home available there. Significantly more demands Microsoft here for the download version of Windows 10 Pro: 259 euros.
Advantage 1: Bitlocker
Windows 10 Pro includes Bitlocker encryption technology, which Microsoft introduced with Windows Vista and has continued to evolve ever since. For example, you can use it to encrypt a Windows boot drive or drives. Even USB sticks and external drives can be easily and easily encrypted using Bitlocker. An overview of all possibilities of Bitlocker can be found in this guide.
Bitlocker conveniently protects all information and data stored on the computer. You only need to log into Windows 10 and have full access. In the background, Windows 10 automatically decrypts the files as you access them. If the device is stolen or a stranger gets access to the computer, then he can not get to the data.
Advantage 2: Remote Desktop Connection
Only Windows 10 Professional has the tools on board, which you need to be able to remotely access the Windows 10 Pro machine. In both Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro, Microsoft is providing the Remote Desktop Connection application. However, you only get full access to a computer if Windows 10 Pro is installed on this computer. If, on the other hand, Windows 10 Home is installed on a computer, you will only receive "supported" access to the computer.
The complete remote desktop support offered by Windows 10 Pro is useful if, for example, you want full access to the work computer from home. Of course, this is also possible with other tools, for example TeamViewer. The cost for professional use but extra money.
Advantage 3: Hyper-V
Especially for Windows professionals Hyper-V is interesting. The virtualization technology is supplied by Microsoft, however, only in Windows 10 Pro. With Hyper-V, you can easily run guest operating systems as virtual machines in a single window. Not only Windows but also Linux are supported. This allows Hyper-V to test a program or operating system in a secure environment.
Hyper-V is not enabled by default in Windows 10 Pro. How to unlock the feature and then use it, we explain in this guide.
Advantage 4: More control over updates
Microsoft distributes new updates via Windows Update. Under Windows 10 Home you will receive the updates immediately or may delay the installation by several hours. In Windows 10 Pro, on the other hand, you can decide in much more detail whether and when you want to receive which Windows updates. It has often happened that a new Windows 10 update has proved to be flawed and had to be uninstalled laboriously after having had problems. With Windows 10 Pro, you can wait a few days after the update is available and install it only when it's clear the update is alright.
What options Windows Update offers in Windows 10 Pro can be found in the Windows Update settings under "Advanced Options". Important here is for example the switch "suspend update", through which no updates will be installed on the device for the next 35 days. You can also choose whether and when to install major Windows 10 feature updates and quality updates by selecting "Update installation time". In the associated drop-down menus, you can delay their installation by up to 365 days.
Advantage 5: WDAG and Windows Sandbox
The WDAG feature was also introduced to Windows 10 Pro with the Windows 10 April 2018 update after it was only available to the business version of Windows 10. WDAG stands for Windows Defender Application Guard. With WDAG you can use the Microsoft browser in a sandbox and surf in a completely secure environment. Only extensions may not be used and the favorites created in Edge are not taken over in the protected version.
By default, WDAG is not running on Windows 10 Pro. In the search box, type "Turn Windows features on or off", then go to the Windows Features application. Here you put a check mark on "Windows Defender Application Guard".
With Windows 10 19H1, which will be released in the spring of 2019, Microsoft is extending the function WDAG with Windows Sandbox. In Windows Sandbox, you can easily start a virtualized Windows 10 version and test a suspicious program in the environment, for example. Ultimately, Windows Sandbox is a slimmed-down version of Hyper-V.
The additional advantage: Windows Sandbox runs a Windows 10, for which you do not need an extra license.
Advantage 6: Functions for professionals
Windows 10 Pro offers several other advantages, which are especially interesting if you want to use your PC professionally. Only in Windows 10 Pro, for example, can you bring your own computer to work and then log in to the domain used by the company. It also inherits and applies the group policies set by the enterprise IT.
In one or the other companies are still Web applications in use, run only in Internet Explorer. This is taken into account in Windows 10 Pro: It includes Internet Explorer 11 for compatibility.
The article was created with the help of material from our US sister publication PC-World.
