Delete Win 10 Reinstall Win 8.1

[cibaris]

Has anyone attempted to remove win10 and reinstall Win 8.1?
I don't I have ever come across such regressive OS win since ME/vista. I use my S3pro in tablet mode only and Win 10 is an unmitigated disaster. Lets not even go near OneNote. Before it was brilliant now its complete garbage. The edge browser is well hopeless in light room again in tablet mode.
I have looked up how to do this. A local computer repair centre quoted £90 to do the downgrade.
As I type this there is an ad which sits right over the text I am writing here so some of this post is blinds as I cannot see it. This OS is just simply unfinished.

 

[GreyFox7]

You have a couple options:

For a month after you upgrade to Windows 10, you’ll be able to go back to your previous version of Windows from Settings > Update & security > Recovery > Go back to Windows 8.1 This will keep your personal files, but it'll remove apps and drivers installed after the upgrade, as well as any changes you made to settings.

To go back, you'll need to:

• Keep everything in the windows.old and $windows.~bt folders after the upgrade.
• Make sure not to add, remove, or move any user accounts after the upgrade.
• Know the password you used to sign in to Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 (if you used one).
• Have the USB drive you used to upgrade to Windows 10 (if you used one).

Note

• If you go back to Windows 8.1, some apps that came with Windows, like Mail and People, might not work anymore. To fix them, reinstall them from the Store.

If go back isn't available

• Check to see if you can restore your PC to factory settings. This will reinstall the version of Windows that came with your PC and remove personal files, apps and drivers you installed, and any changes you made to settings. Go to Settings > Update & security > Recovery > Reset this PC > Get started and look for Restore factory settings.
  
• If you created a recovery drive before upgrading to Windows 10, you might be able to use it to restore factory settings (even if the option isn’t showing up in Settings). For more info, see Use a recovery drive to reinstall Windows.
  
  
• If you have installation media and a product key for your previous version of Windows, you can use them to go back. Get the details in Use installation media to reinstall Windows.

 

[GreyFox7]

Yep you will have to Uninstall and Reinstall the Mail, Calendar, & People app.
AND Skype.

To reinstall an app, follow these steps:

1. On the Start screen, swipe down on or right-click the app you want to uninstall, tap or click Uninstall, and then tap or click Uninstall.
2. Tap or click Store to open the Windows Store.
3. Tap or click Account, and then tap or click My apps.

You might need to change the view to "Apps not installed on this PC"

AND you will probably find you need to sync licenses with the Store because it will likely think it is still installed until you do.

Sync app licenses
If a license for an app is out of sync with the license installed on your PC, the app might stop working.

To sync your app licenses, follow these steps:

1. On the Start screen, tap or click Store to open the Windows Store.
   
   
2. Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap Settings.
   (If you're using a mouse, point to the lower-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer up, and then click Settings.)
   
   
3. Tap or click App updates.
   
   
4. Tap or click Sync licenses.

Reinstall the app
If your apps are up to date and the licenses are synced, you can reinstall the app to try to fix the problem.

To reinstall an app, follow these steps:

1. On the Start screen, swipe down on or right-click the app you want to uninstall, tap or click Uninstall, and then tap or click Uninstall.
   
   
2. Tap or click Store to open the Windows Store.
   
   
3. Tap or click Account, and then tap or click My apps.
   
   
4. Swipe down on or right-click the app you want to install, and then tap or click Install.

 

[GreyFox7]

Overall REVERTING TO THE PREVIOUS OS (Go back to Windows 8.1) worked quickly although some apps settings and things are lost... like wireless settings, some Start Screen Tile info.. Most of those just click on and it installs them because they are just placeholders ...

 

[Relativity]

I recall seeing an option to start Windows 10 in Tablet mode, so you can change these settings in the UI. I'm sure some customization can get it how you want it. There is also an Automatic Screen Brightness option that can be configured.

The only thing I've seen that is broken so far is that some existing third-party "Windows 8 metro" apps don't respond well in a Window. I assume they have to be optimized for Windows 10

 

[cibaris]

Greyfox. Many thanks. It took minutes and everything came back as previously.

 

[BOBEL]

You are so right GrayFox7 I return to 8.1 to test and back to win 10
No problems