Windows 10 ESU 'Enroll now' not showing? 7 fixes, 2027 dates

Why the Enroll now link is missing

Windows decides whether to show the link. It checks your device first, and nothing appears until every check passes. Microsoft’s ESU page says it plainly: “If your device meets the prerequisites, you’ll see a link to enroll in ESU.” There’s no error message when one check fails. The link just isn’t there, which is why so many Microsoft Q&A threads describe the same blank Windows Update page.

In 2025 there was a second cause. Microsoft rolled the enrollment wizard out in stages from July, with broad availability expected by mid-August, so eligible PCs saw it on different days. That rollout ended a year ago. If the link is still missing in late October 2026, a prerequisite is almost always the reason. Waiting won’t fix it.

These are the prerequisites from Microsoft’s consumer ESU page and the KB5126256 support note, as of October 2026:

Check	What it needs	Where to look
Version	Windows 10 version 22H2	Press Win+R, type `winver`
Base update	A security update from October 14, 2025 or later (KB5066791 is build 19045.6456)	Same `winver` box: OS Build
Licensing package	KB5126256, installed after that update	Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > View update history
Account	A Microsoft account with administrator rights, not a child account	Settings > Accounts > Your info
Management	Not domain-joined, not Microsoft Entra joined, not in MDM, not in kiosk mode	Settings > Accounts > Access work or school
Edition	Home, Pro, Pro Education or Pro for Workstations	Settings > System > About
Status	Not already enrolled	The Windows Update page itself

Fixes, in the order to try them

Work down this list and check Windows Update after each step. Most PCs get the link back by step 2.

Source: Windows 10 Consumer Extended Security Updates (ESU), Microsoft; KB5126256, Microsoft Support, checked October 2026. Note: a diagram of the steps, not data.

1. Get to the right build. Press Win+R, type winver and press Enter. You want “Version 22H2” and an OS build of 19045.6456 or higher. Build 19045.6456 is the October 14, 2025 update, KB5066791, the final regular update before support ended. If you’re on 21H2 or older, or the build is lower, open Windows Update, select Check for updates, and keep installing and restarting until nothing new appears. A PC that sat in a drawer for a year may need two or three rounds.

2. Make sure KB5126256 actually installed. Microsoft published this “ESU Licensing Preparation Package” on September 8, 2026. Its support note says it’s required for enrollment on any PC that isn’t enrolled yet. It only installs after the October 2025 update, and the PC restarts on its own once it’s in. Check View update history for “Successfully installed”. It doesn’t enroll you or deliver security fixes by itself. It just makes the enroll step possible.

One Microsoft Q&A thread from September 2026 shows KB5126256 stuck at “Pending install”. If yours is stuck, restart and check again first. If it still won’t move, download the package for your system type from the Microsoft Update Catalog and run it. One HP Support Community thread from October 2026 shows the enrollment option appearing shortly after KB5126256 finished installing.

3. Check the account you’re signed in with. Go to Settings > Accounts > Your info. It should say “Administrator”. A standard user can’t enroll, and neither can a child account. Microsoft’s fix for a child’s PC is for the parent to sign in to their own admin account on that PC and enroll it from there. If you sign in with a local account, the link can still show. You’ll be asked to sign in with a Microsoft account during enrollment, because the ESU license is tied to that account. Pureinfotech’s troubleshooting guide notes that a local account is one reason some PCs don’t show the link. If you’ve tried everything else, switching to a Microsoft account is worth a go (Settings > Accounts > Your info > “Sign in with a Microsoft account instead”).

4. Look for leftover work or school management. This one catches people out. Microsoft won’t offer consumer ESU on PCs joined to an Active Directory domain or Microsoft Entra, enrolled in an MDM such as Intune, or running in kiosk mode. A home laptop that once had a work email set up with “Allow my organization to manage my device” can still be enrolled in MDM. Open Settings > Accounts > Access work or school and see what’s listed. A plain “Entra registered” work account is fine, according to Microsoft. A connection that says it’s managed by an organization isn’t. Removing it can cut off access to that work’s apps, so ask the employer first if you still need them.

5. Confirm the edition. Settings > System > About shows it. Consumer ESU covers Home, Pro, Pro Education and Pro for Workstations. Enterprise and Education PCs go through their organization’s paid ESU. LTSC editions follow their own support dates.

6. Check you aren’t already enrolled. Once you enroll, the link goes away, and Windows Update shows your enrollment status instead. One user in a Microsoft Q&A thread from 2025 found the enrollment message vanished after enrolling and closing Windows Update. Look for a line saying the PC is enrolled in Extended Security Updates. If you paid, the $30 order also shows in your Microsoft account’s Order history.

7. Turn diagnostic data back on, if you disabled it. Some privacy tools that switch off Windows telemetry also stop the “Connected User Experiences and Telemetry” service (DiagTrack). Pureinfotech’s guide restarts that service as part of its fix for the missing link. Microsoft doesn’t document this as a requirement. Still, if you ran a debloat or privacy script, undoing it is a sensible test. Open services.msc, set Connected User Experiences and Telemetry to Automatic, start it, restart the PC and check again.

What not to do

Don’t disable TPM. Pureinfotech reports that some Windows 11-capable PCs didn’t show the link, and suggests temporarily disabling TPM 2.0 in the firmware to make the PC look ineligible. If your PC can run Windows 11, the free upgrade is the better fix. It gets you security updates past 2027, and you won’t be poking at firmware settings.

Treat registry tricks as a last resort. Guides circulating since 2025 add a feature-override registry value and run ClipESUConsumer.exe -evaluateEligibility to force the link to appear. Microsoft doesn’t publish or support this. Back up the PC first if you try it, and only after steps 1 to 7.

Ignore anyone selling ESU keys for home PCs. One October 2026 answer on Microsoft Q&A told a user with a Retail license that the button is reserved for business PCs and that they’d need a key from a reseller. That’s wrong. Microsoft’s consumer page lists no license-channel rule, and Retail Home and Pro PCs are exactly who the consumer program is for. Paid per-device keys ($61 a device for the first year) belong to the commercial program.

If the wizard opens but fails, install the latest update first. KB5071959, an out-of-band update on November 11, 2025, fixed a bug where “the enrollment wizard may fail during enrollment,” according to Microsoft. Pureinfotech also saw a “You’ll need the Internet for this” message on working connections in September 2025. It went away after a few hours and a retry.

How to enroll once the link appears

When Enroll now shows up, select it and pick one of three routes. Microsoft lists them like this, as of October 2026:

Route	Cost (US)	Catch
Back up PC settings with Windows Backup	$0	Your settings sync to your Microsoft account
Redeem Microsoft Rewards points	1,000 points	Rewards orders are final, with no refunds
One-time purchase	$30 plus tax	Refunds follow Microsoft’s digital purchase policy
European Economic Area: stay signed in with a Microsoft account	$0	ESU stops if you don’t sign in with that account for up to 60 days

Whichever route you choose, one license covers up to 10 PCs on the same Microsoft account. On a second PC, open Windows Update and select Enroll now. If you’re signed in with the same account, choose Add device. Every user on an enrolled PC is covered, so other family accounts don’t need to enroll separately.

You don’t lose anything by enrolling late. Microsoft says an enrolled PC receives the critical and important updates released after October 14, 2025. Until you enroll, though, the PC is missing every fix released since then.

If you already enrolled: the 2027 extension

You don’t need to do anything. On June 25, 2026, Microsoft added an editor’s note to its original ESU blog post. Consumer ESU is “being provided for an additional year, with coverage now available through Oct. 12, 2027.” Microsoft’s ESU page adds: “If you’re already enrolled, your coverage will automatically continue through that date—no action needed.” So nobody pays a second $30 or redeems another 1,000 points.

The old end date was October 13, 2026, the date Microsoft gave in 2025 (as quoted in a Microsoft Q&A answer from August 2025). It passed this month with enrolled PCs still covered.

Source: Windows 10 Consumer ESU, Microsoft; Stay secure with Windows 11 (editor’s note June 25, 2026), Windows Experience Blog; Windows 10 extended updates till 2026 (old end date), Microsoft Q&A, checked October 2026. Note: “Office, Defender” is Microsoft 365 app security updates (to October 10, 2028) and Defender definitions (through October 2028).

Two things can still interrupt coverage. In the EEA, ESU stops if you don’t sign in to Windows with your enrollment Microsoft account for up to 60 days. You then re-enroll by signing in again. And if you join an enrolled PC to a work domain or MDM, Microsoft suspends consumer ESU until it’s back to personal use.

If you enrolled for free by backing up settings, Microsoft’s page doesn’t say what happens if you later turn that backup off. Leaving it on is the safe choice until Microsoft clarifies.

What happens after October 12, 2027

The PC keeps working, but Windows itself stops getting security fixes. Two things carry on for another year, according to Microsoft. Microsoft 365 apps on Windows 10 get security updates until October 10, 2028, and Defender Antivirus definitions continue through October 2028. That helps, but it doesn’t patch Windows itself. Use the next 12 months to plan the move: a free Windows 11 upgrade if PC Health Check says your hardware qualifies, or a replacement PC if it doesn’t.

Running an unpatched PC makes it easier to infect with malware, keyloggers included. Our guide on how to check a laptop for a keylogger covers the warning signs. The same question comes up on phones, which we covered for iPhones that can’t update to iOS 27. And as with Adobe Flash, software that stops getting patches gets riskier every month it stays online.

What to do next

Run winver and confirm “Version 22H2” with build 19045.6456 or higher. If not, install updates until it is.
Open View update history and confirm KB5126256 shows “Successfully installed”, then restart.
Check Settings > Accounts for an adult administrator account and an empty Access work or school list. Then go back to Windows Update.
Enroll with the route that suits you. Settings backup and Rewards points are free, or pay $30. Add your other PCs with Add device.
Put October 12, 2027 in your calendar and check whether your PC can take Windows 11 before then.

Windows 10 ESU ‘Enroll now’ not showing? Fixes and dates