The quickest way to find out your Windows version is using a keyboard shortcut. On newer systems, the steps are as follows:
- Simultaneously press the [Windows] key and the [Pause] key.
- A system information window will appear.
Under the heading “View basic information about your computer”, you will see the name of your operating system, e.g. Windows 10 Enterprise.
The window also contains an overview of the technical characteristics of your system, for example: processor architecture, installed memory (RAM) and system type (i.e. 32-bit or 64-bit). The next section shows the name of your computer and network domain settings. You can also see whether or not your Windows version is activated.
The system information window therefore contains all the information you need in order to install new programs.
However, it does not give you detailed information about your Windows version, such as the version number or the OS build number. You need this information if you want to check whether your operating system has all of the latest updates for example.