The era of "freelance Windows installation" is over.

With stricter copyright regulations, the profession of "freelance Windows installation" has officially disappeared, and many people have abandoned this profession in recent years.

"Windows installation for hire" is a term used by IT professionals for over 20 years to refer to people who specialize in reinstalling Windows operating systems on computers for friends, relatives, or clients.

"Installing Windows for free" was quite popular for a while. Image created using AI (Gemini).

Their equipment consists of a set of installation discs with Windows, Office, drivers, software or games, most of which are cracked… and the machines they install them on are usually older models.

There was a time when this was a thriving profession, especially between 2002 and 2010, when online games emerged, and many people wanted to upgrade their personal computers, or internet cafes also wanted to upgrade to meet the needs of players.

Back then, Windows XP SP2 was a popular choice for freelance Windows installers to install on desktop computers.

This profession still exists today; however, those who practice it are no longer students or IT employees working part-time at companies, but rather come from small computer repair shops in cities or rural areas…

They offer software reinstallation services for personal computers, as well as hardware and software maintenance for small and medium-sized businesses.

However, now that people are aware of the serious issues surrounding software piracy, many have started to abandon this profession.

You may also like

VNG plans to spend 500 billion VND on marketing after Mr. Le Hong Minh steps down as chairman.

Images show police conducting emergency searches of companies suspected of using pirated Windows and Microsoft Office.The Phu Tho Provincial Police conducted an urgent search of five locations in Hanoi and Phu Tho, which were companies providing computers and software installation services, suspected of using pirated Windows operating systems and Microsoft Office software.

Warning about the widespread use of pirated Windows and Office.The Investigation Police Department of Phu Tho province has just issued a decision to initiate a criminal case for the crime of "Infringement of copyright and related rights" under Article 225 of the Penal Code, and simultaneously conducted urgent searches at several locations in Hanoi and Phu Tho related to the activity of providing computers with unlicensed software installed.

NAD, a former computer repair technician who specialized in installing and setting up software for internet cafes and introduced Bootrom technology to many internet cafes in the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City, said that due to the recent crackdown on copyright infringement, he no longer accepts software installation orders from customers.

Now he only does network setup and computer hardware assembly, and he encourages his customers to buy licensed software like Windows or Office to install.

"For customers who have difficulty affording licenses, especially internet cafes, I usually advise them to use open-source software because there are so many available now," Mr. D said.

Meanwhile, Mr. NTA, who owns a computer repair shop on Ton That Tung Street in Ho Chi Minh City, also shared that his shop no longer provides maintenance and installation services for unlicensed software for businesses as it did before.

Instead, he also encouraged his customers to make the effort to buy licensed software or use open-source software.

“Up until now, we’ve been providing maintenance services, from hardware to software, for small businesses and organizations, with at most only a few dozen computers. Most of them use unlicensed software, so we just restore a ghost image (a compressed operating system) or perform a fresh installation. However, recently my colleagues and I have advised them to switch to licensed software to avoid legal violations. Some places didn’t listen, so we stopped providing maintenance services,” said Mr. A.

Mr. NTA further shared that the "freelance Windows installers" in Ho Chi Minh City have almost abandoned the profession. Most now focus on repairing computer hardware, and for software repairs, they usually repair laptops because those often come with pre-installed licensed software.

The issue of handling software copyright infringement in Vietnam continues to heat up in recent days, as on June 11th, the Criminal Investigation Agency of Phu Tho Provincial Police issued a decision to initiate a criminal case for the crime of infringing copyright and related rights under Article 225 of the Penal Code.

You may also like

SHTP signs cooperation agreement with Hai Phong to develop technology human resources.

The KN-23B missile has a range of 900km, a 2.5-ton warhead, and addresses the challenge of modern air defense.The emergence of the KN-23B missile variant with its immense destructive power is changing the landscape of tactical missile warfare, challenging all modern air defense systems.

The technical dark side behind the cheap AI API market: From LLMjacking to the risk of data leaks.Analyzing the mechanisms of cloud computing resource hijacking (LLMjacking) and AI model swapping techniques on the black market. Warning of security risks and legal implications for users in Vietnam in 2026.

This is the first case nationwide to be prosecuted related to the unauthorized use of copyrighted computer software.

Accordingly, the individuals provided computers pre-installed with Windows operating system and Microsoft Office software, showing signs of using illegal activation tools such as cracks, pirated keys, and activators to disable the manufacturer's copyright protection mechanism for unauthorized use.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/het-thoi-cai-win-dao-2525292.html