Last I checked (about a year ago) you could still run the upgrade tool, and it'd go through the licensing registration process just fine.
I wouldn't do that if it weren't a personal machine, however, because the "official" upgrade process ended a long time ago. Even using it for a home office might put you into questionable legal territory, but it's still possible.
I do think your last statement is more accurate, though. It really feels that they're subversively pushing as many people away from Win7/8 as possible by unofficially allowing upgrades through existing channels. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't find it especially nefarious.
I don't even use Windows (I have family that does). I'm a Linux user.
You don't even need to use the upgrade tool. Windows 10 clean installs from the iso will let you manually input the Windows 7 key you already possess and the activation server will accept it. The 7 key is whitelisted only for 10. It will not work for 8.
I wouldn't do that if it weren't a personal machine, however, because the "official" upgrade process ended a long time ago. Even using it for a home office might put you into questionable legal territory, but it's still possible.
I do think your last statement is more accurate, though. It really feels that they're subversively pushing as many people away from Win7/8 as possible by unofficially allowing upgrades through existing channels. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't find it especially nefarious.
I don't even use Windows (I have family that does). I'm a Linux user.