XPS L502X- how to upgrade to windows 10 from windows 7

There are no win 10 drivers available. You would not like the performance of windows 10 on the 9 yr old model computer even if you could install it. Put the upgrade cost towards a new windows 10 computer. Win 8 is the highest OS that has drivers for that model--

https://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/04/product-support/product/xps-l502x/drivers

Despite what @Mary G says above, the fact that Dell does not provide drivers for Windows 10 does not necessarily mean that Windows 10 wouldn't work.  It's possible, even likely, that for such an old system, Windows 10 already has native support for that system's hardware, and/or Windows Update might provide the necessary drivers.  And as for performance, in many ways Windows 10 can perform better than Windows 7 because it has better memory management and takes advantage of memory compression, among many other optimizations.

In terms of actually performing the upgrade, you can download Windows 10 from Microsoft here.  Note however that the upgrade might not be free.  Some people are reporting that Microsoft is still allowing free upgrades from Windows 7, but that doesn't seem to happen all the time, so expect that you might have to purchase a license for Windows 10 in order to activate it after the upgrade.  I would also recommend capturing an image backup of your system before you start down this route.just in case something goes wrong with the upgrade.  There are several tools that can accomplish this.  Macrium Reflect is a popular choice and it has a free version that would work for this purpose.

I have a 9 year-old Lenovo ThinkPad that I upgraded to Windows 10 in 2015. I have been able to install all the feature updates since then. I found that upgrading the hard drive to a SSD made a world of difference in its speed. It is definitely not as fast as a newer computer, but it is very usable. However, you don't want to be running anything like Norton or McAfee antivirus on it as they can be system killers.

I have updated several computers from Windows 7 to Windows 10 within the past year using the Media Creation Tool generated install media. I think you should still be able to do that. Follow JP's suggestions.

JohnD

Just a clarification. The ThinkPad was 5 years-old when I first upgraded it.

JohnD

Just started my upgrade and during the preparation phase, Win 10 pops up a window telling me that it does not support the Nvidia GT 540M video NOR the built-in Intel graphics option.
Canceling the upgrade.

There are no more upgrades.  You do the install via OEM system  Builder DVD

https://www.newegg.com/microsoft-windows-10-home-64-bit-installation-recovery-disc-only-no-license-key-included/p/N82E16832350237

Clean installs work fine with windows vista or 7 or 8 drivers.

Not supported does not mean not working.

http://downloads.dell.com/published/pages/xps-l502x.html

Typically audio, chipset, video drivers must be the oem  version.

Description	Download
Realtek HD Audio ALC269 Driver This package provides the Realtek HD Audio ALC269 Driver and is supported on XPS L502X/L511Z/L702X, Vostro 3450/3750 and Inspiron N4120/N4110/N7110/M411R/N3110/N4120 that are running the following Windows Operating System: Windows 8.More details

Bios should be updated BEFORE trying an update with ZERO antivirus software installed.

Description	Version	Download
Dell XPS L502X System BIOS This package provides the Dell System BIOS Update and is supported on Dell XPS L502X for Windows and DOS Operating Systems.More details	A12
DELL,SW,BIOS,NBK,XPS,L502X,A11,A11 L502X System BiosMore details	A11
DELL,SW,BIOS,NBK,XPS,L502X,A10,A10 BIOS, Dell XPS L502X System BIOS (BIOS), BIOS, English, Nimoy MLK,A10More details	A10
DELL,SW,BIOS,NBK,XPS,L502X,A09,A09 BIOS, Dell XPS L502X System BIOS (BIOS), BIOS, English, Nimoy MLK,X29More details	A09
Dell XPS L502X System BIOS This package provides the Dell System BIOS Update and is supported on Dell XPS Notebook L502X for Windows and DOS Operating Systems.More details	A06
Dell XPS L502X System BIOS, A05 Fixes/Enhancements: 1. Updated Intel microcode. 2. Fixed issue where battery information(capacity in Watts) does not report correctly in Dell Support Center. 3. Fixed issue where battery information is not available in Battery Health(Dell battery meter) on some battery pack. More details	A05
Dell XPS L502X System BIOS, A04 Dell XPS L502X System BIOSMore details	A04
Dell XPS L502X System BIOS, A01 Dell XPS L502X System BIOSMore details	A01

Description	Download
Intel HM67 Chipset Driver This package provides the Intel HM67 Chipset Driver and is supported on the Vostro Notebook 3750/3450, Inspiron N7110/N4120/N411Z/N4110 and XPS Notebook L702X/L502X/L511Z that are running the following Windows Operating System: Windows 8.More details
Intel Management Engine Interface Driver This package provides the Intel Management Engine Interface Driver and is supported on Inspiron Notebook N4120/N4110, Vostro Notebook 3450 and XPS Notebook L502X/L511Z/L702X that are running the following Windows Operating System: Windows 8.More details
JMicron JMB389 Card Reader Driver This package provides JMicron JMB389 Card Reader Driver and is supported on XPS Notebook L502X/L511z/L702X that are running the following Windows Operating System: Windows 8.More details
Renesas USB3.0 Host Controller Driver This package provides the Renesas USB 3.0 Host Controller Driver and is supported on XPS Notebook L702X/L502X that are running the following Windows Operating System: Windows 7.More details

I just successfully upgraded from windows 7 to windows 10 home version 1909 and verified that it activated (12/31/19). My Dell was fast for its time (I-7), and it still feels pretty zippy with win 10. My Dell had the latest Dell win 7 updates, including the Bios. I verified that my user account on the Dell had administrator privileges and downloaded the MS Media Creation Tool from Microsoft. I attempted to use it to download win 10 to the Dell for the upgrade. That was a disaster. It ran for over 10 hours and then disappeared without doing anything. While this was going on, I decided to make a bootable DVD on my desktop. I downloaded the Media Creation Tool and selected the option to install on a different computer. The win 10 iso fit on the DVD. 

I booted the Dell from the DVD (keep tapping F12 as soon as the Dell starts to select the CD/DVD option). After wasting time with that, my Dell informed me that I needed to boot normally, then open the DVD and run setup from the DVD. In retrospect, since it didn't need to be bootable, I could have installed the win 10 iso on a flash drive and run setup from there.

I had uninstalled several programs before beginning the upgrade (they were dated, and I feared incompatibility with the upgrade process). I read online that I should elect to keep programs and files for the install to ensure win 10 activation. You can always do a clean install after win 10 is activated. The installation took a while, but it worked. Initially, the Edge browser didn't work, and then it did. I don't know why, but I used Chrome, and when I tried Edge again, it worked. I looked at Device Manager and saw that many drivers were updated by the win 10 version 1909 upgrade. I didn't try the upgrade when it was first available because Dell said there were no win 10 drivers. Thank you, MS for continuing to allow the free upgrade and installing the needed drivers.

There are Dell specific items that were incompatible and removed: Dell Support Center, Dell stage, AccelerometerP11, Intel Wireless Display. I also needed to uninstall Acronis True Image 2011 for the upgrade to proceed.

My original plan for my Dell was to keep it until it was no longer supported (1/14/2020) by MS. Then, I saw online that MS was quietly still allowing the free upgrade. I replaced this Dell in April 2016, but I will now keep it as a backup.

" win 10 iso on a flash drive and run setup from there"

Actually thats a problem now due to the INSTALL.WIM file being too large in WIN10

version 1809 1903 1909.

Thats why I recommend 8 gig DUAL LAYER DVD burn of the ISO or OEM System builder disk because DUAL Layer DVDs are larger than the standard 4.7 gigs standard DVD.

The media must be at least 16 gigs and not larger than 32 gigs and USB 2.0.  The reason behind this is that UEFI partition must reside on FAT32.  Cannot be EXFAT or NTFS.

This is why I recommend using USB 2.0 optical drive and OEM system builder DVD for reinstall.

It also means that ISO must be burned to DUAL Layer DVD media because the base installer is no longer smaller than 4.7 gigs.

Why the limit?
The 4 GB barrier is a hard limit of FAT32: the file system uses a 32-bit field to store the file size in bytes, and 2^32 bytes = 4 GB (actually, the real limit is 4 GB minus one byte, or 4,294,967,295 bytes, because you can have files of zero length). This means that you cannot copy a file that is larger than 4 GB to any plain-FAT volume. This means that past 1803 the WIM file is TOO LARGE for a FAT32 flash drive.

 exFAT and NTFS are not compatible with UEFI  older systems are NOT able to boot from external boot media using NTFS or EXFAT.

For these models it cannot be exfat and larger than 32 gigs or usb 3.X drive.

Dual layer DVD disks have 8 gigs of useable space.

8 gig USB flash drives have LESS THAN 8 gigs space.

Thats why the flash drive MUST BE 16 gigs but no larger than 32 GIGS to be FAT32.

https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/dell-usb-slim-dvd-rw-drive-dw316/apd/429-aauq/storage-drives-media

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/lg-8x-external-usb-2-0-blu-ray-disc-double-layer-dvdrw-cd-rw-disc-rewriter-black/9243009.p?skuId=9243009

https://www.neweggbusiness.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9B-32-350-238

The WIM file for WINDOWS 1809 and 1903 and 1909 are TOO LARGE for FAT32.

https://www.dell.com/support/article/us/en/19/sln313422/windows-10-iso-contains-wim-file-that-is-big-for-fat32-file-system?lang=en

I've been running windows 10 on a 10 year old 501x for a few years now. There are a few driver issues you need to address (due to dell no longer supplying them) but other than that it's a breeze. This computer runs way faster and smoother than almost every other (much newer) unit I've run. 

Which drivers do you refer to? I'm asking as i'm doing the same and am running into a VIDEO DXGKRNL FATAL ERROR. Did you get this too? If so, how did you resolve it?

It's Easy To Do, Simply Go To Google, Search For Windows 10 Upgrade, Download Windows Upgrade Tool, Install it in your pc, It will upgrade your pc. Nothing will removed.

you may watch the tutorial from youtube for more information.