On October 14, 2025, Microsoft will cease delivering safety updates to your Home windows 10 PC until you are prepared to pay an exorbitant value to affix the Prolonged Safety Updates program.
When you attempt to improve to Home windows 11 on a PC that is quite a lot of years outdated, you will be informed — in no unsure phrases — that your outdated PC does not qualify as a result of its CPU is not on the official record of appropriate processors. Microsoft has made it abundantly clear that it’s going to not revise these necessities. Additionally, you will hit roadblocks in case your PC does not have a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) model 2.0.
Additionally: Can your outdated PC deal with the Home windows 11 improve? The right way to discover out – earlier than you strive
That is perhaps the official coverage, however — as with every thing Home windows-related — it pays to learn the wonderful print.
These pesky restrictions stop you from robotically upgrading to Home windows 11 utilizing Home windows Replace or the Home windows 11 Set up Assistant. But there are absolutely supported workarounds for many PCs which might be able to operating Home windows 10, as I doc in ZDNET’s Home windows 11 FAQ.
Over the previous yr or so, Microsoft has performed a cat-and-mouse sport with lovers, including occasional velocity bumps that make it harder to bypass these compatibility checks. There are workarounds for many trendy PCs, however some older units, particularly these constructed utilizing AMD processors, is perhaps out of luck. The directions on this publish take all these developments into consideration.
Additionally: You’ll be able to nonetheless improve outdated PCs to Home windows 11, even when Microsoft says no: Readers show it
In fact, every thing on this article requires that you simply be signed in as an administrator on the PC you wish to improve.
Which possibility do you have to select?
Please do not skip over this part.
This text describes two improve choices.
To make the most of the workaround described in possibility 1 under, your laptop should meet all the opposite necessities for Home windows 11.
- It should be configured to start out up utilizing UEFI, not a legacy BIOS configuration.
- Safe Boot should be supported, though it doesn’t have to be enabled. (However severely, of us, you must allow it.)
- A TPM should be enabled; model 1.2 is OK, however a system with none TPM or with the TPM disabled will fail.
Additionally: Microsoft will begin charging for Home windows 10 updates subsequent yr. This is how a lot
To test these particulars on a PC you are contemplating upgrading, run the System Info utility, Msinfo32.exe, and take a look at the System Abstract web page. Pay particular consideration to the BIOS Mode worth. If it says “Legacy,” you will have to reconfigure your system to UEFI mode (and convert your system disk from MBR to GPT partitioning) earlier than you’ll be able to set up Home windows 11 as a standard improve.
To see whether or not your PC has a TPM enabled, run the Trusted Platform Module Administration instrument, Tpm.msc. In case your laptop features a TPM and it is turned on, this app will show details about it. If there is not any TPM, or if the TPM is disabled in firmware settings, you will see a message that claims “Appropriate TPM can’t be discovered.”
When you’re unable (or unwilling) to vary from Legacy BIOS to UEFI, or you probably have an older PC that does not have a TPM possibility in any respect, you will want to make use of the second possibility, which takes benefit of an undocumented hack that permits you to bypass the compatibility checks and full the improve. Skip to the “Possibility 2” part of this publish for particulars on find out how to use the free Rufus utility to carry out this improve.
Be aware {that a} new set of restrictions, launched as a part of the Home windows 11, model 24H2 replace, require a CPU that helps particular directions — SSE4.2 and PopCnt. Most PCs with Intel CPUs which might be from 2009 or later will meet this normal. AMD CPUs from 2013 or later must also meet these necessities. For particulars, see “Microsoft blocked your Home windows 11 improve? This trusty instrument can (most likely) repair that.”
Additionally: Your Home windows 10 PC cannot be upgraded? You may have 5 choices earlier than assist ends in 2025
When you plan to carry out a clear set up of Home windows 11, you’ll be able to boot from set up media and run Home windows Setup. That possibility skips the CPU compatibility test utterly (however nonetheless requires a TPM and Safe Boot assist). After the set up completes, you will have to reinstall all of your apps, restore your knowledge information, and tweak settings to personalize your system preferences.
Wish to keep away from all that trouble? Select the choice that is acceptable to your {hardware}.
Possibility 1: Use this easy registry edit
Bypass CPU checks and settle for any TPM model with this registry edit. Please bear in mind that this feature requires that you simply run the Setup program from inside your present Home windows set up. You’ll be able to’t boot from a USB flash drive and set up Home windows 11 this manner.
This course of requires 4 steps.
You want to make one small change to the Home windows registry, as documented on this Microsoft assist doc. This variation tells the Home windows 11 Setup program to skip the test for appropriate CPUs and to permit set up on a PC with an older TPM (model 1.2). The standard warnings apply when working with the registry; I like to recommend you make an entire backup earlier than continuing.
Open Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) and navigate to the next key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMSetupMoSetup
If the MoSetup key, does not exist, you might want to create it. Proper-click the node for HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMSetup within the left-hand navigation pane, then select New > Key. Identify it MoSetup and press Enter.
Additionally: Wiping your Home windows laptop computer? This is the only technique to erase all private knowledge
Choose the MoSetup key after which right-click in any empty house within the pane on the appropriate. Select the choice to create a brand new DWORD worth. (Do not select the QWORD possibility!)
Change the default title for that key by typing the textual content AllowUpgradesWithUnsupportedTPMOrCPU after which press Enter. Then double-click the brand new worth and alter the “Worth knowledge” field to 1. The outcome ought to appear to be this:
Use this registry tweak to override the Home windows 11 CPU compatibility test. You should have a TPM (any model) and Safe Boot should be enabled.
Screenshot by Ed Bott/ZDNET
Click on OK to avoid wasting your change, after which restart your PC.
On the PC you wish to improve, go to the Home windows 11 Obtain web page (aka.ms/DownloadWindows11) and select the choice on the backside of the web page, “Obtain Home windows 11 Disk Picture (ISO) for x64 units.” Save the ISO file in your Downloads folder.
Be aware that this can be a huge file. Relying on the velocity of your web connection, the obtain might take some time.
After the obtain completes, open File Explorer and double-click the ISO file you downloaded within the earlier step. Doing so mounts the file as a digital DVD drive in its personal folder, with its personal drive letter.
In File Explorer, discover the Setup.exe file and double-click it to start the improve. You will see a stern warning about compatibility points, however you’ll be able to safely click on Settle for to maneuver previous it. (For particulars on what that warning message actually means, see “Is Microsoft actually going to chop off safety updates to your ‘unsupported’ Home windows 11 PC?”) After you click on OK on that dialog field, your improve ought to proceed with none critical points.
When you’re upgrading from the identical version (Residence or Professional), you will have three choices: You’ll be able to hold your apps, settings, and information (Full Improve); hold your knowledge information however begin contemporary with apps and settings (Preserve Information Solely); or begin utterly contemporary (Clear Set up).
Possibility 2: Use the free Rufus utility
On older PCs with out a TPM and on PCs that do not assist Safe Boot, you will want to make use of an undocumented hack to bypass the compatibility checker. You are able to do this manually by changing the Appraiserres.dll file (within the Sources subfolder on the Home windows 11 installer drive) with a zero-byte model after which making a collection of registry edits. However it’s less complicated to make use of the free, open-source Rufus utility to make a USB drive that features this file.
To get began, obtain Rufus model 4.6 or later. (Earlier variations will not work, due to modifications Microsoft made in October 2024 to its compatibility checking instruments. For particulars of how the newer variations work, see “Microsoft blocked your Home windows 11 improve? This just-released instrument can get the job executed.”) As well as, bear in mind that utilizing Rufus won’t let you bypass the brand new CPU restrictions that require SSE4.2 and PopCnt instruction assist.
Additionally: Why Home windows 11 requires a TPM – and find out how to get round that
To get began, you will have to obtain the Home windows 11 ISO and provide a USB flash drive of no less than 16 GB in dimension. You’ll reformat this drive as a part of the method, so again up any knowledge on that drive first.
- Obtain Rufus from the developer’s web site or from the Microsoft Retailer and run the app.
- Select the USB drive after which select the “Disk or ISO picture” possibility.
- Click on the Choose button, select the Home windows 11 ISO you downloaded earlier, after which click on Begin.
- Within the Home windows Person Expertise dialog, choose the primary checkbox to take away {hardware} necessities, as proven within the screenshot under.
- Click on OK to start creating the drive.
You’ll want to select the highest checkbox right here to bypass the compatibility test for the Home windows 11 improve.
Screenshot by Ed Bott/ZDNET
After Rufus efficiently creates your installer, open that USB drive in File Explorer, and double-click Setup. Don’t attempt to improve by booting from that USB drive and performing a clear set up; it will not work.)
As is the case with the opposite possibility, you will see a warning about compatibility points. It is a scare tactic. (For particulars on what that warning message actually means, see “Is Microsoft actually going to chop off safety updates to your ‘unsupported’ Home windows 11 PC?”) After you click on Settle for on that dialog field, your improve ought to proceed with none critical points.
Additionally: Microsoft blocked your Home windows 11 improve? This trusty instrument can (most likely) repair that
My ZDNET colleague Lance Whitney has extra particulars on the opposite choices obtainable with Rufus in “The right way to set up Home windows 11 the best way you need (and bypass Microsoft’s restrictions).”
When you’ve tried this improve, I wish to hear about your expertise. If it labored, please share the main points. When you run into snags, ship me an e mail so we are able to work out what is going on incorrect. You’ll want to embrace particulars — the make and mannequin of your PC and screenshots of any error messages. I’ve arrange a particular inbox only for this suggestions: Win11Upgrade [at] realworldwindows.com.
This text was initially revealed on April 9, 2022, however has been up to date a number of instances since then. It was final up to date on January 18, 2025.
