Microsoft just shot down hopes of Windows 11 on older PCs

A laptop running Windows 11, representing an article about how to use task scheduler on windows

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If you’ve heard murmurings about getting Windows 11 working on PCs that don't meet the required specifications for Microsoft’s latest operating system, then we have some bad news: a bug that signaled ineligible Windows 10 machines could get a Windows 11 upgrade has been squashed.

This all stemmed from discussions on Twitter and Reddit that noted supposedly unsupported devices were being pinged with Windows 11 upgrades. These were limited to members of the Windows 11 Insiders program, but even so, it potentially injected some hope that Windows 11 might not need particularly stringent hardware requirements.

Windows 11 free upgrade being offered to unsupported Windows 10 devices/VMs?Screenshots from a Windows 10 22H2 VM that does not meet the Windows 11 system requirements, big ones being TPM (none) and RAM (2 GB) pic.twitter.com/VNNswgMLiCFebruary 23, 2023

Unfortunately, that’s not turned out to be the case, and the upgrade prompt was just a bug.

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"Some hardware ineligible Windows 10 and Windows 11, version 21H2 devices were offered an inaccurate upgrade to Windows 11," explained Microsoft. "These ineligible devices did not meet the minimum requirements to run Windows 11. Devices that experienced this issue were not able to complete the upgrade installation process."

As such, if you’re not running a desktop or laptop with the required hardware for Windows 11, you’re out of luck when it comes to an upgrade. The requirements are linked to some of the security systems baked into Windows 11 that need certain hardware support in processors to run correctly.

There are tools that can strip Windows 11 down so that it can run on machines with low specs, but that’s not really the best way to get the full Windows 11 experience, which is arguably getting better with each update.

So if you’ve found yourself in a situation where you need a new machine to get Windows 11, we’d suggest you check out our list of the best laptops, or for people who want more power take a look at our best gaming PCs roundup. And mini PCs, like the Geekom Mini IT8, also make for compact but capable Windows 11 computers.

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Roland Moore-Colyer a Managing Editor at Tom’s Guide with a focus on news, features and opinion articles. He often writes about gaming, phones, laptops and other bits of hardware; he’s also got an interest in cars. When not at his desk Roland can be found wandering around London, often with a look of curiosity on his face.