Windows 11 Requirements: Can your PC run it?
Microsoft recently conducted a launch event of Windows 11, showcasing many new features and enhancements coming up with it. The best part, it is going to be a free upgrade, which means anyone running official Windows 10 will get a completely free upgrade to Windows 11. But there are chances that your PC might not be able to run Windows 11. The reason is Windows 11 system requirements are a lot more than what you needed for Windows 10. In this blog, we will first look at the Windows 11 requirements and then discuss what to do if your PC does not fulfill minimum system requirements.
Compatibility Checker
If you go to Microsoft website, it provides a list of minimum system requirements for Windows 11. Earlier, Microsoft was providing a compatibility checker named PC Health Check, but it caused some confusion, so Microsoft removed it for some time.
To check whether your PC meets the minimum system requirements for Windows 11, you can look at the requirements mentioned on the Microsoft website and crosscheck them with your current system capability. But this isn’t a convenient way to do a compatibility check.
There is a free and open-source tool called WhyNotWin11, that can do all the compatibility checks for you automatically. Simply go to the WhyNotWin11 website, click “Download latest stable release”, and open the .exe file downloaded on your PC. It will load the tool and automatically provide you the compatibility status of your PC. If you see a green tick, then it means your system fulfills that requirement. This way, you can quickly check whether your PC is compatible with Windows 11. If it shows some requirements as red, then probably those ones you can upgrade. For example, many PCs are shipped with “TPM”, but it is by default disabled. So, you can easily enable it from your BIOS.
Why so many Minimum System Requirements for Windows 11?
Microsoft recently published a blog post where they highlighted the reasons why Windows 11 requires such high demanding minimum system requirements. The main reasons highlighted in the blog are security, reliability, and compatibility. Microsoft claims that with Windows 11 they have managed to reduce malware by 60%, while the reliability has achieved a 99.8% crash-free experience. In addition, Microsoft further mentions that the minimum system requirements are to ensure that Windows 11 is compatible with the apps you use.
What if your PC doesn’t fulfill all minimum system requirements?
Let’s assume you run the compatibility test and it turns out your PC is not fully qualified for Windows 11. So, does it mean you have to buy a new PC to run Windows 11 or some extra hardware? Well, Windows 11 is not released by now and Microsoft has also announced that it will keep supporting Windows 10 till October 14, 2025. So, it’s almost 4 years from now. This implies that you can keep using Windows 10 till then. Even after October 14, 2025, you can keep using Windows 10, but it will not be officially supported by Microsoft. So, to avoid any security threats, that will be the time you invest in a new PC that comes with pre-installed Windows 11.
Wrapping Up
Microsoft has undoubtedly made a hard decision to set up high minimum system requirements for Windows 11. In order to ensure security, reliability, and compatibility along with competing with the competitors, Microsoft had to eventually increase the minimum system requirements bar. But Microsoft is also looking to lower minimum system requirements a bit, as they said that they may consider 7th generation Intel chips. In a nutshell, Windows 11 is coming with a high bar of minimum system requirements, but it will be worth it due to top-notch security, reliability, and compatibility.
