Booting Win11 from External SSD on Noncompliant Hardware

raywood · Apr 15, 2023

I thought I needed a new computer to run Windows 11. So I assembled a new computer.

Now that I've got Win11 running on that desktop, I used AOMEI Backupper Standard to make a backup image of that installation. Then I used AOMEI to restore that image to an external SSD. Then I booted two other computers with it ...

... and it works! A few minutes ago, I was running Win11 from that SSD on a system with a Core i7-4790 CPU and ASUS H97-PLUS motherboard, all circa 2015. At the moment, the SSD has just booted Win11 on a Lenovo E430 ThinkPad from 2012.

In brief dabbling, both seem to function normally. Of course, the old ThinkPad is wheezing, but it works. Win11 was even able to install a security update onto the SSD. I didn't try activating, but presumably the existing valid Win10 licenses on those systems would suffice for that, if I restored the drive image to their internal SSDs.

This possibility was news to me. It didn't come up in my various Google searches to learn about whether I really needed a new computer.

It tentatively appears that, as long as I've got a Win10 license and a working Win11 installation of the right type (e.g., Pro) on at least one computer, I should be able to clone it over and activate it on another, regardless of whether the latter has any hope of ever meeting Microsoft's hardware requirements.

My questions: is that right? Is this something that everyone (now including me) already knows about? If I proceed along these lines on older hardware, am I going to run into unanticipated problems somewhere down the line?

NavyLCDR · Apr 15, 2023

There are multiple ways of install Windows 11 on incompatible hardware, you found one of them. Perhaps read the massive thread already existing regarding running Windows 11 on incompatible hardware:

Let's install Windows 11 on incompatible hardware

Inspired on this thread: Let's run Win10 on really really old hardware - Windows 10 Help Forums Most of our machines are unsupported on Windows 11, why not force it? --------- Run Windows 11 on unsupported machines --------- 1. How to Bypass Windows 11's TPM, CPU and RAM Requirements 2...

www.elevenforum.com

In regards to activation, as long as the computer you are booting Windows 11 on has had the same edition of Windows 10 on it (IE: Home or Pro), Windows 11 will automatically activate when online over the internet.

raywood · Apr 15, 2023

Thanks. I did see that massive, 73-page thread. I looked at parts of it but, for some strange reason, I lacked the ambition to read it all.

A search of that thread identifies dozens of references to drive images. Spot checks suggest, however, that the approaches described in those entries are more convoluted than the one described above (involving e.g., registry tweaks). Those approaches also seem inferior, in the sense of failing to capture an entire, already configured system. But maybe you can point me to a specific part of that thread where someone does address the approach described above.

Top results from a brief Google search of materials online did not lead directly to any webpages describing the method described above. Instead, that search likewise leads to more complex alternatives (e.g., Tom's Hardware; XDA).

If anything, such webpages seem to say that the method described above should not work. For instance, How-To Geek (HTG) says,

There are reportedly ways to install Windows 11 even if you don’t have TPM 1.2 or UEFI. But this is really unsupported—you’re even more at risk of encountering bugs and not getting future security updates if you hack your way around even these base-level requirements. We’ve also seen mixed reports of success from people following these tricks. Even if it works for you, an update in a few months may result in your computer blue-screening, breaking your operating system and forcing you to reinstall Windows 10.

We recommend you not follow any of these extreme tricks—you’re setting yourself up for trouble.

So now we're back to my question. I haven't "hacked my way around" anything, as HTG phrases it; I just restored an image. It appears to work. Is that restored system "setting me up for trouble," as in the severely revised systems HTG is talking about - or is this rather (as it presently appears) a simple way to transfer a fully configured installation to another machine?

NavyLCDR · Apr 15, 2023

It s a simple way to transfer a fully configured installation to another machine. Which is one of the secondary purposes of any imaging program such as Aomei and Macrium Reflect.

raywood · Apr 15, 2023

Exactly. So, asking my question a third time: why is there a 73-page thread on such a simple matter? Why are people going to such lengths to achieve something so simple? What, if any, roadblocks am I missing?

It's OK that you apparently don't know. I didn't mean to be asking you in particular. If you have helpful information, great. If not, no worries. Hopefully someone else will weigh in. I've had great results in TenForums; ElevenForum seemed like a good place to get started with Win11.

NavyLCDR · Apr 15, 2023

raywood said:
Exactly. So, asking my question a third time: why is there a 73-page thread on such a simple matter? Why are people going to such lengths to achieve something so simple? What, if any, roadblocks am I missing?

It's OK that you apparently don't know. I didn't mean to be asking you in particular. If you have helpful information, great. If not, no worries. Hopefully someone else will weigh in. I've had great results in TenForums; ElevenForum seemed like a good place to get started with Win11.

Because some people like to do clean installs. There are multiple methods of doing clean installs from letting Rufus modify the files on the USB flash drive creation, manually modifying the flash drive, using DISM to apply the image, editing/creating registry entries. Not everyone wants to start with are installed image from a different computer.

You think your method is the easiest. I think DISM /apply-image is the easiest, Joe thinks Rufus is easiest, Tom wants to upgrade Windows 10 to 11. On top of that, what has everyone experience with support, updates and upgrades on their unsupported hardware?

zbook · Apr 16, 2023

raywood said:
Then I used AOMEI to restore that image to an external SSD. Then I booted two other computers with it ...

... and it works! A few minutes ago, I was running Win11 from that SSD on a system with a Core i7-4790 CPU and ASUS H97-PLUS motherboard, all circa 2015. At the moment, the SSD has just booted Win11 on a Lenovo E430 ThinkPad from 2012.

Win11 was even able to install a security update onto the SSD. I didn't try activating, but presumably the existing valid Win10 licenses on those systems would suffice for that, if I restored the drive image to their internal SSDs.

It tentatively appears that, as long as I've got a Win10 license and a working Win11 installation of the right type (e.g., Pro) on at least one computer, I should be able to clone it over and activate it on another, regardless of whether the latter has any hope of ever meeting Microsoft's hardware requirements.

My questions: is that right? Is this something that everyone (now including me) already knows about? If I proceed along these lines on older hardware, am I going to run into unanticipated problems somewhere down the line?

What was the partition architecture on the backup image?
What were the BIOS settings for each computer?
When do you plan to activate Windows?
Windows can be clean installed and used without activation however there are limited features.
Had you attempted to use Windows > or = to 30 days without activation?

What Happens if You Don’t Activate Windows 10 or Windows 11?

Do you want to know what happens if you don’t activate Windows 10/11? This is everything you need to know about using Windows 10/11 for free. Learn here.

api.softwarekeep.com

NavyLCDR · Apr 16, 2023

zbook said:
Had you attempted to use Windows > or = to 30 days without activation?

What does 30 days have to do with it?

zbook · Apr 16, 2023

NavyLCDR said:
What does 30 days have to do with it?

This was a paragraph in the link in the earlier post:

Code:

How Long Can You Use Windows 10/11 Without Activation?
 

Although it’s not going to be pretty, and it’s definitely not going to be perfect, you can actually use Windows 10/11 forever without activating it.

 

Microsoft allows users to download, install and use the operating system indefinitely without having to enter a valid product key or digital license.

 

Additionally, you can use an unactivated Windows 10 without any restrictions for one month after first installing it.

 

This means that your system will behave as if it’s activated for 30 days. After this period expires, the restrictions come into effect.

NavyLCDR · Apr 16, 2023

zbook said:

This was a paragraph in the link in the earlier post:

Code:

How Long Can You Use Windows 10/11 Without Activation?
 

Although it’s not going to be pretty, and it’s definitely not going to be perfect, you can actually use Windows 10/11 forever without activating it.

 

Microsoft allows users to download, install and use the operating system indefinitely without having to enter a valid product key or digital license.

 

Additionally, you can use an unactivated Windows 10 without any restrictions for one month after first installing it.

 

This means that your system will behave as if it’s activated for 30 days. After this period expires, the restrictions come into effect.

So the article had false information in it. Don't believe everything you read on the internet. There is no 30-day timer in Windows 10/11. The personalization restrictions due to running Windows 10/11 without activation are present from day one. Nothing changes on day 31.

It violates the End User License Agreement (EULA) to use Windows 10/11 from day one. There is no trial period allowed in the EULA.

zbook · Apr 16, 2023

NavyLCDR said:
So the article had false information in it. Don't believe everything you read on the internet. There is no 30-day timer in Windows 10/11. The personalization restrictions due to running Windows 10/11 without activation are present from day one. Nothing changes on day 31.

It violates the End User License Agreement (EULA) to use Windows 10/11 from day one. There is no trial period allowed in the EULA.

The amount of false information is common now in politics.
It is going to be more prevalent as artificial intelligence increases (see 60 minutes tv).

Thx for correcting the article.

Bree · Apr 16, 2023

raywood said:
Exactly. So, asking my question a third time: why is there a 73-page thread on such a simple matter? Why are people going to such lengths to achieve something so simple? What, if any, roadblocks am I missing?

Well, MS have changed a few things along the way and some of the original workarounds no longer work, so the thread ad grown a bit :wink:

In my experience if you can bypass the compatibility checks at install time then Windows 11 will run on virtually anything, no matter how inappropriate.