POLL: Does your current PC meet Windows 11 minimum requirements?

unifex said:

So you actually think that new Windows (regardless, 10, 11, or 12) absolutely must support PCs sold in 2006?

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The point is that W11 will happily run in any pc that runs Windows 10. My main laptop is an AMD 10 about 5 years old (but no TPM chip) and runs W10 fine. It also runs W11 fine with my workaround to get around no TPM chip.

The point is the TPM change is NOT about performance of the device which makes very old devices struggle to run OS but an artificial constraint, in the name of "security".

If that security is really essential, then how can any device without a TPM module safely run Windows after 2025? They will not be able to get W10 support, but not be able to run W11.

This move is cynical planned obsolescence.

What kills off older devices is the lack of driver support, and eventually same would happen with W11. The TPM constraint accelerates obsolesence so much that machines perfectly capable of running W11 are put on scrap heap before their useful life is exceeded.

All new pcs should have TPM for sure but older pcs without it should still run W11 with risk at the users prerogerative.

After all, many have been effectively been taking risk with W10 but suddenly MS decide they will no longer allow us to take the risk. This is made worse as TPM 1 chips are not acceptable.

What happens when TPM 3 chips come out - will W12 no longer accept TPM 2 chips. Where do you stop?

This whole TPM issue is bases on a high handed attitude by MS and frankly unacceptable.

One of Windows key strengths was its ability to run on old devices without Apple's high handed approach to kill off old machines as Apple's business is to sell hardware.

MS is not in wholesale business of selling hardware (ignoring Surface Pro etc). However, I do not see all the majors complaining as they know it is in their commercial interests to have the TPM constraint.

However, I think this could backfire as many will just decide not to bother and will remain on W10 and PC sales could actually slump.

I was reading about Redmond, WA the other day. It seems Microsoft has started a gazillion dollar remodel of practically the whole town. I feel that this may also have some influence on Microsoft's decisions of late.

Microsoft Redmond campus - Wikipedia

Latest expansion​

In September 2015, The Seattle Times reported that Microsoft had hired architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill to begin a multibillion-dollar redesign of the Redmond campus, using an additional 1.4 million square feet (130,000 m2) permitted by an agreement with the City of Redmond. The City of Redmond had also approved a rezone in February that year to raise the height limit for buildings on the campus from six stories to ten.

In November 2017, Microsoft announced plans to demolish 12 buildings on the older East Campus and replace them with 18 new buildings, adding 2.5 million square feet (230,000 m2) to house 8,000 additional employees. The newer buildings would be arranged like an urban neighborhood, centered around a 2-acre (0.81 ha) open space with sports fields (including a cricket pitch), retail space, and hiking trails. The program is planned to raise the total number of buildings on the campus to 131. A digital recreation of the future campus was made available in Minecraft Education Edition in November 2018. Demolition of the original buildings, including several X-shaped offices built in the 1980s, began in January 2019 and was completed that September.

The expanded campus, scheduled to open in 2023, will have 17 office buildings and four floors of underground parking with capacity for 6,500 vehicles. A 1,100-foot (340 m) pedestrian bridge will connect the new campus buildings to the Redmond Technology light rail station and the West Campus site. A set of 875 wells to harness geothermal energy will provide heating and cooling to buildings on the campus through 220 miles (350 km) of water pipes that comprise a geoexchange system.

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Satellite view


Microsoft to Expand Campus, as Amazon Looks Elsewhere (Published 2017)

cereberus said:

The point is that W11 will happily run in any pc that runs Windows 10. My main laptop is an AMD 10 about 5 years old (but no TPM chip) and runs W10 fine. It also runs W11 fine with my workaround to get around no TPM chip.

The point is the TPM change is NOT about performance of the device which makes very old devices struggle to run OS but an artificial constraint, in the name of "security".

If that security is really essential, then how can any device without a TPM module safely run Windows after 2025? They will not be able to get W10 support, but not be able to run W11.

This move is cynical planned obsolescence.

What kills off older devices is the lack of driver support, and eventually same would happen with W11. The TPM constraint accelerates obsolesence so much that machines perfectly capable of running W11 are put on scrap heap before their useful life is exceeded.

All new pcs should have TPM for sure but older pcs without it should still run W11 with risk at the users prerogerative.

After all, many have been effectively been taking risk with W10 but suddenly MS decide they will no longer allow us to take the risk. This is made worse as TPM 1 chips are not acceptable.

What happens when TPM 3 chips come out - will W12 no longer accept TPM 2 chips. Where do you stop?

This whole TPM issue is bases on a high handed attitude by MS and frankly unacceptable.

One of Windows key strengths was its ability to run on old devices without Apple's high handed approach to kill off old machines as Apple's business is to sell hardware.

MS is not in wholesale business of selling hardware (ignoring Surface Pro etc). However, I do not see all the majors complaining as they know it is in their commercial interests to have the TPM constraint.

However, I think this could backfire as many will just decide not to bother and will remain on W10 and PC sales could actually slump.

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It's always been like that with Windows surely? Technology and security always need to be updated. For example running a Widows machine in 1995 was totally different to running a Windows machine in 2005.



.

MS is happy to let people run win10 on machines that dont meet the new "requirements". Not just for the moment, but up to 2025.

Draw your own conclusions.

My personal opinion is that Microsoft (or any other company, Apple, Google, Ford, Cheesecake Factory, you get the idea) does not really owe anything to us, consumers, beyond whatever that has been already promised. In Microsoft's case, they have promised to support the latest incarnation of Windows 10 till 2025. When Windows 10 came out, they published the list of hardware requirements. This means, they have to support all that hardware running Windows 10 till 2025. As far as I'm concerned, that's it.

It is their decision, whether or not to come up with Windows 11 (and 12, 13, etc.) or not. Once they decide they want to do that, it's their decision which hardware they want to support. I don't really know how do they come up with that decision (although I could speculate). It might be a right decision or a wrong one (as will be evidenced by their bottom line a few years from now). But it's their decision to make.

I have a laptop that runs Windows 7. Microsoft does not support it anymore, just as they said they wouldn't beyond a certain date. What does that mean to me? Nothing at all. The laptop works, does it's job, I'm happy with it. Do I have to install Windows 10 on it? Not at all. Is it capable of running Windows 11? I honestly don't care. Will I get any support if something happens to it? Nope, it's long past its warranty time and paid repairs are so expensive, I don't even know how those shops are surviving. In other words, once it dies on me, I'll just buy a new one. In fact, if weren't so damn hard in Germany to buy a laptop with an American layout, I probably would have done it already.

Suppose I buy a new laptop this coming Fall. Which OS will it be? Probably Windows (I hate the look and feel of a Mac and I can't be bothered with Linux). Which version of Windows? I don't care (as long as it's not a "Home" ), whichever will come preinstalled, I believe it will run well.

Am I playing with the dev preview of Windows 11 right now? Sure I am, it's fun. Bot so is reading books. Will Julian May ever write a new book? I don't think so. When it comes to work though, you work with the tools at hand and the way they look is not as important, as whether they get the job done.

Both my machines meet the minimum requirements.

I voted "no", but I don't have any trouble actually running Windows 11 on that machine. It's an old Thinkpad X240 :)

I think running Windows 11 kinda beats the third party "readiness checkers". I'm just running Windows 11, never tried WhyNotWin11

@cereberus I fully agree. Too often 'Windows upgrades' come across to me as nothing more than patches with new bells and whilstles to make it 'look new', when it isn't.

Well, my computer is indeed compatible.

johnlgalt said:

They've said Windows 10 21H2 is coming, independent of Win11.

Although, in fairness, that is aimed more at enterprise than end users.....

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Well it has got to be, right? That is the naming convention (YYHH) and Windows 10 is supported until 2025 so it follows...

The only other alternative is to stay at 21h1

JimJoe said:

@cereberus I fully agree. Too often 'Windows upgrades' come across to me as nothing more than patches with new bells and whilstles to make it 'look new', when it isn't.

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They have been too busy patching processor vulnerabilities and preparing for Windows 11 to add any features or innovation. LOL.

Maybe the vulnerabilities of older processors and the need to patch the OS (and loose performance) factors into the list of Windows 11 supported processors?

geneo said:

Well it has got to be, right? That is the naming convention (YYHH) and Windows 10 is supported until 2025 so it follows...

The only other alternative is to stay at 21h1

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Myself, I didn't even get that, this machine is on 20H2 . Anyway, "supporting" and "developing new features" are two very different things. Why would they keep working on bringing new features to Windows 10 when they've got Windows 11 already?

unifex said:

(snip) This means, they have to support all that hardware running Windows 10 till 2025.

(snip

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I'm not sure what this would mean. Microsoft doesn't produce device drivers. I doubt that they take responsibility if Windows updates break old device drivers.

In a perfect world, all parties would work together to maintain support for old hardware. I don't expect it in this world.

I'm assuming the old hardware is working now. That means there are drivers. Perhaps I'm lucky, but I've never experienced any driver problems because of security updates. These security updates is what Microsoft promising with their support.

Windows 11 thus far (that is the key part) has had few issues with using devices that are usable in Win 10.

Further down the road, that could change. We're still not even 3 weeks in and only 2 released and 1 leaked build in.

As for supporting older hardware - sorry, but if you have unsupported hardware right now according to Win11 recommended hardware (Ryzen / TR 1st gen CPUs, almost 4 years old and Intel 7th gen CPUs, 3 years old (technically close ot 4 also), and you cannot afford to buy newer hardware that is already 2 years old right now, is supported by Win11 now, 4 years from now (making it 6+ years old ) then I can see there being a gripe.

Because as long as Windows 10 is supported, there is absolutely 0 reason for a gripe. Not one person on this board is being forced to buy anything right now.

johnlgalt said:

Because as long as Windows 10 is supported, there is absolutely 0 reason for a gripe. Not one person on this board is being forced to buy anything right now.

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Exactly!

johnlgalt said:

Because as long as Windows 10 is supported, there is absolutely 0 reason for a gripe. Not one person on this board is being forced to buy anything right now.

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I can gripe if I wanna.

My CPU is not supported and nor do I have any form of TPM capabilities at all. Still chugging along in Windows 11...for now...

Out of curiosity I checked my 2 desktops and my new desktop is a i7 10th gen and the old desktop is a i5 8th gen. I did know that I had my laptop for a while and when I checked I found that it is a i7 6th gen. If I need to I can easily do a clean install of Windows 10 on the laptop. I don't have any paid programs installed that are going to be hard to reinstall. I do see a new laptop in my future but not until I have my new desktop paid off.