Installation and Upgrade Repair Install Windows 11 with an In-place Upgrade


  • Staff
Windows_11_banner.png

This tutorial will show you how to do a repair install of Windows 11 by performing an in-place upgrade without losing anything.

If you need to repair or create a new recovery partition or having problems with the Windows 11 operating system on your PC, and the usual solutions will not fix it, you can do a repair install of Windows 11 by performing an in-place upgrade without losing anything.

You will keep all accounts, apps, and personal data.

You must be signed in as an administrator to perform a repair install of Windows 11.

You will only be able to perform a repair install of Windows 11 from within Windows 11. You will not be able to perform a repair install at boot or in Safe Mode.

You will need at least 20 GB of free space on the Windows drive to perform an in-place upgrade.


When you perform a repair install (in-place upgrade), the previous version of Windows in the Windows.old folder (up to 10 days after upgrade) will automatically get replaced by the current Windows. It is recommended to create a system image first if you would like to be able to go back to current previous Windows before it gets replaced.




Contents

  • Option One: Repair Install Windows 11 via Windows Update
  • Option Two: Repair Install Windows 11 using ISO or USB Installation Media




Option One

Repair Install Windows 11 via Windows Update


If you do not have an Insider build below installed, you will need to use Option Two instead.


This option is only available starting with Windows 11 build 25905 (Canary), build 23601 (Dev), and build 22635.2915 (Beta).

This will download and install a repair version of the OS. This operation reinstalls the OS that you have and will not remove any files, settings, or apps.


1 Open Settings (Win+I).

2 Click/tap on System on the left side, and click/tap on Recovery on the right side. (see screenshot below)


Windows_Update_repair_install-1.png

3 Click/tap on the Reinstall now button for "Fix problems using Windows Update". (see screenshot below)

Windows_Update_repair_install-2.png

4 Click/tap on OK to confirm. (see screenshot below)

Windows_Update_repair_install-3.png

5 Windows Update will now open and automatically start downloading and installing the repair version of your Windows 11. (see screenshot below)

Windows_Update_repair_install-4.png

6 When Windows Update has finished, click/tap on Restart now when prompted to perform the repair install. (see screenshot below)

Windows_Update_repair_install-5.png

7 When the repair install of Windows 11 has finished, you can dismiss the lock screen and sign in to Windows 11. (see screenshots below)

Lock_screen.jpg
Sign-in_screen.jpg

8 You will now be on your desktop in Windows 11. (see screenshot below)

Repair_install_Windows11-15.png




Option Two

Repair Install Windows 11 using ISO or USB Installation Media


1 Disable or uninstall any 3rd party AV or security program you have installed first to prevent it from interfering with the repair install of Windows 11. You can enable or reinstall it again after Windows 11 has finished installing.

It may be required to use the removal tool from the AV program developer to fully remove it.


2 If the Windows drive is encrypted by BitLocker, then you will need to either suspend or turn off BitLocker for the Windows drive before doing a repair install. Once installation has finished, you can resume or turn on BitLocker again.

3 Do the step below depending on how you want to install Windows 11.
  • step 4: To Repair Install Windows 11 with an ISO file
  • step 5: To Repair Install Windows 11 with USB Installation Media

The Windows 11 installation media (ISO or USB) must be the same edition, same version, and same or higher build as the currently installed Windows 11.

The Windows 11 installation media (ISO or USB) must be for the same language as your currently installed Windows 11.


4 To Repair Install Windows 11 with an ISO file

A) If you have not already, you will need to download a Windows 11 ISO file.​

B) Mount the ISO file, and go to step 6 below.​

5 To Repair Install Windows 11 with USB Installation Media

This does not have to be a bootable USB.


A) Connect and open the Windows 11 USB, and go to step 6 below. (see screenshot below)​

Repair_install_Windows11-1.png

6 Run the setup.exe file to start Windows 11 Setup. (see screenshot below)

Repair_install_Windows11-2.png

7 If prompted by UAC, click/tap on Yes. (see screenshot below)

Repair_install_Windows11-3.png

8 Windows 11 Setup will now start preparing. (see screenshot below)

Repair_install_Windows11-4.png

9 Click/tap on the Change how Setup downloads updates link. (see screenshot below)

You can check or uncheck (default) I want to help make the installation better depending on what you want. This will send setup info to Microsoft to help improve.


Repair_install_Windows11-5.png

10 Select (dot) Not right now for "Get updates, drivers and optional features". (see screenshot below)

Choosing to "download updates, drivers and optional features" will only add unnecessary overhead during the repair install, and could cause the repair install to stall if there was an issue.

You can check for updates via Windows Update after the repair install has finished to avoid this.


Repair_install_Windows11-6.png

11 Windows 11 Setup will now start getting things ready. (see screenshots below)

Repair_install_Windows11-7.png
Repair_install_Windows11-8.png

12 Click/tap on Accept for the license terms. (see screenshot below)

Repair_install_Windows11-9.png

13 Windows 11 Setup will now check to make sure you're ready to install and have enough space. (see screenshots below)

Repair_install_Windows11-10.png
Repair_install_Windows11-10b.png

14 Click/tap on the Change what to keep link. (see left screenshot below)

After doing step 15, click/tap on Install when ready to start the repair install of Windows 11. (see right screenshot below)


Repair_install_Windows11-11.png
Repair_install_Windows11-12.png

15 Select (dot) Keep personal files and apps, and click/tap on Next. (see left screenshot below)

If you only have Nothing available to select, then the installation media is not the same version or language as what you currently have installed.

When you click/tap on Next, you will go back to step 13. When you get to step 14 again, click/tap on Install when ready to start the repair install of Windows 11. (see right screenshot below)


If wanted, you can close the Windows 11 Setup window at this point to safely cancel the repair install before it starts. It will be too late after this step.


Repair_install_Windows11-13.png
Repair_install_Windows11-12.png

16 Windows 11 Setup will now start the repair install of Windows 11. (see screenshot below)

Your PC will restart several times. This might take a while.


Repair_install_Windows11-14.png

17 When the repair install of Windows 11 has finished, you can dismiss the lock screen and sign in to Windows 11. (see screenshots below)

Lock_screen.jpg
Sign-in_screen.jpg

18 You will now be on your desktop in Windows 11. (see screenshot below)

Repair_install_Windows11-15.png


That's it,
Shawn Brink


 

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Last edited:
:thumbsup: I see. Don't actually boot from the USB. Just run Setup from there.
Exactly. There are workarounds you can use for an in-place upgrade with an unmodified ISO (the appraserres.dll is one) but Rufus has baked the workarounds into the USB, so there's nothing the user needs to do except run Setup from within Windows.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Aspire 3 A315-23
    CPU
    AMD Athlon Silver 3050U
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon Graphics
    Monitor(s) Displays
    laptop screen
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768 native resolution, up to 2560x1440 with Radeon Virtual Super Resolution
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung EVO 870 SSD
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps
    Browser
    Edge, Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    fully 'Windows 11 ready' laptop. Windows 10 C: partition migrated from my old unsupported 'main machine' then upgraded to 11. A test migration ran Insider builds for 2 months. When 11 was released on 5th October it was re-imaged back to 10 and was offered the upgrade in Windows Update on 20th October. Windows Update offered the 22H2 Feature Update on 20th September 2022. It got the 23H2 Feature Update on 4th November 2023 through Windows Update.

    My SYSTEM THREE is a Dell Latitude 5410, i7-10610U, 32GB RAM, 512GB ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro (and all my Hyper-V VMs).

    My SYSTEM FOUR is a 2-in-1 convertible Lenovo Yoga 11e 20DA, Celeron N2930, 4GB RAM, 256GB ssd. Unsupported device: currently running Win10 Pro, plus Win11 Pro RTM and Insider Beta as native boot vhdx.

    My SYSTEM FIVE is a Dell Latitude 3190 2-in-1, Pentium Silver N5030, 4GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro, plus the Insider Beta, Dev, and Canary builds as a native boot .vhdx.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Lattitude E4310
    CPU
    Intel® Core™ i5-520M
    Motherboard
    0T6M8G
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics card(s)
    (integrated graphics) Intel HD Graphics
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    500GB Crucial MX500 SSD
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    unsupported machine: Legacy bios, MBR, TPM 1.2, upgraded from W10 to W11 using W10/W11 hybrid install media workaround. In-place upgrade to 22H2 using ISO and a workaround. Feature Update to 23H2 by manually installing the Enablement Package.

    My SYSTEM THREE is a Dell Latitude 5410, i7-10610U, 32GB RAM, 512GB ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro (and all my Hyper-V VMs).

    My SYSTEM FOUR is a 2-in-1 convertible Lenovo Yoga 11e 20DA, Celeron N2930, 4GB RAM, 256GB ssd. Unsupported device: currently running Win10 Pro, plus Win11 Pro RTM and Insider Beta as native boot vhdx.

    My SYSTEM FIVE is a Dell Latitude 3190 2-in-1, Pentium Silver N5030, 4GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro, plus the Insider Beta, Dev, and Canary builds as a native boot .vhdx.
alpa45's specs say the processor is an unsupported Intel Core 2 Duo E8600. Just mounting the ISO and running Setup from there would not work on this unsupported machine. Rufus was used to create a USB that would bypass the checks. You can do an in-place upgrade from a USB as easily as you can from an ISO, and made with Rufus this one would not check the system.
So if I understand correctly, I just copy the contents of the pendrive to an HDD and launch it from there, it should work?
Thank you
 
Last edited:

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build: 22631
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    Intel E 8600 dual Core 3.3GHz
    Motherboard
    P5 G41 L-ME
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia Quadro 2000D
  • Operating System
    Windows 7 Ultimate
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    Intel E 8600 dual Core 3.3GHz
    Motherboard
    P5 G41 L-ME
    Memory
    8 Gb
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Quadro FX3700
Perciò se ho capito bene, basta che copio il contenuto del pendrive su un hdd e lo lancio da li, dovrebbe funzionare?
Grazie

So if I understand correctly, I just copy the contents of the pendrive to an HDD and launch it from there, it should work?
Thank you



Not necessary.
Just "open" the pendrive in File Explorer, and run setup.exe from File Explorer.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦22631.3374 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦23H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 4702)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Internet Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 13 years?
Not necessary.
Just "open" the pendrive in File Explorer, and run setup.exe from File Explorer.
But this is what I did yesterday, but it gave me error, post #237
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build: 22631
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    Intel E 8600 dual Core 3.3GHz
    Motherboard
    P5 G41 L-ME
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia Quadro 2000D
  • Operating System
    Windows 7 Ultimate
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    Intel E 8600 dual Core 3.3GHz
    Motherboard
    P5 G41 L-ME
    Memory
    8 Gb
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Quadro FX3700
But this is what I did yesterday, but it gave me error, post #237


I don't know. I have no way to test. :(
I wonder if the appraiserres.dll trick would work?

You could always do a "clean install"
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦22631.3374 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦23H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 4702)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Internet Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 13 years?
But this is what I did yesterday, but it gave me error, post #237

You are also saying you can not mount an original Windows 11 ISO and run setup from there? It worked perfectly when I upgraded from 10. Used media creation tool to download the ISO. No rufus or any third party tool needed.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    11 Pro 23H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    MSI
    CPU
    i7-10750H
    Motherboard
    MSI MS-17F5
    Memory
    16GB Samsung DDR4 3200
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel + Nvidia RTX3060 Laptop
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung 24" Curved
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Antivirus
    Avast

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