Upgrading other computer to Windows 11


MisterEd

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Location
Huntsville, AL
OS
Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (26200.6901)
I discussed upgrading my other computer in the thread Stuck on upgrading CPU cooler. After I was done with that I upgraded my other computer.
I am not asking a question in this post. I am just documenting what I have done. If anyone has any questions or comments I will try to respond to them

The computer called Lightning has had a long-convoluted history starting in 2009. It has had two other motherboards before 2024. It started with Windows 7 Ultimate (32-biit) but a clean install of Windows 7 Ultimate (64-biit) was done a few years later. In 2016 or 2017 it received a free upgrade to Windows 10 Professional (64-bit). BTW, keeping with its name the first version was hit by lightning in 2011 leading to a rebuilt in 2013.

Info.webp

I had tried to clone the first two SSDs to the two new ones but that failed. I decided that was impossible anyways because I wanted to enable Secure Boot which wasn’t compatible with the way the computer was booting previously. Doing this also eliminated installing Windows 7 again which was OK.

Note I did a standard installation of Windows 11 with no workarounds except bypassing the requirement for a Microsoft account.

Get ready for upgrade (Computer Lightning)
  • Replace Ryzen 1700X with Ryzen 3700X
  • In BIOS reset TPM for new CPU
  • Boot into Windows 10 to verify change
  • Shut down computer
  • Remove old SATA SSDs
  • Install XPG M.2 NVME SSD
  • Install StarTech M.2 PCIe SSD Adapter
  • Install Intel M.2 NVME SSD
  • Boot into BIOS
  • Enable Secure Boot
  • Shut down computer
Get Windows 11 setup (Computer DarkMatter)
  • Download Media Creation Tool
  • Run Media Creation Tool
  • Create setup for Windows 11 25H2 on flash drive
Clean install for Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (Computer Lightning)
  • Note: network was connected
  • Boot from Windows 11 25H2 on flash drive
  • When the screen came up to select the country I entered the following:
SHIFT+F10
start ms-cxh:localonly
  • A screen came up to create a local account
  • After creating and answering three security questions I was taken to the desktop
After first boot
  • I installed the latest motherboard drivers from ASUS
  • I installed the the Nvidia app which downloaded the latest graphics driver
  • Since I was using a local account OneDrive was installed but not setup. I uninstalled OneDrive to keep it from taking over.
  • Also, since I was using a local account BitLocker was only partially setup. I Disabled it in the Windows settings. Note BitLocker unencrypted my C: drive before it shut down.
  • I will continue to reinstall all the software and games I had previously installed. That should take a few days.
Here is a photo of inside the computer. You can see the Corsair 120mm water cooler on the left. It was really easy to install. Note I bought the cooler in April 2017.

L1.webp
 
Last edited:

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (26200.6901)
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS TUF Gaming A15 (2022)
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 6800H with Radeon 680M GPU (486MB RAM)
    Memory
    Crucial DDR5-4800 (2400MHz) 32GB (2 x 16GB)
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA RTX 3060 Laptop (6GB RAM)
    Sound Card
    n/a
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6-inch
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080 300Hz
    Hard Drives
    2 x Samsung 990 Evo Plus (2TB M.2 NVME SSD)
    PSU
    n/a
    Mouse
    Wireless Mouse M510
    Internet Speed
    2100Mbps/300Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (26200.8246)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom build
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Strix B550-F Gaming WiFi II
    Memory
    G.SKILL Flare X 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4
    Graphics card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-RTX3060TI-08G-V2-GAMING (RTX 3060-Ti, 8GB RAM)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung G50D IPS 27"
    Screen Resolution
    1440p/180Hz
    Hard Drives
    SAMSUNG 990 EVO Plus (2TB] M.2 NVME SSD
    SAMSUNG 990 EVO Plus (4TB) M.2 NVME SSD
    PSU
    Corsair RM750x (750 watts)
    Case
    Cooler Master MasterCase 5
    Cooling
    Scythe Mugen 6
    Keyboard
    Logitech K520 (MK540 keyboard/mouse combo)
    Mouse
    Logitech M310 (MK540 keyboard/mouse combo)
    Internet Speed
    2100 Mbps down / 300 Mbps up
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge, Chrome
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes (Premium)
    Other Info
    ASUS Blu-ray Burner BW-16D1HT (SATA) || Western Digital Easystore 20TB USB 3.0 external hard drive used with Acronis True Image 2025 backup software || HP OfficeJet Pro 6975 Printer/Scanner

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