What's your favorite unsupported Windows 11 setup?


mrjoey98

Member
Local time
4:25 AM
Posts
6
Location
New Jersey
OS
Windows 11
Hi all! This is my first thread here.
As you know, Microsoft has been rather strict with the Windows 11 hardware requirements (though we've all found ways to run it on unsupported hardware 👀), so the title says it all-- do you have a favorite Windows 11 setup that's conventionally unsupported?
I'll start-- a couple years back, I managed to get Windows 11 (21H1) running on a mid-2009 MacBook. 4GB, Intel Core2 Duo P7450. Granted, it didn't run very well as it was as slow as I don't know what... 😅 but I was surprised to see it actually boot up on such an old system!

What say you all? Interested to read your responses.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom build
    CPU
    Intel Pentium Gold G6500
    Motherboard
    ASRock H510TM-ITX
    Memory
    8GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP E24mv G4
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Case
    Silverstone PT13
    Browser
    Google Chrome
do you have a favorite Windows 11 setup that's conventionally unsupported?
Welcome to Eleven Forum.

I like to see just how low I can go and still get W11 to run. I'm very fond of my least appropriate device, a little Acer AOD270 netbook. There's a whole thread dedicated to 'unsupported devices' and I've reported its progress several times there:

I use this little old netbook as my 'miner's canary', if Windows 11 can install and run on this then it should work on anything.

To recap its specs, it fails on every single count except the bare minimum of having a 64-bit processor with more than one core. There is no TPM of any sort, it has a legacy bios (so no secure boot and MBR boot only). It's Intel Atom N2600 has no working 64 bit display drivers available (so only the Microsoft Basic Adapter can be used). The maximum memory a Cedarview Atom like this one can address is specified by the OEM as 2GB, and by Intel as 2.44 GB. It can in fact, when there's a 4GB RAM in its single slot, make 2.99GB available to the OS.
Let's install Windows 11 on incompatible hardware - post #1,386

It will reach the end of the line with 24H2 though, it's poor little Atom N2600 lacks the SSE4.2 instruction set, without which W11 24H2 cannot run. This will probably be it's last report on that thread. :(

Of my eight or so unsupported devices that can run 23H2, I have two with CPUs that are missing the PopCnt instruction, so can't run 24H2, one is an Intel Atom N2600, the other a Pentium Dual-Core T4300.
Let's install Windows 11 on incompatible hardware - post #1,917
 

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 2021 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, and 24H2 on 3rd October through Windows Update by setting the Target Release Version for 24H2.

    My SYSTEM THREE is a Dell Latitude 5410, i7-10610U, 32GB RAM, 512GB NVMe 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, 8GB RAM, 256GB ssd. Unsupported device: currently running Win10 Pro, plus Win11 Pro RTM and Insider Dev, Beta, and RP 24H2 as native boot vhdx.

    My SYSTEM FIVE is a Dell Latitude 3190 2-in-1, Pentium Silver N5030, 8GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro, plus the Insider Beta, Dev, Canary, and Release Preview builds as a native boot .vhdx.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Latitude 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. In-place upgrade to 24H2 using hybrid 23H2/24H2 install media. Also running Insider Beta, Dev, and Canary builds as a native boot .vhdx.

    My SYSTEM THREE is a Dell Latitude 5410, i7-10610U, 32GB RAM, 512GB NVMe 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, 8GB RAM, 256GB ssd. Unsupported device: currently running Win10 Pro, plus Win11 Pro RTM and Insider Dev, Beta, and RP 24H2 as native boot vhdx.

    My SYSTEM FIVE is a Dell Latitude 3190 2-in-1, Pentium Silver N5030, 8GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro, plus the Insider Beta, Dev, Canary, and Release Preview builds as a native boot .vhdx.
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