Windows 11 upgrade details got a bit more confusing

Microsoft last month listed a long list of requirements that are needed for any PC to be able to receive the Windows 11 update. Primary ones among them are a 1GHz or faster processor with 2 or more cores on a compatible 64-bit processor, at least 4GB of RAM, at least 64GB of storage space, TPM version 2.0, and a graphics card that is compatible with DirectX 12 or later with WDDM 2.0 driver. This means that only a limited set of PCs will be eligible for the Windows 11 update, leaving a lot of PCs in perfectly good shape high and dry. Today, Microsoft has updated its list of Windows 11 requirements bringing a number of PCs to its exclusive club.

The software giant via a blog post said that it is adding Intel’s 7th generation processors to the list of compatible devices. “We have expanded the list of compatible 64-bit processors to include the following: Intel Core X-series, Xeon W-series, Intel Core 7820HQ (only select devices that shipped with modern drivers based on Declarative, Componentized, Hardware Support Apps (DCH) design principles, including Surface Studio 2),” the company wrote in the blog post.

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Now, at the time of the launch, Microsoft had also said that Windows 11 will be delivered via its PC Health Check app to compatible devices only and there will be no workaround to download the OS on the PCs on which it is not compatible with as has been the case with older Windows OSes until now. This is where it gets a bit confusing. Microsoft told The Verge that people with incompatible PCs will still be able to download Windows 11 on their devices. However, they will have to do so manually using the downloadable Windows 11 ISO.

One big catch is that if you download Windows 11 on your PC using this hack, it may not be entitled to get the Windows Update, not even the security updates. The bottom line is while you might get to experience Windows 11, it may not be as secure to use as it would be, had your system met all the system requirements.