How To Upgrade From Windows 7 To Windows 11

Original equipment manufacturers can still ship computers without a TPM 2.0 coprocessor upon Microsoft's approval. Some third-party software may refuse to run on unsupported configurations of Windows 11. For now, Windows 7 users might upgrade to Windows 10 and wait for the official public launch of the new operating system by Microsoft. If your existing Windows 10 PC is running Windows 10 20H1 or later and meets the minimum hardware specificationsit will be able to upgrade to Windows 11.

The upgrade rollout plan is still being finalized, but for most devices already in use today, we expect it to be ready sometime in early 2022. Not all Windows 10 PCs that are eligible to upgrade will be offered to upgrade at the same time. To see if your PC is eligible to upgrade, refer to our knowledge base for a list of tested systems. Once the upgrade rollout has started, you can check if it is ready for your device by going to Settings/Windows Updates.

Similar to how end users are notified when updates are available in Windows 10, end users will see an indication in the notification areas of the taskbar in the bottom right, that the upgrade is available. More information on how that is presented will be available at a later date. Additional desktop notification options may be also be added at a later date.

According to an FAQ page recently published by Lenovo, Windows 7 users will be able to upgrade to Windows 11 through a clean install. However, only the devices that meet the minimum Windows 11 hardware requirements will be able to run Windows 11. From what it looks like, Windows users have three options to upgrade to the upcoming version of the operating system. They can either upgrade, clean install a new version or reimage their devices. Citing security considerations, the system requirements for Windows 11 were increased over Windows 10. While the OS can be installed on unsupported processors, Microsoft does not guarantee the availability of updates.

Windows 11 also drops support for 32-bit x86 CPUs and devices which use BIOS firmware. The official, release version of Windows 11 is now available as a free upgrade to anyone who has Windows 10 and a PC that meets Microsoft's minimum hardware requirements. However, the Redmond software giant isn't pushing the upgrade to every eligible system at once. Some users will be offered the option to upgrade in their Settings menu on or around the October 5th official launch date while others may be waiting until 2022. Microsoft does not recommend downloading Windows 11 on PCs that do not meet its standards, such as minimum 4GB of RAM, 64GB storage, TPM chips, and supported processors.

Windows 11 will not come as an automatic update for unsupported devices, but users will be able to download it off the web. Microsoft has an app called PC Health Check, which can be used to determine if a PC is ready for Windows 11. Some PCs also have TPM chips installed but disabled and you can turn them on by going into your BIOS settings.

He also acknowledged the expansion of Microsoft Store to include more "traditional" desktop applications. For both types of upgrades, head to Microsoft's Windows 11 download page. To perform an in-place upgrade, use the Windows 11 Installation Assistant. For a clean install, you must create a bootable USB drive or DVD disc. Windows users should first try the Media Creation Tool for this process, since it does all the work for you. Mac and Linux users will have to flash or burn the ISO file for Windows 11 to a drive or disc, respectively.

You can check out our guide on how to upgrade to Windows 11 for more details on each of these methods. If you have a computer running Windows 7, it is possible to upgrade to Windows 11 without losing your files using the ISO file, but the process will require a complete reinstallation. This means that your apps and settings won't carry over to the new installation. However, before you upgrade to Windows 11 from Windows 7, you will still need to make sure the laptop or desktop meets the minimum system requirements. For example, the device must include a motherboard with UEFI firmware, and the processor must be an Intel's 8th Gen or newer or an AMD Zen 2 or newer. This is in addition to the requirements of TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot and a minimum of 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM.

Windows 11 has higher technical requirements than Windows 10, is possible to install Windows 11 on devices that don't meet the minimum requirements. Upgrading unsupported hardware to Windows 11 will require you to install the update manually using an ISO. There is a different set of minimum minimum requirements your PC will have to meet including 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage space, and two-core 64-bit 1 GHz processor. After a heavy buzz of rounded-corners design and android apps support following its announcement in August, Windows 11 finally arrived earlier this month on October 5. The arrival certainly means big for Microsoft Windows fans as they are getting to try their hands on the brand-new operating system. But not everyone is happy with the arrival of the latest update, thanks to a big if that came with the promise of a free upgrade to Windows 11.

This will not erase any of your personal files and is similar to an OTA (over-the-air) update – however, it's always advisable to have backups. Similarly, you can create a bootable USB drive or a disk image to perform a clean install. As part of the minimum system requirements, Windows 11 only runs on devices with a Trusted Platform Module 2.0 security coprocessor. According to Microsoft, the TPM 2.0 coprocessor is a "critical building block" for protection against firmware and hardware attacks. In addition, Microsoft now requires devices with Windows 11 to include virtualization-based security , hypervisor-protected code integrity , and Secure Boot built-in and enabled by default. The operating system also features hardware-enforced stack protection for supported Intel and AMD processors for protection against zero-day exploits.

The rest of the process is just like any regular old bootable USB installation. Attach the USB drive to the system you want to upgrade to Windows 11, and boot it up. You can now boot into the Windows 11 bootable USB by bringing up your Boot device menu by pressing the boot options key specific to your system. It's usually the Delete key or one of the function keys.

You can look up the key binding specific to your system. Once the boot device menu shows up, select the USB drive, and follow the Windows 11 installation setup. Navigate to the downloaded Windows 11 ISO file, and select it. You should see the Target System label reflect your BIOS Mode as you switch the Partition Scheme.If you have a rather old 64-bit system you're attempting this on, check the Add fixes for old BIOSes option. Your final Rufus screen should look something like this.

At least 16GB of RAM The basic system requirements of Windows 11 differ significantly from Windows 10. Windows 11 only supports 64-bit systems such as those using an x86-64 or ARM64 processor; IA-32 processors are no longer supported. Thus, Windows 11 is the first ever consumer version of Windows not to support 32-bit processors and 16-bit software . The minimum RAM and storage requirements were also increased; Windows 11 now requires at least 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.

S mode is only supported for the Home edition of Windows 11. The compatibility list includes the Intel Core i7-7820HQ, a seventh-generation processor used by the Surface Studio 2, although only on devices that shipped with DCH-based drivers. Microsoft offers several ways to download Windows 11 manually.

One is to use the Installation Assistant app, which you install on your PC to trigger a normal upgrade install via Windows Update. The second is to use the Windows 11 Media Creation Tool, which automates the process of creating a bootable USB install drive or downloading an install ISO file. Once you have a USB drive, you can either boot from it to perform a clean install or run the Setup app from within Windows 10 to do a normal upgrade install. You can also burn the ISO to a DVD, but installing from any USB drive, even an old USB 2.0 drive, will be much faster, so you shouldn't do that. Finally, you can just download an ISO file directly from Microsoft's site. "Most devices available for purchase now will be upgradeable to Windows 11.

You will have the option to upgrade, clean install, or reimage Windows 10 devices to move to Windows 11. For Windows 7 devices that meet hardware requirements, you will need to clean install or reimage to go directly to Windows 11," the guide on Lenovo's website reads. There are many users who, after the release of Windows 11, went ahead and checked whether their PC is eligible to be upgraded with Windows 11. Sadly, they found out that their PC does not meet the minimum requirements to install Windows 11. In this case, the question arises what options are left then?

Can You Upgrade To Windows 11 For Free From Windows 7 To put it simply, the best option here is to buy a new PC before the deadline, i.e. 2025. Windows 11 will be provided as a free update to all eligible devices that are currently running Windows 10. Eligibility for automatic upgrade is based on certain minimum hardware requirements.

After the announcement of the launch of Windows 11, there was a lot of fuss about the devices that could support it. Windows 11 officially requires a Trusted Platform Module 2.0, UEFI, and Secure Boot in order to run on a machine, and if yours doesn't meet those requirements, you will not be able to install it. The easiest way to check whether your hardware is eligible is by installing Microsoft's own PC Health Check application. Internet Explorer has been replaced by the Chromium-based Microsoft Edge as the default web browser, and Microsoft Teams is integrated into the Windows shell.

Microsoft also announced plans to allow more flexibility in software that can be distributed via Microsoft Store, and to support Android apps on Windows 11 . You can refer to our knowledge base for a list of tested systems to determine if your device eligible to upgrade to Windows -11. Many PCs that are less than four years old will be able to upgrade to Windows 11. They must be running 20H1 or later version of Windows 10 and meet the minimum hardware requirements to receive the Windows 11 upgrade. Devices that do not meet the minimum system requirements will remain on Windows 10 and continue to be supported with security updates. Customers using long term service releases will continue to be supported through the published end of support dates.

For more information about Windows 10 support, see HP products tested with Windows 10. Microsoft has an official support page that details its stance on installing Windows 11 on unsupported hardware. First of all, there are possible compatibility issues. Windows 11 is still very early and hasn't been tested enough to determine if there will be any crippling compatibility issues if you run it on unsupported hardware.

It is safe to assume that this is a potential problem you may face. Microsoft also says that if you install Windows 11 on unsupported hardware, your system loses the guarantee of system updates, including but not limited to security updates. Microsoft makes you accept that the company can stop providing updates, and security patches to Windows 11 on these devices. While Microsoft is unlikely to do that in practice, it's still better to be on the safer side. Also, you're likely to run into driver incompatibility issues on unsupported devices.

Especially, if your computer is running hardware that is more than 5-6 years old. Click the advanced options link during the installation process and choose to run the install without online assistant or updates. We want to install from the file we copied over and not from a file stored in the cloud.

This means there will be updates to download and install after the initial process is completed. To assure we are all on the same page, the following procedure will update an existing unsupported Windows 10 PC to Windows 11. On qualifying hardware, this upgrade is performed automatically as part of the standard security update process. On hardware failing to meet the requirements, the installation must be performed manually. For Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 devices that meet hardware requirements, you will need to clean install or reimage to go directly to Windows 11.

So this means that you can perform an in-place upgrade to move from Windows 10 to Windows 11, but you will have to perform a Clean install to move from Windows 8.1/7 to Windows 11. Windows 11 is the first version update to the most widely used PC operating system in the world in more than five years. There is a way to install Windows 11 on unsupported hardware, but we wouldn't recommend it.

Although Microsoft hasn't confirmed it, the company has heavily implied that unsupported users won't receive critical security updates. If you still want to install, you can do so using the Media Creation Tool, which bypasses hardware checks. Microsoft officially released its new operating system on 5 October, but warned that most people will be waiting a while for the free upgrade from Windows 10.

Indeed, if you're running older hardware that's still supported, it could be mid-2022 before the update appears on your device. After the download, double-click the ISO file and then double-click the setup.exe file. Click Next at the initial install screen to check for and download any updates to Windows 11. At the Ready to Install screen, you will see that Windows 11 will be installed and personal files and apps will be kept by default. Click Next to have Windows 11 check for any updates, then accept the license terms.

The Ready to install screen shows that Windows 11 will be installed and that your personal files and apps will be kept. You can then elect to keep personal files and apps, personal files only, or nothing. Many games that use Anti-cheat tools also have started relying on Windows 11 security features to provide fair gameplay.

While these games still work on Windows 10, it is only a matter of time before Windows 11 ends up becoming a requirement. You're going to have a tougher time if you own an older PC that doesn't meet Microsoft's hardware requirements. You'll need a compatible Intel, AMD or Qualcomm processor; 4GB of RAM; and at least 64GB of storage. Also, you'll have to enable Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 , features that should make it harder for spyware and malware to attack your OS. Microsoft's PC Health Check app can help you see if your system is ready for Windows 11. I'd expect many consumers will be upgrading their existing Windows 10 systems, rather than setting up a new computer.

Unfortunately, Microsoft didn't have a way for me to upgrade my PC with a final Windows 11 release. Based on what I've seen with the latest Windows 11 Insider previews, though, moving to the new OS appears to be very similar to installing a major Windows 10 update. On a Surface Laptop 4 I had lying around, the upgrade process took around 15 minutes after downloading the new OS via Windows update. Microsoft has made it abundantly clear that it wants to limit Windows 11 installations to certain PCs with appropriate hardware security features. Unfortunately, those requirements block many older, yet still useable, PCs from the Windows 11 upgrade.

The implication is that users will need to buy new hardware to accommodate Windows 11 sooner rather than later. A Microsoft account is mandatory to access all features. If you haven't checked already, the first step is to make sure your Windows 10 device will be compatible with Windows 11. Microsoft has updated the hardware requirements, meaning plenty of older hardware won't be officially supported. Legacy BIOS is no longer supported; a UEFI system with Secure Boot and a Trusted Platform Module 2.0 security coprocessor is now required. The TPM requirement in particular has led to confusion as many motherboards do not have TPM support, or require a compatible TPM to be physically installed onto the motherboard.