How To Upgrade Your 'incompatible' Windows 10 PC To Windows 11
On October 14, 2025, Microsoft will stop delivering security updates to your Windows 10 PC unless you're willing to pay an exorbitant price to join the Extended Security Updates program.
Also: When Windows 10 support runs out, you have 5 options but only 2 are worth considering
If you try to upgrade to Windows 11 on a PC over a few years old, you'll be told, in no uncertain terms, that your old PC doesn't qualify, because its CPU isn't on the official list of compatible processors. Microsoft has made it abundantly clear that it will not revise those requirements. You will also hit roadblocks if your PC doesn't have a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) version 2.0.
While that might be the official policy, as with everything Windows-related, it pays to read the fine print.
Those pesky restrictions prevent you from automatically upgrading to Windows 11 using Windows Update or the Windows 11 Installation Assistant. Yet there are two fully supported workarounds, as I document in ZDNET's Windows 11 FAQ.
Also: How to install Windows 11 the way you want (and sneak by Microsoft's restrictions)
If you're willing to perform a clean installation of Windows 11, you can boot from installation media and run Windows Setup. That option skips the CPU compatibility check completely. After the installation completes, you'll need to reinstall all your apps, restore your data files, and tweak settings to personalize your system preferences.
Want to avoid all that hassle? Follow these four steps.
You need to make one small change to the Windows registry, as documented in this Microsoft support document. This change tells the Windows 11 Setup program to skip the check for compatible CPUs and to allow installation on a PC with an older TPM (version 1.2). The usual warnings apply when working with the registry, of course, and I recommend you make a complete backup before proceeding.
Open Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) and navigate to the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Setup\MoSetup
Select that key and then right-click in any empty space in the pane on the right. Choose the option to create a new DWORD value, AllowUpgradesWithUnsupportedTPMOrCPU, and set its value to 1. The result should look like this:
Use this registry tweak to override the Windows 11 CPU and TPM compatibility checks.
Click OK to save your change.
After the download completes, open File Explorer and double-click the ISO file. Doing so mounts the file as a virtual DVD drive in its own folder.
In File Explorer, find the Setup.exe file and double-click it to begin the upgrade. You'll see a stern warning about compatibility issues, but after you click OK on that dialog box, your upgrade should proceed without any serious issues. You'll have three options: you can keep your apps, settings, and files (Full Upgrade); keep your data files but start fresh with apps and settings (Keep Data Only); or start completely fresh (Clean Install).
Also: The best Windows laptops you can buy: Expert tested and reviewed
If you want more control over the upgrade process and aren't afraid to mess with creating custom installation media, you can use the free, open-source utility Rufus. My ZDNET colleague Lance Whitney has the full details in "How to install Windows 11 the way you want (and sneak by Microsoft's restrictions)."
This article was originally published on April 9, 2022, but has been updated multiple times since then. It was last updated August 17, 2024.
Reassessing AI Investments: What The Correction In US Megacap Tech Stocks Signals
The recent correction in US megacap tech stocks, including giants like Nvidia, Tesla, Meta, and Alphabet, has sent rippl... Read more
AI Hype Meets Reality: Assessing The Impact Of Stock Declines On Future Tech Investments
Recent declines in the stock prices of major tech companies such as Nvidia, Tesla, Meta, and Alphabet have highlighted a... Read more
Technology Sector Fuels U.S. Economic Growth In Q2
The technology sector played a pivotal role in accelerating America's economic growth in the second quarter of 2024.The ... Read more
Tech Start-Ups Advised To Guard Against Foreign Investment Risks
The US National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC) has advised American tech start-ups to be wary of foreign... Read more
Global IT Outage Threatens To Cost Insurers Billions
Largest disruption since 2017’s NotPetya malware attack highlights vulnerabilities.A recent global IT outage has cause... Read more
Global IT Outage Disrupts Airlines, Financial Services, And Media Groups
On Friday morning, a major IT outage caused widespread disruption across various sectors, including airlines, financial ... Read more