Windows 11 Migration? Upgrade Engine Revs Up, Enterprises Have No Choice

Windows 11 migration projects, long hoped for by Microsoft and PC chums, are picking up. But a report from asset management biz Lansweeper indicates the rush is on with "millions" of devices still running Windows 10.

Just last month, Michael Dell - you know who he is - and HP CEO Enrique Lores - admitted that enterprise customers were taking longer than expected to refresh their fleets of aging computers, and while they didn't explain why, The Reg detailed the many causes of the delay.

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Now, the latest figures from 15 million Windows devices monitored by Lansweeper show that Windows 11 is at last starting to make significant progress against its predecessor, Windows 10.

Windows operating system distribution (credit: Lansweeper) – click to enlarge

According to Lansweeper, Windows 10's presence in the enterprise has dropped from 80.5 percent to 67.1 percent in the last year, while Windows 11 usage has risen to 23.1 percent from 8.3 percent. This is still likely nowhere near the expectations that Microsoft had for the OS three years after Windows 11 launched.

It is also of note that just 3.5 percent of Windows 10 devices are using the Long Term Servicing Branch of the operating system, meaning that only a small portion of devices will continue to be supported after the vast majority of support for Windows 10 ends on October 14, 2025.

Historically, Lansweeper's statistics have made grim reading for Microsoft. In April 2022 - months after Windows 11's debut in October 2021 - the IT asset platform found Windows 11 usage was within touching distance of Windows XP. A year after the operating system's launch, Lansweeper found that almost half of the devices in its survey wouldn't be able to upgrade due to Windows 11's stringent hardware requirements, as 42.76 percent had a CPU that fell short.

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The picture is now changing. Lansweeper's Esben Dochy told The Register that less pressure to move to Windows 11 in previous years meant that a higher percentage of growth could be attributed to natural device replacement lifecycles and new hardware coming with Windows 11 preinstalled.

"This year's data shows an almost 15 percent increase in Windows 11 usage." He said he suspects the increase is not because organizations decided to purchase new devices, "but rather that acquisition of W11 pre-installed devices remained similar and thus a big part of the additional growth is due to upgrades."

In other words, in the absence of a hardware spending surge, the acceleration in Windows 11 adoption is down to IT departments kicking off upgrades on PCs that can take it. Windows 10 devices that don't meet Windows 11's CPU, RAM and other requirements will still need to be replaced over the next year.

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Lansweeper's findings echo other recent reports that show a steady acceleration in the adoption of Windows 11 as Windows 10 approaches its final 12 months of standard support in October 2025. Lansweeper notes that as the deadline draws ever closer, "for many [businesses], migration isn't an option anymore but a requirement to adhere to company or regulatory compliances."

The acceleration indicates that IT departments are now starting to prioritize Windows 11 upgrades as a critical project, but the gap between the two operating systems shows there is still much work to be done.

"With millions of devices still on Windows 10, it's clear that for many organizations this migration will become a critical focus in the final stretch before support ends," Lansweeper told us. ®