How to Bypass Windows 11 Minimum Installation Requirements
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Officially, you can’t install Windows 11 on ineligible hardware because of Secure Boot and TPM hardware requirements. However, there are two easy workarounds that allow you to upgrade your old Windows 10 PC to Windows 11. I’ll share them below.
1. Skip TPM and Secure Check Using Command Prompt
You can upgrade your non-compatible Windows 10 PC to Windows 11 using a simple command-line hack. Before you start,back up your Windows computerso that you can revert the changes if something goes wrong.
To get started,download the latest version of the Windows 11 ISOonto your computer. I recommend using theMedia Creation Toolto download the ISO, as it will automatically detect the correct language preference to match your existing installation. If there’s a mismatch, the upgrade option will be greyed out. Once the ISO is ready, right-click theISOfile and chooseMount.
Then, openFile Explorer, locate the mounted drive in the left pane, and note the drive letter assigned to it. If you double-click the mounted drive, you can see its content, including thesetup.exefile.
Finally, clickStart, typecmd, and clickCommand Promptfrom the results. In the Command Prompt window, type the following command:
ReplaceG:\with the drive letter assigned to your mounted drive and hitEnter.
When the warning dialog appears, clickRun, then clickYes. This will launch theWindows Server Setup, which is perfectly normal.
In the next screen, clickChange how the setup downloads updatesand chooseNot right now. UnderChoose What to Keep, selectKeep files, settings, and appsto install Windows 11 without deleting your apps. If not, clickNothing. Then, clickNextand follow the on-screen instructions.
2. Bypass Secure Boot and TPM Check Using Rufus
Rufus is a popular third-party bootable installation media tool with built-in options to removethe Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 requirements to install Windows 11. Tocreate a bootable USB media, you need the latest Windows 11 ISO, so keep it handy.
Start by downloadingRufusfrom the official website. Extract the zip file and double-click to runRufus.exe. Then, connect the USB drive to your computer and wait for Rufus to detect it.
In Rufus, clickSelect, then select the ISO file you downloaded. Leave all the options as default, and then clickStart.
Select the first two options in theWindows User Experiencedialog, as shown in the screenshot below. Feel free to go through the other options to select or unselect them according to your preference.
ClickOKand wait for the copying process to complete. Once done, you can use the installation media toclean install Windows 11on unsupported hardware.
Install Future Windows 11 Updates by Modifying the ISO File
A major issue with installing Windows 11 on ineligible hardware is that it won’t receive features or security updates. But there’s a workaround.
You can install future updates using the Command Prompt method we discussed above. Make sure to download the ISO image of the Windows 11 version you want to upgrade to, then run thesetup.exefile using thesetup /product servercommand.
If that doesn’t work, you can modify the contents of theappraiserres.dllfile in the ISO image and then run the setup to perform an upgrade. To get started, download and mount the latest version of Windows 11 ISO.
Since we can’t directly edit the contents of an ISO image, we first need to copy the files to a new folder. So, double-click to open the mounted drive in File Explorer. You’ll see it in the left pane underThis PC. Then, pressCtrl + Ato select all the files.
Create a new folder namedWindows 11 Updateand paste the copied content into it. Once done, right-click on the mounted drive and chooseEject.
Open theWindows 11 Updatesfolder, go to theSourcesfolder, and locate theappraiser.dllfile. Right-click on it and chooseOpen With > Notepad.
In Notepad, pressCtrl + Ato select all the contents, pressBackspaceto delete it, and then pressCtrl + Sto save the file. Now, go back to the Windows 11 Update folder and run thesetup.exe file. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the upgrade.
What Happens if You Install Windows 11 on Unsupported Hardware?
While it’s possible to install Windows 11 on your unsupported PC, you still need to know a few things. First, your PC will most likely not receive future updates from Microsoft—including security updates. While a world without Microsoft pushing update notifications every few days might sound like you’re in for a good time, those annoying updates go a long way in keeping your PC safe.
Note that Microsoft warns of compatibility and stability issues on unsupported hardware. For instance, you’ll likely see a persistent “System requirement not met” message on the desktop or in Settings. However, you canremove this watermark using a registry hack.
Since Microsoft won’t support Windows 10 after October 2025, you may as well just install Windows 11 and continue to install newer updates using these workarounds for as long as possible.
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Just change over to a Linux distribution and crap on Windows.
Not Linux, not Windows. Something better.
My foolproof plan is to use Windows 10 until 2030, with the latest security updates.
Love fades, even for the best open-source darling.
Windows is great, but adding this makes it unstoppable.
Lose your laptop without this feature, and you’ll wish you had turned it on.
Freeing up vital memory on Windows only takes a moment, and your computer will feel much faster once you’re done.
