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Windows 11 has strictminimum requirementsthat prevent millions of PCs from upgrading to the operating system.
But closer inspection of the document shows why that is not the case.
A misunderstanding led many to believe some older Intel chips had lost support for upgrading to Windows 11.
The support document is not meant for general consumers.
Instead, it’s a list of supported CPUs that gear manufacturers should use when creating new PCs.
Specifically, the list is of processors OEMs should use to build PCs to work withWindows 11 version 24H2.
Even Microsoft’s original Surface Studio cannot upgrade to Windows 11, but the list of supported chips that can upgrade to the OS has not changed.
“OEMs may use the following CPUs for new Windows 11 devices.
Microsoft also has aseparate pagethat explains the purpose of the OEM-focused document.
That includes meeting the TPM 2.0 requirement, which some older processors fall short of.
Unfortunately, the list was reported on without context by several outlets or shared with misleading analysis.
