Microsoft Rolls Out Windows 11 Upgrades A Day Early To Eligible Windows 10 PCs
Those eligible PCs include newly released systems that came with Windows 10 preinstalled. And, of course, those machines meet all of Microsoft's minimum system requirements for installing Windows 11. According to Microsoft, existing PC systems not covered by the automatic rollout will receive Windows 11 automatically through Windows Update in waves by mid-2022.
However, if your current Windows 10 rig meets all the system requirements listed below for installing Windows 11, you can get the operating system early:
- Processor: 8th generation Intel Core or AMD Ryzen 2000 (and newer) processor
- RAM: 4GB
- Storage: 64GB
- System firmware: UEFI, Secure Boot capable
- TPM: Trusted Platform Module (TPM) version 2.0
- Graphics card: DirectX 12 compatible or later with WDDM 2.0 driver
- Display: High definition (720p) greater than 9 inches diagonally, 8 bits per color channel
If you're unsure if your PC meets those requirements, you can always download and install the PC Health Check app, which will tell you if your system passes, and what needs updating if it fails. In addition, you can follow our guide, which describes how to jump on the Release Preview Channel to score Windows 11 right now through Windows Update.
If your PC hardware doesn't support Windows 11, installing the operating system is still possible using the clean install/ISO method. However, we'd highly advise against it, given that Microsoft hasn't made any assurances that it will provide product or security updates for these systems.
With that said, starting tomorrow, October 5th, the first PC with Windows 11 preinstalled will begin shipping from all major OEMs like Dell, Hewlett-Packard, and countless others. In addition, Microsoft's new family of Surface hardware, including the Surface Pro 8 and Surface Book Studio, will ship tomorrow with Windows 11 onboard.
