Windows 11 Is Already Available For PC Users, But Not All of Them

Windows 10 users will be able to get a free upgrade to Windows 11 on Tuesday. However, your computer’s capacity to run Microsoft’s newest operating system is primarily determined by its age and processor type.

When Microsoft originally unveiled Windows 11 this summer, it revealed certain limitations on which PCs would be compatible with the new operating system. Windows 11 will require a special processor known as a Trusted Platform Module, or “TPM,” chip, according to Microsoft.

Digital Trends Managing Editor Nick Mokey told ABC Audio, “It’s a tiny chip the size of your fingernail that resides on the motherboard, sometimes it’s on the CPU.” “It’s there for security reasons, and Microsoft has a solid justification for wanting it.”

The objective of Microsoft’s TPM requirement, according to David Weston, Director of Enterprise and OS Security, is to “help secure encryption keys, user credentials, and other sensitive data behind a hardware barrier so that malware and attackers can’t access or tamper with that data.”

The release of Windows 11 coincides with an increase in ransomware assaults. Some of these assaults, such as the SolarWinds breach, targeted Microsoft code explicitly.

The TPM chip is more likely to be found in newer laptops, according to Mokey.

“Some folks who build their own computers, on the other hand, may not have the chip you want. Furthermore, some gaming laptops do not have them as standard equipment “Mokey said. “However, if you have something inside the previous few years that you bought out of the box, it’s pretty probable you’ll be able to run Windows 11.”

Mokey suggests utilizing Microsoft’s “PC Health Check” program to see if your computer is capable of running Windows 11.

“It just takes a few seconds to download, it runs on your PC, looks at the requirements, and tells you whether or not you can run Windows 11,” he explained.

Windows 11 also includes a number of non-security upgrades for PC users. The start menu has been relocated from the bottom left corner to the bottom center of the home screen by Microsoft (though the system also gives users the option to move it back to the traditional location). And, according to Mokey, that’s just the beginning of the new OS’s design changes.

“It has a significantly different appearance from Windows 10,” he added. “It has a cleaner appearance in my opinion. These rounded, glassy-looking menus have been developed by Microsoft. Some of the animations have a more flowing feel to them.”

He also mentions that Windows 11 has certain under-the-hood modifications.

“Microsoft has also said that performance would be improved. So that implies greater battery life, better security… and there are really some performance benefits for gamers in there as well “Mokey said.

The ability to run Android apps on the desktop is one of the more talked-about features of Windows 11. Users would be able to download and operate programs like TikTok through the Microsoft Store, but only in the short term.

“I believe it was one of the most anticipated features, and Microsoft effectively put a damper on it,” Mokey remarked. “That will not be available at launch.”

Microsoft hasn’t stated when Windows 11 will get the functionality.