In June, Microsoft eliminated the “soft floor” and made TPM 2.0 a minimum requirement. Microsoft originally instituted both a ”hard” and a “soft” floor of specifications to run Windows 11, designed around the TPM module specification. (Microsoft and AMD announced a complementary technology called Pluton in late 2020, originally developed for the Xbox, though Windows 11 PCs don’t appear to require it.) Your PC must also support UEFI and be Secure Boot-capable. ( What’s a TPM?) A TPM includes a hardware-based random number generator, and can issue cryptographic keys to protect your data. You will now need a PC that includes a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0, a security coprocessor that’s not present on all PCs.

Microsoft is also adding new, stricter security requirements for Windows 11. Windows 11’s controversial TPM requirement We’re already seeing Microsoft itself declare a substantial chunk of its Surface lineup ineligible for Windows 11 upgrades. Microsoft has ruled out first-generation AMD Zen processors, however.Įliminating older 7th-generation Core processors will certainly cut out a substantial portion of the PC market from a Windows 11 upgrade, though how many isn’t exactly clear. As of August 27, that list now includes the Intel Core X-series, the Xeon W-series, and the Intel Core 7820HQ, which features in the Microsoft Surface Studio 2. We’ve published a list of CPUs that support Windows 11, here. On the Arm side of things, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 850 and up are also supported by Windows 11. Our performance testing of Windows 11’s Virtualization-Based Security feature shows a likely reason why those are the cutoffs. A similar list of supported AMD processors on Windows 11 indicate that the Ryzen 2000 series and above is supported. Windows 11 will require an 8th-gen Core CPU and above, according to the Windows 11 hardware requirements for Intel CPUs.

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