Upgrading or installing Windows 11 on an older PC without TPM 2.0 and newer CPU features can be tricky, especially since Microsoft officially requires TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot for the upgrade. There are some insights and tips:
1. In-Place Upgrade:
- Usually safer in terms of preserving your apps and settings.
However, Microsoft’s upgrade process will likely block the upgrade due to hardware compatibility checks. - Clean Install:
More flexible; you can attempt to bypass hardware checks during the installation process.
2. Bypassing Hardware Checks Without Registry Hacks or External Tools:
Officially, Microsoft does not support installing Windows 11 on unsupported hardware without modifications.
Possible approach:
- Download the Windows 11 ISO.
- Create a bootable USB installer.
- When booting from the USB, you can try to modify the appraiserres.dll file in the ISO (by replacing it with a modified version that bypasses checks) — but this involves some file manipulation, which you want to avoid.
- Alternatively, during the installation, press Shift + F10 to open a Command Prompt, then disable TPM checks temporarily by deleting or renaming appraiserres.dll or similar files.
3. Drivers and Updates Post-Installation:
- Since your hardware is older, some drivers may not be available or may be generic.
- After install Windows 11 to an old computer, check Device Manager for unknown devices or driver issues.
- Visit your motherboard and hardware manufacturers' sites for Windows 10 drivers compatible with Windows 11, or use Windows Update to fetch compatible drivers.
- Common issues include graphics, network, or audio drivers.
- You may need to manually install some drivers or use compatibility mode.
