MESQUITE

Windows 11 release date is October 5

George Cox
PC Periodicals

After testing Windows 11 for a couple of months, Microsoft is confident enough that it has announced that it will release the operating system on October 5.  The OS will ship to new and existing PCs on this date. This is something that has been known for quite some time, even if most signs hinted at the OS launching towards the end of the month. But the start of October works perfectly fine too, and as in the norm, the rollout will take a phased approach.

Microsoft made things official in a blog, confirming that while Windows 11 will launch on this day, not everyone will get the update on October 5. Microsoft plans to roll out the update to new eligible devices first, and then use intelligent models to decide the rollout for other eligible machines.

Will Windows 11 be a free upgrade for all Windows 10 users?

According to Aaron Woodman, general manager of Windows marketing at Microsoft, all eligible devices are expected to receive the free upgrade for Windows 11 by mid-2022 (the projected end of the free update period). Windows 11 update will be made available to all Windows 10 users but it seems that Microsoft will not send the update if they are using an older PC. Only selected late-model AMD processors (mostly Ryzen), selected Atom, Celeron. Pentium, Xeno processors, and 8th generation and later iCore Processors (i3, i5, i7, & i9).

If you are eager to see what all the fuss is about, then you could install the Windows 11 Insider build right now or the Windows 11 ISO. These are currently early builds, though they do feature the new interface and some key Windows 11 features. It is not recommended to install it on your main machine, as it is still early in the release schedule and there is a good chance it will not work flawlessly.

What are the system requirements for Windows 11?

The Start Menu has transformed into the Dock.

The core system requirements for Windows 11 are not too different from what Windows 10 asks for, at least as far as the processor, RAM, and graphics card are concerned. There is currently the inclusion of a Trusted Platform Module 2.0 though, that could scrap some upgrade plans.

Note: the minimum requirements does not provide optimal performance, only functionality.

The full specifications are:

  • Processor: 1 GHz or faster with 2 or more cores on a compatible 64-bit processor or System on a Chip (SoC)
  • Memory: 4 GB RAM
  • Storage: 64 GB or larger storage device
  • System firmware: UEFI, Secure Boot capable
  • TPM: Trusted Platform Module (TPM) version 2.0
  • Graphics card: DirectX 12 compatible graphics / WDDM 2.x
  • Display: >9-inch with HD Resolution (720p)
  • Internet connection: Microsoft account and internet connectivity required for setup for Windows 11 Home. 

You will notice from those requirements that Windows 11 is not limited to x86 CPUs, and we have already seen the Insider Preview installed on some interesting hardware.  The issue for some, however, lies in what constitutes a 'compatible' CPU to Microsoft. To pass this test, you will need a relatively modern CPU, but that is not always enough. AMD Zen and older CPUs do not make the cut, neither do most Intel 7th Gen chips.

My Windows 11 test laptop utilizes a i5-1135G7 quad processor running at 10Ghz, with 8Gb RAM (utilizes 7.7Gb doing nothing), with a 256Gb SSD and provides adequate performance thus far.  However, most of the new features have been released yet.

I am currently running Home Insider Preview Build 22449.1000.  This appears to be the last preview release that will run on older processors.  A warning has appeared that says older ineligible processor chips must now revert back to Windows 10, as future updates to Windows 11 will not install.  I am speculating that the next update will start containing some of the new features that will not run on the older processor chips.

For Windows 10 Users, expect to see a chunky update for Windows 10 drop around the same time as well, although Microsoft will probably focus on its new OS for the main part. Windows 10 will still be getting updates until 2025, so there is plenty of life in Windows 10.

Stay protected!

George Cox is the owner of Computer Diagnostics and Repair.  He can be reached at 346-4217.

George Cox