Upgraded from Windows 10 to Windows 11 with an older PC? Microsoft will display a watermark if your device is too old.

With the end date for Windows 10 less than a year away, people still using that operating system will need to start preparing to enter the Windows 11 era. And Microsoft is placing a hardware requirement on the current OS that could pose a problem for those of us using older machines.

Microsoft has poured cold water on any hopes of lower hardware requirements for Windows 11. With Windows 10 end of support approaching in October 2025, the software giant now says that its Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.

The interesting twist to these Windows 10 numbers is the 400 million or so users that don’t have the right hardware to upgrade. While there are various options to upgrade on a non-compatible PC, Microsoft has just firmed up its warning that doing so could stop further updates and even invalidate any hardware warranties still in place.

Microsoft has confirmed that to use Windows 11, your computer must have Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0. This requirement is compulsory and cannot be changed. This announcement comes as the end of support date for Windows 10 approaches in October 2025.

The Microsoft Store will soon be able to update apps that aren't hosted on Microsoft's store servers. Microsoft has unveiled a new update in testing for the Store app on Windows 11 that allows it to update apps not hosted by Microsoft.

In an update to a Windows 11 support document as spotted by Neowin, Microsoft warns that a watermark will be added to the desktop on any PC that's been upgraded to Windows 11 without meeting the minimum requirements. Further, a notification may pop up in the Settings app to indicate that the computer doesn't meet the necessary requirements.

While announcing Windows 11, Microsoft made a very controversial move to change hardware requirements significantly. The latest edition of the most popular PC operating system cannot