Microsoft will cease providing Windows 10 security updates after October 14, 2025, unless users subscribe to Extended Security Updates. Upgrading to Windows 11 on older PCs faces hurdles due to CPU and TPM 2.0 requirements. While Microsoft discourages workarounds, methods exist to bypass compatibility checks, using registry edits or the Rufus utility. These workarounds may not function with all older systems, particularly those lacking SSE4.2 and PopCnt CPU instructions. A clean installation skips CPU checks but requires reinstalling apps and data.

Prepared by Jonathan Pierce and reviewed by editorial team.