Upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11

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Upgrade

About this lesson

How to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11.

Quick reference

Upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11

Understand the system requirements needed to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11.

When to use

We upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 to ensure that we are using the most up-to-date operating system from Microsoft and have access to the latest features and utilities.  

Instructions

Windows 10 users can upgrade for free to Windows 11 with some caveats. There are some very specific system requirements we need to meet in order to run Windows 11 on our PC.

Windows 11 System Requirements

Windows 10 was built to run on older hardware, Windows 11 requires relatively new hardware and has a strict set of minimum system requirements: 

  • Processor: 1GHz or faster with two or more cores on a compatible 64-bit processor or system on a chip (SoC)
  • RAM: at least 4GB
  • Storage: at least 64GB of available storage
  • Security: TPM version 2.0, UEFI firmware, Secure Boot capable
  • Graphics card: Compatible with DirectX 12 or later, with a WDDM 2.0 driver
  • Display: High definition (720p) display, 9" or greater monitor, 8-bits per color channel

How to Check System Compatibility

  • Click the Start menu or press the Windows key on the keyboard. 
  • In the Search bar type, 'System Information'. 

PC Health Check

If we still aren't sure if our PC meets the minimum requirements, no worries because Microsoft has a PC Health Check Tool we can run to check if our system is able to run Windows 11. 

Automatic Update

Windows 11 has been rolling out in phases to Windows 10 users with compatible systems. Due to this, it's hard to say exactly when an individual will receive their free update. One way we can check if the update is ready to install is to periodically check our system for updates. 

  • Press the Windows key. 
  • In the Search bar type 'Settings'. 
  • Click on Windows Update in the left-hand menu. 
  • Click Check for Updates. 

If the update has been rolled out to our PC, we will be able to see it in the list available to install. 

As mentioned in the previous lesson, if we start to get impatient, we can choose to manually install Windows 11 here. 

Support for Windows 10

Microsoft has stated that there will still be support for Windows 10 up until 2025 but Windows 11 is positioned to become the standard operating system for computers going forward. 

Hints & tips

  • If we install the Windows 11 update, it can take up to an hour to fully download so we recommend doing this at an appropriate time, i.e. not when we are trying to work. 
Login to download
  • 00:04 Windows 10 users can upgrade to Windows 11 for free, but with some caveats.
  • 00:10 Because there are some very specific system requirements in order for
  • 00:14 you to be able to upgrade.
  • 00:16 So you want to check to make sure your laptop or
  • 00:18 your PC is compatible before choosing to upgrade to Windows 11.
  • 00:22 And you can see I have some of those system requirements on the screen
  • 00:26 right now.
  • 00:27 So a couple of the most important ones we need a 1 gigahertz or faster processor.
  • 00:33 We also need at least 4 gigabytes of RAM, and
  • 00:37 the storage on our device needs to be at least 64 gig.
  • 00:42 Now we can easily check our current Windows 10 system to see if our PC or
  • 00:47 laptop meets these requirements.
  • 00:50 So remember this process will be slightly different, for Windows 10 users.
  • 00:54 But in general we want to go to the Windows menu, and
  • 00:57 we want to search for system information.
  • 01:01 So wherever you have search on your PC type that in,
  • 01:04 and it should load up this window.
  • 01:06 And from here we can see all of the specifications of our current laptop or
  • 01:10 PC model.
  • 01:11 Now if you're still not sure if your system meets these requirements,
  • 01:15 we can run a PC health check on the Microsoft website.
  • 01:18 And this web page we're looking at now is basically where you would go to download
  • 01:22 Windows 11.
  • 01:23 Notice at the top of the page here, we have a link to the PC Health Check app.
  • 01:28 This will check your system and let you know if you have a compatible system for
  • 01:32 Windows 11.
  • 01:33 So make sure you run through that process first.
  • 01:36 Now Windows 11 has been rolling out to Windows 10 users with compatible systems.
  • 01:42 You might receive it as a Windows update.
  • 01:45 So all you need to do is jump into your update settings, run a check for updates.
  • 01:50 And if the update is ready to download you're going to see it sitting there.
  • 01:54 And it's up to you whether you download it or
  • 01:56 not it's not an automatic update because it is a large feature update.
  • 02:01 Now if you check in here and you don't have the update,
  • 02:04 you can always jump onto the Microsoft website, and download it manually.
  • 02:08 Just go on to the download Windows 11 page, and
  • 02:11 then right at the bottom you'll have a Download Now link.

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