Microsoft Denies Windows 11 CPU Requirements Have Changed After 22H2 Gaffe

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Users with Kaby Lake and Skylake CPUs have been offered the update.

Windows 11
(Image credit: Microsoft)

On Tuesday, Microsoft started to roll out Windows 11 22H2 to the release preview channel for enrolled insiders. It noted that this update was going to be offered to Windows 11 insiders only. However, NeoWin reports some Windows 10 users have been taken aback as the 22H2 update has been offered to them, even if their hardware is too old to meet Windows 11 hardware requirements.

Microsoft's official blog post about the release preview of Win 11 22H2 says "Insiders currently in the Release Preview Channel that meet the Windows 11 hardware requirements can go to Settings and Windows Update and choose to download and install Windows 11, version 22H2 Build 22621 if they want." This statement makes no mention of Windows 10 Insider testers, but it seems like updates have slipped through the net to offer updates to the newest build of Windows 11.

Several social media posters say they have been offered the headlining update for PC systems using Windows 10. A Twitter user noted her Windows 10 release preview machine got offered Windows 11 version 22H2, as did a Reddit user and a number of people who replied to their post.

(Image credit: Ace RImmer on Reddit)

Many of the users inexplicably offered the latest Windows 11 insider update were running 7th gen Intel Core processors (Kaby Lake), which are just one generation below qualifying for support by this metric. There were reports of 7th gen and 6th gen (Skylake) Intel Core processor based machines being offered the update and going ahead with it, with no known issues to date. Those with even older gen hardware appear to have had had less success with fewer update offers, and the chance of update success seems to be diminished the further a machine wanders away from the official supported specs.

Microsoft: Its "A Bug," Not a Feature

With the above posts circulating and discussion threads growing, people started to speculate whether this was an intended change from Microsoft, to boost the adoption / popularity of its latest OS. Sadly, this isn't the case. Microsoft's official Windows Insider Program Twitter account has replied to the Twitter post linked above to assert "it’s a bug… requirements have not changed". The development teams are apparently investigating what has happened, and one must assume Microsoft will be changing the bug which was offering Windows 11 updates on unsupported hardware.

Those who have upgraded systems via this bug may wish to roll back within 10 days of the update. If not, as users of unsupported systems, they might not be offered Microsoft's regular security patches.

Mark Tyson
Mark Tyson
News Editor

Mark Tyson is a news editor at Tom's Hardware. He enjoys covering the full breadth of PC tech; from business and semiconductor design to products approaching the edge of reason.

5 Comments Comment from the forums
  • eye4bear
    You seem to fail to notice (or failed to comment) on the fact that a number of users with slightly out of window processors installed the update and had no issues. This would seem to confirm (thanks to MS) that the MS system requirements for Windows 11 are the BS most of us assume they are.
    Reply
  • TerryLaze
    Admin said:
    Some Windows 10 insiders with unsupported hardware are being offered the latest Windows 11 22H2
    Now that's what I call progress, windows 10 users getting windows 11 updates.
    Reply
  • hotaru.hino
    eye4bear said:
    You seem to fail to notice (or failed to comment) on the fact that a number of users with slightly out of window processors installed the update and had no issues. This would seem to confirm (thanks to MS) that the MS system requirements for Windows 11 are the BS most of us assume they are.
    Hardware requirements have always been pretty BS anyways. Someone got Windows 10 running on a Pentium 4. There's someone out there who got a core version of Ubuntu running on an 8-bit microcontroller. People got Doom 3 to run on a Voodoo 2.

    It's more about what hardware the company wants to deal with when you ask for support. Just because Windows 10 can run on a Pentium 4 doesn't mean Microsoft will want to support someone using a system that the hardware manufacturer dropped support for.
    Reply
  • valreesio
    hotaru.hino said:
    It's more about what hardware the company wants to deal with when you ask for support. Just because Windows 10 can run on a Pentium 4 doesn't mean Microsoft will want to support someone using a system that the hardware manufacturer dropped support for.

    "Just because you can does not mean you should" has always been around, even outside of the tech world. I even use it in our pest control business that we own.
    Reply
  • dimar
    MS should consider Core 1st gen CPUs as the minimum Windows 11 requirement. Even Core 2 Quad with GT 1030 can run Win10 kind of ok.
    Reply