225
Microsoft is cracking down on people upgrading to Windows 11 on unsupported hardware
(www.xda-developers.com)
And here I am trying NOT to install on my PC.
this post was submitted on 04 Feb 2025
225 points (97.9% liked)
Technology
62073 readers
4986 users here now
This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
Our Rules
- Follow the lemmy.world rules.
- Only tech related content.
- Be excellent to each other!
- Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
- Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
- Politics threads may be removed.
- No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
- Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
- Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
- Accounts 7 days and younger will have their posts automatically removed.
Approved Bots
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
Why do they care? Don't they want the tiny market share of Windows 11 to go up?
Well if you buy say a new laptop it will come with an OEM license so they make a sale unlike if you use your old windows 7/8/10 license on your unsuported laptop
Your argument is flawed. The situation is using Windows 11 on unsupported hardware. So the sale you are talking about has already happened which invalidates your point
I'm assuming you simply misread the question
Windows 7/8/10 are irrelevant as that's an entirely different situation
When you get a new laptop it comes with Windows (except in very rare exceptions). So microsoft collects another sale.
All the other windows versions are very important to my argument as you can use old 7/8/10 licenses to activate Win 11.
to activate Win 11.
You didn't include this in your argument that's why it was flawed
They don't care about home users buying licenses. That's probably less than 1% of license sales. As long as businesses are buying it they're happy. You can activate Windows with a github script. Microsoft would have fixed that vulnerability if they really cared.
I don’t know much about business but I think that that is what they think that they’re doing….
While this article is about upgrading to Win11, not necessarily a clean install, I found the best way to bypass the requirements is to make an autounnatend with Schneegans.de . Make a Win11 installation USB, generate an autounnatend to bypass the requirements, remove bloat, allow offline install (local account instead of Microsoft account), and a couple other little tweaks like dark mode etc. Drop the xml on the root of the flash drive, and boom.
Or... You know... Install Linux.
Rufus can do this too
I was really considering getting a new laptop and now I want it to be a Debian laptop. :^
I wish Debian's installer didn't suck. I want to be able to use btrfs without manually partitioning. I know how to manually partition in Calamarus or whatever it's called but Debian's installer confused the shit out of me. Void Linux also had a more straightforward installer. Aside from that, Debian is great.
How do you choose a Linux OS?
Personal preference really but Debian is pretty much just Ubuntu without the bloat. You can also try a lot of them on a live disk without installing (Mint is a good option too).
I am using Linux for work anyway and used Windoof just for gaming. I have heard good things about gaming on Linux recently, so that's a good incentive to make the full switch.
Making Win 11 even harder to install is a bold move from Microsoft. Most average users are content with using the OS that comes with their PC and upgrading it when necessary. But if the option is to either buy a new PC or fiddle with registry settings in hope that Win 11 will work, I think a lot more people will start looking at Linux instead.
Let's not kid ourselves, most people will not start looking at Linux. They should, but they won't. They'll continue to use the version of Windows their machine came with, becoming a botnet petri dish in the process, forever, until it breaks or becomes unusable. If Microsoft actually forces their machine to become unbootable they'll rush off to the mall and replace it with a Mac.
And in the meantime they'll click off any nags and warnings Microsoft sends them without reading them.
Just like happened with XP.
Just like what happened with Vista.
Just like what happened with 7.
Etc.
Most users are clueless, barely understand how to use their computers except by rote, and therefore are extremely afraid of change. Microsoft could offer a free puppy with your updrade to Win11 and I think about 75% of users would still refuse to take it.
most people will not start looking at Linux. They should, but they won't.
Assuming you're correct, the Linux community needs to get their shit together then.
And i can fix that.
All i need is 1 billion dollars in investment. 10 million people giving 100 dollars to a Kickstarter/indie gogo
And ill make it happen in my lifetime.
I'll accept louis rossman as my business partner who handles the money to prevent me from abusing it or staying from the goal
It will take time.
But it will be global.
First year will only cost 150k. My salary until the donors decide to adjust it as source by Louis
Plus travel expenses. I'm willing to have review board and recommended budget changes as long as i can work on 2-3 year spreads with a fixed budget, as approved by Louis and the board.
I will only tell Louis my plan and he can choose where the money goes and who replaced me if he decides to remove me
Also I'm serious and will donate 30,000 dollars to the campaign and 5 thousand to person who can run this campaign and get this started
This is not a joke
load more comments
(13 replies)
Nah, just us tech heads that are willing to put in the effort (and I'm not, Linux on the desktop has a long way to go, and I use Linux for all sorts of services).
99% of users can't be bothered to understand the concept of a web browser, and that there are different ones. Switch them to any Linux distro and they'd freeze like deer in headlights.
Source: decades of providing support.
And yes, dumb move my MS, not sure what they're trying to do here.
Linux on the desktop has a long way to go
What do you perceive is missing? I've been using Linux exclusively since 2006 (while supporting Windows users at work), there's never been a time when I felt like I was missing a particular Windows feature. Mostly I just find Windows' lack of user-friendliness to be extremely maddening.
To be fair, if you've been using Linux exclusively for nearly 30 years then yeah, you wouldn't be missing any Windows features because you don't daily it. That's a no-brainer.
I'm a daily Windows user but I do sometimes dabble in Linux both out of curiosity and also for challenge reasons. I used to use it for my school laptop(s) and at one point I had a 2nd desktop rig running it. I can gladly say it has come a long way and improved in many ways since the early days, but it still has a ways to go. Unfortunately one of the biggest obstacles is the Linux community itself which is both resistant to change and exceptionally hostile to new users.
About two years ago I was troubleshooting an audio driver that refused to work and I was asking in several Linux communities for assistance. The responses ranged from standoffish to indifferent to several people outright saying "If you can't even figure this out then maybe you shouldn't use Linux lmao". And I agree. Maybe I shouldn't. Because I was tired of spending so much time screwing around in a terminal while talking to people that think I am trash for struggling to use the operating system they claim is so good.
Linux can be an extremely polished, smooth, and effective experience but that experience is like the frozen surface of a lake. Once something goes wrong and you break through the surface - you are screwed unless you are highly experienced already. That has been my experience, at least.
exceptionally hostile to new users
~~What kind of hostility have you seen?~~ EDIT: You wrote all that lol, my bad
load more comments
(12 replies)
load more comments
(1 replies)
load more comments
(3 replies)
load more comments
(17 replies)
And here I am with windows 11 compatible hardware refusing that upgrade. I'm primarily in Linux on my desktop these days, but it dual boots into windows 10.
I guess it's a good thing I am switching to Linux.
Mint. There you forgot to finish your sentence.
I'm installing Mint! I also had an eye on EndeavourOS, but I'm thinking I can first switch to mint and once I have some time in it switch to the more involved EndeavourOS tweaking process.
The thing that most grabs me about mint is the polish and refinement, its a no frills shit just works vibe. For instance install bazzite or most other distros even silverblue etc. The program names are wacky and navigation isn't intuituve as much. Not to say those are bad but mint seems easily labelled. Thought out and navigatable. Having almost everything you need pre installed with next to zero bullshit.
Cinnamon seems the best. I just booted up XFCE yesterday. Good but not cinnamon good. Games worked on my all AMD system out of the box. No tweaks needed for 98 percent of games. It's been so smooth that half my family has joined. Due to Windows upgrade bullshit nobody has looked back. Windows gets used maybe once in 6 months to go play multiplayer games. Even then I could easily ditch it. Never going back.
Don't say, do.
view more: next ›