The utility that allows you to create installation USB keys for operating systems has once again bypassed the restrictions set by Microsoft to prevent installation of Windows 11 on unsupported configurations.
To be able to install Windows 11 on a PC, Microsoft imposed relatively stringent specifications from the beginning. Thus, the operating system requires a TPM 2.0 security chip, but above all a processor Intel or AMD meet their requirements.
Over the course of updates to its operating system, the Redmond company has introduced new restrictions to try to discourage users from installing Windows 11 on an incompatible PC.
The latest concerns very old machines. If there are many hacks to install Windows 11 on a device that does not meet the standards imposed by Microsoft, the American company has tried to put an end to this by publishing the 24H2 update. Because in order to be able to install the major update to its operating system, Microsoft now requires that every device supports PopCnt, otherwise the installation of the operating system will simply be blocked. Therefore, devices whose processor does not support the SSE4.2 and SSE4A instruction sets, of which PopCnt is a part, cannot install 24H2. There is no workaround to install 24H2 on these devices because this major Windows update was bundled with instructions for these processors. For these, Windows 11 24H2 will not be able to start.
This is probably why Microsoft is now officially recommending that you change your PC if you want to be able to take advantage of Windows 11 while still using an old PC.
The 24H2 update is blocked on some computers without minimum system requirements
Microsoft is still trying to discourage users of incompatible devices from installing its operating system. A number of users with incompatible PCs running Windows 11 23H2 were unable to install the 24H2 update as the Microsoft installation utility blocked the process due to lack of proper configuration.
For our part, we had no problem installing the 24H2 update on our two devices that were in principle incompatible according to Microsoft standards.
Fortunately, the hacking community has more than one trick to get around these restrictions imposed by Microsoft. The Rufus utility, which already made a splash by allowing users to install Windows 11 without a Microsoft account, has just been updated. Its developer has published a new version of its tool to allow the installation of the Windows 11 24H2 update on computers that do not meet Microsoft specifications.
Rufus 4.6, the best friend of incompatible PCs for 24-hour update
When Microsoft started rolling out the Windows 11 24H2 Update, Pete Batardthe developer of Rufus, posted on Github, in response to a user unable to install 24H2 on his old computer, a solution to circumvent Microsoft's restrictions. He also added that this workaround will be integrated directly into the next update of its utility.
Something promised, something deserved. It's just been posted Rufus 4.6 betathe first version of the utility capable of bypassing the minimum system requirements for installing Windows 11 24H2.
” Added a new setup.exe wrapper to bypass Windows 22 24H2 update limitations » refers to the Rufus developer in the release notes of his tool.
Computers without PopCount/SSE4.2 will still be stuck at 23H2
For users of very old devices, whose processor does not support PopCnt/SSE4.2, developer Rufus is clear. He points out that its usefulness will never exceed these limitations.
” […] Rufus only uses official solutions listed by Microsoft itself, and is not an over-the-top method of disabling all device scans. That's why I don't plan to do anything about PopCount/SSE4.2 CPU requirements, which Rufus doesn't exceed » points out in response to a user mentioning the fact that circumventing these restrictions can “ Installing the breaking system This same user, who asks if he plans to display an alert in his widget to explain to users that Rufus cannot bypass these restrictions, adds Pete Batard to this same user: I don't intend to. If official Microsoft-approved solutions don't work, that's Microsoft's problem, not mine. Rufus works within the Microsoft framework, with workarounds that Microsoft has included in the installer, so, as has been the case since the release of Windows 11, I expect that the workarounds allowed by Microsoft will not render the device inoperable, and I also expect Microsoft to filter out workarounds An alternative might be something like PopCount/SSE4.2. »
Thus, users of very old PCs will have to stick with Windows 11 23H2, with the risks involved once Microsoft ends support for it on November 10, 2025. They can otherwise adopt another OS. This is undoubtedly the best option. A Linux distro, such as Linux Mint, or even Chrome OS Flex, which is much lighter than Windows 11, will continue to be updated and will provide a second life to the oldest devices.
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By: Opera
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