Windows 11 is the latest version of Microsoft’s operating system. During its presentation at the end of June 2021, what attracted the most attention was its demanding minimum installation requirements, although finally, Microsoft backtracked. Today, you can practically install Windows 11 on any PC for free.
At the functionalities level, Windows 11 includes several interesting new features, such as the possibility of installing Android applications natively, a new organization of the start bar in the purest macOS style, improvements for the gaming world, and the promise of launching a single update.
How to get Windows 11 legally and for free
With the release of Windows 11, it is only a matter of time before Microsoft stops supporting Windows 10. Fortunately, this does not mean that you have to spend the money on a new license for Windows 11. Here are some tricks to get Windows 11 free.
Requirements to qualify for a free upgrade to Windows 11
One of the easiest ways to get Windows 11 for free is that you already have Windows 10 installed on the PC and that you also meet all the minimum requirements. The requirements include:
- At least 4GB of RAM,
- A 64-bit processor at least 1GHzÂ
- A TPM 2.0 security module, among other things.
If your PC is relatively recent, you shouldn’t have any problem meeting all Microsoft’s requirements. If so, the system will offer you a free upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11.
In the event that the PC does not meet the requirements, you can still install Windows 11. It must be a clean installation from scratch through a disk image (which you can copy to a USB stick or DVD to launch the installation). You can download the Windows 11 ISO image for free from the Microsoft Store.
1. Check for available updates in Windows 10
Microsoft is rolling out Windows 11 in a staggered fashion, offering free updates to Windows 10 users based on their PC hardware and conditions.
If your computer meets the requirements, it is likely that at some point the system will require you to update to Windows 11, although you can also force this update.
For Windows to offer you the update, you must install all the pending updates for Windows 10. You can check all the updates available for your system by going to “Settings -> Update&Security -> Windows Update”.
2. Download the Windows 11 Installation Wizard
At this point, if you have already installed all the pending updates for Windows 10 but you still do not see the invitation to move to Windows 11, you can choose this second method.
What you will do here is use the Windows 11 Installation Wizard. Just download the application and it will automatically install Windows 11.
The only drawback you will find along the way is the following: before installing Windows 11, the wizard will ask you to run a tool called ” PC Status Check ” to see if the PC complies with everything necessary. Remember that one of the requirements is to have a valid Windows 10 license.
3. Download the Windows 11 ISO to install from scratch
You can also install Windows 11 on a PC with a formatted hard drive or without an operating system. If you have a new computer just out of the store and want to put Windows 11 into it, what you have to do is download the ISO image of Windows 11 and burn it on a USB stick or DVD disc.
To carry out this process, download the Windows Media Creation Tool. You should also download the Windows 11 ISO image. Both are available for free on THIS PAGE from Microsoft.
Once you have the ISO image downloaded, run the media creation tool, which will help you to automatically create the Windows 11 installation USB.
When you have the pendrive ready, restart the PC so that it loads directly from the bootable USB. You may have to modify the PC boot priorities from the BIOS.
Of course, this will allow you to install Windows 11 on the PC, but you still need a valid license to activate Windows 11 and enjoy the full experience.
