Will our Dell XPS desktop computers run Windows 11?

These are the messages I get from the Microsoft PC Health Check app on my XPS 8900 and XPS 8940.

XPS 8940XPS 8900

Note that the App has updated already since I first downloaded it and the message presented on my XPS 8900 now specifies the processor as being not supported by Windows 11 - previously it just said that update to Windows 11 was not possible.

Running the Microsoft Windows 11 validation app, my 2018 Inspiron 15 Gaming 5577, with 7th gen i5 is not compatible.  But my self built desktop with an i7 8700K and TPM 2.0 is Win 11 compatible.

I have not found the tool to be useful.

This is my home PC, not part of a domain and I'm administrator.

My XPS8700 motherboard doesn't have a TPM so unless MS drop this requirement, it's a new PC for me (will not be Intel because of how far Intel have fallen behind AMD)

FWIW, my (now dead) 8900 had an eighth-generation Core i7.

Have a look at your 8900 before presuming it isn’t compatible.

Dell have published a list of their computers that have been tested for upgrade to Windows 11 here.

My PC (XPS 8930) is on Dell's list for desktops that support Win 11. But when I run Windows PC Health Check, it says I cannot run Win 11.

From what I can tell, the only reason it doesn't support Win 11 is that I don't have TPM 2.0. When I check the BIOS, TPM is "greyed out", and can't be activated. The version on my PC is not 2.0. Without going back into the BIOS right now, I think it said 1.2? I can't activate it.    

Why would M$ come out with a new OS that requires most people to buy a new PC? It's not like I bought a bargain-basement PC. My PC is only a few years old and at the time of purchase was almost top of the line.

Is there a way to enable TMP and update to version 2.0 on my PC?

@lb11  Mine has the i7-6700 and I'm not going to shell out for a new processor and (possibly) graphics card for an old PC when I've also got an XPS 8940.  Maybe Microsoft will rethink their CPU list, maybe they won't but I'm not going to chase the spec. with my XPS 8900.

I'll build a new PC in a few years with DDR5 memory, super fast NVMe SSD and properly engineered cooling from day 1 before support for Windows 10 expires for my XPS 8900. 

Here's another wrinkle...

Dell has only validated the XPS 8930 and XPS 8940 for Win 11. They won't be testing any other XPS desktop models, which means, even if your PC model meets Microsoft's minimum hardware requirements for Win 11, Dell won't be releasing any updated drivers for those other models.  Doesn't necessarily mean Win 11 won't automatically install suitable drivers, but who knows..?

Besides, what's the rush for Win 11? Let somebody else do the beta testing and find all the bugs, so you won't have to deal with them. And we all know there will be bugs, just like with every other new version of Windows that Microsoft has ever released.

Win 10 will be supported until Oct'2025, so your PC has at least 4 years of life left...

@Jon-62 wrote, "My graphics card, an NVIDIA GTX 750, is too old and doesn't support DirectX 12 / WDDM 2.x"

I have an NVIDIA GTX 750 Ti and it supports DirectX 12 / WDDM 2.3. You can run "dxdiag" to determine DirectX and WDDM versions. DirectX version is listed in the System tab and WDDM version is listed in the Display tab.

I agree with @RoHe, there is no need to rush to conclusions about minimum requirements for Windows 11. A lot can happen between now and when it is actually available for upgrade. Look at what the requirements were on June 24 when Microsoft made the announcement and today. 

Just a quick update as Microsoft have responded to my Windows Installation Feedback regarding compatible processors.

If you want you should be able to open the Windows 10 Feedback App, search for recent feedback and leave an additional comment on this.

Support 6th Generation (Skylake) and 7th generation (Kabylake) Processors for Windows 11

The Windows 11 PC Check reports the OptiPlex 7040 (6th Generation Intel Processor) and OptiPlex 7050 (7th Generation Intel Processor) systems to be incompatible. The system requirements are a bit more elevated than I would have expected. I personally would expect Windows 11 to work on 6th (Skylake) and 7th (Kabylake) Generation Intel Processors which are from around 2016-2017. Moreover i5-6xxx, i7-6xxx, i5-7xxx and i7-7xxx have a marginal difference in system performance and technologies available compared to i3-8xxx and are superior to the supported Atom and Celeron products. These processors also meet all of Windows 11 other system requirements and Dell have stated that all Skylake Systems have regarding a Trusted Platform Module (TPM Version 2.0) c.f. Dell Article Number: 000103639 and a UEFI BIOS with Secure Boot patched to address the GRUB2 Security Exploit c.f Dell Article Number: 000177589.

Microsoft Response:

Steve Dispensa @dispensa [VP of PM, Microsoft Endpoint Manager and Windows Commercial] https://twitter.com/dispensa/status/1408577130946994176?s=20 "The chipset requirement is based on a bunch of factors, including supportability, capabilities, quality, and reliability so we can ensure everyone has a great experience. We're working on a blog post with more info, coming soon."

Although Dell has validated the XPS 8930 for Win 11 (https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000187485/placeholder-for-new-windows-tested-systems#XPS-DT-W11), my XPS 8930 does not agree with that. There is an option for “Firmware TPM” in my BIOS. Firmware TPM is shown as DISABLED. It is also grayed out, so I am not able to enable Firmware TPM.

Anyone have any ideas of how to fix this?

@Jon-62 

You can Bypass TPM and install anyway.

Bypass TPM and SecureBoot when installing Windows 11 on unsupported hardware:

https://twitter.com/cadenzza_/status/1408866403743109125

During installation press Shift+F10, open registry and create key
LabConfig  under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Setup

There add:
"BypassTPMCheck"=dword:00000001
"BypassSecureBootCheck"=dword:00000001

At that screen, you need to press Shift+F10
to open Command Prompt window and modify the registry.

In Command Prompt, you need to run regedit.exe

and create a new key “LabConfig”

under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Setup.

In the “LabConfig” key, create two new entries:

BypassTPMCheck=dword:00000001
BypassSecureBootCheck=dword:00000001

Save the changes and compatibility errors will disappear.

**********************************************************************

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Setup\LabConfig]
“BypassTPMCheck”=dword:00000001
“BypassSecureBootCheck”=dword:00000001

**********************************************************************

Method 2: Create your own INSTALL media

The second method involves modifying the ISO file.

If you want to upgrade the operating system by running the setup.exe
directly from Windows 11 media image, there’s another simple workaround.

You need to replace the appraiserres.dll in the sources folder on your installation media with the version of that file from a Windows 10 ISO.
Once done, you need to recreate the ISO image using a third-party tool like Rufus or AnyBurn, and run the setup file again.

Microsoft have released the first Dev Insider Preview Build of Windows 11. It looks like they have a traffic light system with:

• Green: Meeting Windows 11 Hardware Requirements
• Amber: Not Meeting Windows 11 Hardware Requirements but Meeting Minimum Requirements for the Windows Insider Program
• Red: Not Meeting Requirements for the Windows Insider Program

With the amber category, installation is allowed but there is a warning about a possible degraded experience and some features not working properly. It seems to install without issue on a 6th Generation and 7th Generation unsupported processor which otherwise have all the other required features.

Preparing for Insider Preview Builds of Windows 11 | Windows Insider Blog