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Windows
11 — a SMB IT Perspective
First published: June 24,
2021 |
MS Blog | Beta:
flighting
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Prep |
Insider : twtr |
Adobe
Revised on
date of official release: Oct
5, 2021 | Known
Issues on-going since
beta, many remain active
Most
of the circulating info, including tech press, are false, misguided, or
deceptive. In most cases, you neither need or want it for your existing
workstation. At time of release, vast majority of the boxes out there
will NOT
quality for upgrade for technical reasons. Unofficial workarounds
exist, but cannot be relied upon for formal deployments. W11 does offer
some nice features, as long as you can live with
the downside.
Microsoft W11
Hardware Requirements
- architecture: x64
- boot method: UEFI & Secure Boot
- CPU: cores (2), clock 1GHz,
8th
gen+
:
Official List |
MSD
- TPM
2.0
- DirectX-12
+ WDDM2
- partition: GPT
(not MBR)
- memory: 4 GB
- stor avail: 64 GB
- NOT compatible with S Mode
Devices, must deactivate 10S, restore full mode
COMMENTARY
- Microsoft provided checker tool
to test for upgrade hardware requirement,
then
- hid it immediately to quell uproar:
virtually all FAILED to meet requirements
- page remains, but download is "coming soon"
- ms req TPM
2.0, ori 1.2, then double-down,
- my interpretation: nsa imposed, conspired to corral all
thru chokepoint, allows for bypass/master-key
- Secure
enclave; essentially password wallet; given to OS
authentication, and OS vendor (by definition)
- WILL make available non-TPM-required
editions for different markets
- WARNING:
99% of articles on Windows 11's use of TPM is extremely flawed,
essentially regurgitating the same marking points, based on
misconception
& fallacies.
10% of them are intentional
deceptions,
not mere ignorance.
Virtually all
practitioners are devoid
of technical
comprehension on the general topic of encryption.
-
VBS virtualization-based security, as excuse, justification
for stringent CPU gen (but not performance) req, hinting at
possible collusion w Intel & sys vendors
- complex methods of circumventing such
requirements exist
- 2016 MS blocked 8.1 & 7 update with newer CPUs
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verge
Reasons to
Adopt
- new features (Hint: tiling snap not 1 of them,
fancyzone instead!)
- W10 EOL Oct 14, 2025
+ extension(s)? + ESU (as always)
- device driver compatibility
- application compatibility (actual)
- software vendor policy
- default
on new system purchased (if retail)
- site-wide consistency
Reasons to
Avoid/Defer
- Explorer glitches, persistently
freezes 3~8 secs after some content updates
- issues with VirtualBox 6
- deprecated: drag to drop on active taskbar
button, after pause
- network configuration major re-scramble, some
quite convoluted
- legacy application incompatibility &
instability, for quite a few, will take a while...
- for those apps with reactive new release, could
mean extra expenditure
- site-wide consistency
What's
NEW:
- square
logo: see below
- "sleeker, more productive design"
- not-so-flat theme, back-n-forth fashion
cycles
- Start
menu: no more LIVE
TILES, fixed size icons,
"centered"
- windows tiling
templates: Snap Layout, Snap
Groups
- "better gaming experience": WDDM3, HDR,
framerate, casting
- personalized news feed: reduce
checking phones; widget glass sheen
- revamped Microsoft Store + Android
apps @Amazon Store
- bundled with Microsoft Teams
- DirectStorage:
NVMe SSD 1TB+ optimization for DiectX 12
- no more show all tray icons, now explicit
config "Taskbar corner overflow"
- home
edition: forced Microsoft
Account,
- no more hidden bypass for local account
during setup
- impossible to complete initial setup (OOBE)
without Internet connection
- annual
Feature Update (reduced from onerous SAC cadence)
- 13
versions
of Win10 thus far in 6.5 yrs: 1507 1511 1607 1703 1709 1803 1809 1903
1909 2004
20H2 21H1 20H2
- cumulative monthly security updates "up to 40%
smaller" [1%
cases?]
- 24 months of support for
non-ENT editions (up
from 12~18)
- 36 months of support for Enterprise edition
(up
from 30)
SEE ALSO
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