How do I check if Windows 11 is right for my computer?

Thomas Lucero
2 years ago

Microsoft has re-released the PC Health Check app, but not every user has access to this program. Here are the options for using this tool and two alternatives to assess whether your PC can upgrade to Windows 11.

Microsoft decided to make more stringent resource settings for Windows 11 than Windows 10, so the company released the PC Health Check. The program allows the user to make assessments of their computers’ readiness for the upgrade. 

This article will outline the system requirements for PC Health Check and two other tools that are alternatives to this program for checking your PC for readiness to receive the Windows 11 upgrade.

Requirements for Windows 11

Windows 11 has different system requirements than Windows 10. The minimum requirements for the free upgrade are: 

  • CPU: 1 GHz + / SoC system with 2 cores +.
  • RAM: 4GB.
  • Storage: 64 GB +.
  • Firmware: UEFI and Secure Boot support.
  • TPM: Version 2.0.
  • Graphics: DirectX 12 and later versions which have WDDM 2.0 driver.
  • Display resolution: 720p from 9″, 8 bits per color channel.

The company has recently limited processor requirements, adding 7th generation Intel processors and some Xeon processors to the list.

All about using the Microsoft PC Health Check

Only Microsoft Windows Insider members can use the PC Health Check program. To download PC Health Check, you must sign up for Windows Insider by signing in to your Microsoft account. Otherwise, you will not be able to access the program.

But you can get around this obstacle by downloading the Microsoft Installer file – WindowsPCHealthCheckSetup.msi. After running the file, the program will install itself on the PC.

The procedure to run the program:

  1. Enter PC Heal in the search bar – launch the application from Start. 
  2. Next, click the Check now button in the Introducing Windows 11 panel.

Once the compatibility check is complete, the program displays 1 of 3 windows. For users who have passed the review, the message compliant will appear, and for those who have not, the message Not currently compliant will appear. For those computers that have Windows Education or Enterprise, the message Your Organization Manages Updates on that PC will appear.

Microsoft PC Health Check works successfully on many Windows PCs. However, users with Windows 10 Education or Enterprise have the worst luck. Similarly, the problem is affected by the problem is centrally managed through Group Policy in the IT environment (YMMV).

Alternative Windows 11 Compatibility Checkers

Here are two tools that are good for testing your computer for Windows 11 compatibility:

  • WhyNotWin11: a development on GitHub that starts as a standalone Windows application. The project informs about some checks it has done.
  • Windows 11 Compatibility Check: this is a Windows batch file to be run in an administrative PowerShell/Command Prompt session. The program informs about the results of the attribute analysis with the capabilities of the computer.

Each tool provides the data you need to understand if your PC is ready for Windows 11.

WhyNotWin11

WhyNotWin11 has a source code that is available in the public domain. The latest 2.4.0 version of the program is available for download on its official website. 

Click Download the latest stable release to get the file WhyNotWin11.exe. The file itself will be located in C:\Users\<username>\Downloads.

Wait for the Windows Management Instrumentation command-line utility to finish downloading. After completing the various checks, the results will appear, both for the incompatible system and for the compatible system.

If green appears, the WhyNot11 output says compliant, but if red appears, there are incompatibilities. Amber indicates possible compliance or non-compliance with final requirements (the PC does not have the correct CPU generation for the program).

Windows 11 Compatibility Check script

The Windows 11 Compatibility Check tool can be downloaded from the Windows ElevenForum website by JB Carreon. It is free software that comes as a W11CompChk.bat batch file. Its latest version has the number 1.4.1.

After downloading the program to your PC, right-click on its entry in File Explorer, but do it while holding down the left Shift key. Then a pop-up menu will appear where you should select Copy as Path (the full path to the file will be copied into the buffer). Next, open the Command Prompt administrative window, where you need to paste the string and remove all quotation marks (“”).

That’s all because the batch file will be executed. The program will show the progress and report after the checks.

Bottom line

Any of the three tools will determine if the PC meets Windows 11 system requirements.

Microsoft’s PC Health Check will boldly perform all the necessary tasks, except when the user uses Enterprise/Education versions and when the PC is under centralized IT management. 

It’s a similar story to WhyNotWin11 with TPM.msc, checking which version of TPM is active for Windows.