Are you happy with Windows 11

XxXxX · Jan 16, 2025

back on topic for a bit.
my systems are about 2 years old, 2 HP 24" AiO with AMD CPU’s. please see my computers for spec.
bought them with my retirement money, they came with Windows 11 an i have upgraded both of them.
my wife has used nothing but Windows, i prefer Linux but Ubuntu has gone its own way so i have been looking around at other distro's and it looks likely that i will move to Debian 13 when it arrives with the cinnamon desktop, my wife will still use Windows until MS say its not possible, for whatever reason.

Windows 11 seems to be working OK, i have had no real problems that cant be sorted out but i just dont like or trust MS
its either put up with MS, which most do, or find something else. i will and have found something else.

the problem with Windows is it works for most of the people much of the time and MS knows this. which allows MS to play any game it likes and the end user has to either put up or shut up or take a major leap and move to unfamiliar territory. im not anti-windows but i am very much anti-microsoft .

best of luck, Steve ..

PCUser · Jan 16, 2025

Scannerman said:
Thank you for your sound suggestions. I am a regular user of Intel's Driver & Support Assistant and I tend to stay on top of all my drivers for the most part. I wish the problem with installing Win 11 on this unit were so easy. It is not. Intel Driver & Support Assistant states that all my drivers are current and updated. My issue begins in the UEFI/BIOS. During an attempted installation it will ask for a driver (much like some drivers are requested during a Windows 7 install). I can run my manufacturer's DVD with all the drivers on it and it finds nothing. I can insert a USB stick with all the updated drivers and it will find nothing. The software evidently does not know what it is seeking and I have a sneaky suspicion this is because it does not recognize the TBMT3 driver as this is not used in Windows 11 so it is looking for something else.

The other driver that it could be asking for would be my IRST driver. I don't know that Windows 11 supports IRST on this hardware but since I do run an OS that supports it and, since I'm not about to eliminate my soft RAID by attempting to reinstall the IRST driver that actually functions currently, I would prefer to leave well enough alone. Evidently, in my case, installing from UEFI is no longer an option.

I'm not saying it is impossible to run 23H2 on this unit. Methinks the wizardry entailed in this process would be to clone my current version to another drive (via a different OS such as Windows 7 Ultimate) and remove the original drive with 22H2 on it to put in safe keeping. After having done this I would boot to the cloned copy and attempt to over write it by venturing to install 23H2 directly from the cloned OS via USB. Not exactly preferable, but I've done such things before. 'Tis a bit of work and stuff happens. In fact stuff is very likely to happen in this case because Windows11.

Happy to help, hopefully it'll be useful for you or someone.

For the record, I've had great luck with Windows 11 Pro running on things that I didn't think it would successfully work on. I even tried Windows 11 Pro on an old Dell Optiplex 780 (Small Form Factor) with an old Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor Q9650 CPU. I think it has 12GB of ram, and it works fine for basic surfing, video, and watching YouTube or Netflix.

In my experience with Drivers Cloud, it's pretty good at detecting and finding needed or updated drivers even when other scans haven't. Not perfect, but pretty darn good. It might be worth a try.

Regarding your mentions of TBMT3 and IRST the following links are here in case they come in handy.

According to this post, MS started including TBMT3 driver in Windows® 10 x64 – RS5 Edition and later.

Intel Turbo Boost Technology 3.0 (activating)

In using the UI for Intel Turbo Boost Technology 3.0, the enable button is greyed out with red text next to it that states "External Control Active," * What does "External Control Active" mean? * Is there a way to give control back to the app? * Turbo Boost is enabled in my BIOS is that...

community.intel.com

The Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST) Driver (18.7.6.1010.3) supports the configuration and enabling of multiple features.

Intel® Rapid Storage Technology Driver Installation Software with Intel® Optane™ Memory (10th and 11th Gen Platforms)

The Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST) Driver (18.7.6.1010.3) supports the configuration and enabling of multiple features.

www.intel.com

hdmi · Jan 16, 2025

PCUser said:
TBMT3

Oh yea.. the Turbo Boost Miserable Technology 3.0 Intel Turbo Boost Max 3.0.....any good??

Bree · Jan 16, 2025

PCUser said:
For the record, I've had great luck with Windows 11 Pro running on things that I didn't think it would successfully work on. I even tried Windows 11 Pro on an old Dell Optiplex 780 (Small Form Factor) with an old Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor Q9650 CPU. I think it has 12GB of ram, and it works fine for basic surfing, video, and watching YouTube or Netflix.

You'd be be surprised just how low you can go and still have a useable Windows 11, I know, I've tried

.

My least appropriate machine is an old Acer Aspire One AOD270 netbook. There is no TPM of any sort, it has a legacy bios (so no secure boot and MBR boot only). It's Intel Atom N2600 has no working 64 bit display drivers available (so only the Microsoft Basic Adapter can be used). The maximum memory a Cedarview Atom like this one can address is specified by the OEM as 2GB, and by Intel as 2.44 GB. It can in fact, when there's a 4GB RAM in its single slot, make 2.99GB available to the OS. Its HDD has been upgraded to an SSD.

Unfortunately for you, and for me, 23H2 is the end of the line for our machines. Both your Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 and my Atom N2600 lack the SSE4.2 instruction set, without which 24H2 cannot run, or even boot. I tested that here...

Bree said:
...it couldn't even boot from the standard 24H2 install USB made by the MCT. It gets as far as the Windows logo, then reboots before it even starts the spinning 'loading up' circle.

Second attempt was with my hybrid 23H2/24H2 USB. That at least copied all the files, set them up and got to the first reboot. Same issue, it shows the logo, but then reboots before the circles appear.

Taliseian · Jan 16, 2025

I have a nearly brand new system (purchased at the end of Summer 2024), so it had W11 pre-installed. I've also used W11 since it came out of Beta on my previous computer.

It took some getting used to as I liked the Start Menu and Settings app in W10, but I've now settled into using W11 as my daily driver......but not 24H2.

24H2 gave my new system nothing but issues - both driver and software related. I lost a couple of days of streaming due to having to reinstall my system (and yes, I had a complete backup, but when 24H2 autoinstalled again all the problems came back).

Now I'm using GRC's InControl and I'm staying on 23H2 for the foreseeable future. 23H2 is stable for me and works.

PCUser · Jan 16, 2025

Bree said:
You'd be be surprised just how low you can go and still have a useable Windows 11, I know, I've tried .

My least appropriate machine is an old Acer Aspire One AOD270 netbook. There is no TPM of any sort, it has a legacy bios (so no secure boot and MBR boot only). It's Intel Atom N2600 has no working 64 bit display drivers available (so only the Microsoft Basic Adapter can be used). The maximum memory a Cedarview Atom like this one can address is specified by the OEM as 2GB, and by Intel as 2.44 GB. It can in fact, when there's a 4GB RAM in its single slot, make 2.99GB available to the OS. Its HDD has been upgraded to an SSD.

Unfortunately for you, and for me, 23H2 is the end of the line for our machines. Both your Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 and my Atom N2600 lack the SSE4.2 instruction set, without which 24H2 cannot run, or even boot. I tested that here...

Wow, @Bree , that's incredible . . . 4GB of RAM? Does your PC slow crawl as it struggles to launch apps, or not too bad?
Pretty neat that it WORKS with Windows 11 installed.

Regarding the absence of SSE4.2, I will likely try to keep it at 23H2 for that PC. Much like @Taliseian has done using GRC's InControl. Thanks to you @Bree for the heads up and also to you as well @Taliseian for mentioning Steve Gibson's Research / GRC InControl. That's a good idea.

Has ANYONE enjoyed Windows 11 24H2 with great success? I'm quite curious of THAT answer.

PCUser · Jan 16, 2025

hdmi said:
Oh yea.. the Turbo Boost Miserable Technology 3.0 Intel Turbo Boost Max 3.0.....any good??

Ask @Scannerman , I think we're all curious.

I'm always interested to hear about the different scenarios and experiences running Windows 11 on various PCs, CPUs, etc.
Along with the results, performance, successes, and challenges. Often hearing these different scenarios gives insight that comes in handy either for oneself or for sharing to help someone else and their PC.

hdmi · Jan 16, 2025

PCUser said:
Ask @Scannerman , I think we're all curious.

What do you need me to ask him? For him, it seems to be called Turbo Boost Missing Technology 3.0 as far as I can tell. For those who overclock their Broadwell-E chip, the fact that the technology is missing is actually a good thing according to the freaks who work at Asus.

PCUser said:
I'm always interested to hear about the different scenarios and experiences running Windows 11 on various PCs, CPUs, etc.
Along with the results, performance, successes, and challenges. Often hearing these different scenarios gives insight that comes in handy either for oneself or for sharing to help someone else and their PC.

My laptops didn't explode during the upgrade procedure. So, I am a happy camper, and, many tanks must go to Microsoft. lol

Bree · Jan 16, 2025

PCUser said:
Wow, @Bree , that's incredible . . . 4GB of RAM? Does your PC slow crawl as it struggles to launch apps, or not too bad?
Pretty neat that it WORKS with Windows 11 installed.

Well, I can't say it's fast, but it's quite useable for browsing. It does have 4GB RAM installed, but the chipset can only make 2.99GB of that available to the OS. The rest is 'hardware reserved'. It's good enough to take on holiday to keep in touch by email and do a little light browsing.

PCUser said:
Regarding the absence of SSE4.2, I will likely try to keep it at 23H2 for that PC. Much like @Taliseian has done using GRC's InControl. Thanks to you @Bree for the heads up and also to you as well @Taliseian for mentioning Steve Gibson's Research / GRC InControl. That's a good idea.

23H2 goes EoL in November 2025, but it's not all bad news. 23H2 should continue to get Defender scan engine and AV updates long after that. I'm still getting them to this day for MSE on a Win7 machine, exactly the same ones as for Win10/Win11.

You shouldn't need to do anything to stay on 23H2. Windows Update shouldn't offer 24H2 as the processor will fail the checks for the feature update.

PCUser said:
Has ANYONE enjoyed Windows 11 24H2 with great success? I'm quite curious of THAT answer.

My System One is a supported device and has been running 24H2 since the beginning of October. Only real issues are cosmetic, the File Explorer three dots menu going up off the top of the screen being the main one.

johnlgalt · Jan 16, 2025

I'll add to the 24H2 - I've had the fewest problems with it over previous builds (thus far). And since I don't use Windows Explorer hardly ever (I use One Commander and Xplorer² as my FMs of choice), there is very little irking me with it.

Even my notably problematic NIC drivers from MSI are no longer affecting me, the newer versions for Win10/11 actually install fine now.

Scannerman · Jan 16, 2025

hdmi said:
Hasta la Windows Vista, baby.

It was a whole lot better than the Mistake Edition.

Scannerman · Jan 16, 2025

Bree said:
23H2 goes EoL in November 2025, but it's not all bad news. 23H2 should continue to get Defender scan engine and AV updates long after that. I'm still getting them to this day for MSE on a Win7 machine, exactly the same ones as for Win10/Win11.

That's all good news IMO. I can also verify that I'm getting security updates on my Win 7U as well.(Although I would not risk making any online purchases or financial transactions via Win 7.) I'm not certain that this applies to all countries however. I recall a heated debate over this in the Windows Seven forum with some Brazilians who adamantly insisted that it was not the case.

PCUser · Jan 16, 2025

Bree said:
Well, I can't say it's fast, but it's quite useable for browsing. It does have 4GB RAM installed, but the chipset can only make 2.99GB of that available to the OS. The rest is 'hardware reserved'. It's good enough to take on holiday to keep in touch by email and do a little light browsing.

23H2 goes EoL in November 2025, but it's not all bad news. 23H2 should continue to get Defender scan engine and AV updates long after that. I'm still getting them to this day for MSE on a Win7 machine, exactly the same ones as for Win10/Win11.

You shouldn't need to do anything to stay on 23H2. Windows Update shouldn't offer 24H2 as the processor will fail the checks for the feature update.

My System One is a supported device and has been running 24H2 since the beginning of October. Only real issues are cosmetic, the File Explorer three dots menu going up off the top of the screen being the main one.

@Bree , I too had some Windows 7 Pro PCs long after and still got security updates thanks to videos like this one

and also forums like the Windows 7 area of My Digital Life Forums where I read about the ESU updates for Windows 7.

Now though, there is only 1 PC that I have that is still running Windows 7 Pro, and I have not turned it on for about a year or two.

I hope 24H2 including cosmetic issues are resolved before the update arrives on my PCs. I likely will grab the GRC InControl like @Taliseian

Scannerman · Jan 16, 2025

PCUser said:
Ask @Scannerman , I think we're all curious.

I'm always interested to hear about the different scenarios and experiences running Windows 11 on various PCs, CPUs, etc.
Along with the results, performance, successes, and challenges. Often hearing these different scenarios gives insight that comes in handy either for oneself or for sharing to help someone else and their PC.

It seemed to function properly in the "performance" Window in Task Manager on Windows 7. BUT* I have a weakness for over clocking and tend to OC my personal builds. I won't overclock a prebuild on warranty but it has been a very long time since I purchased a prebuild desk top for myself. Because this "desk top" (Imagine putting a shipping crate on your desk.) unit is overclocked from 3.2 GHz to 4.1 GHz it runs at that speed constantly and that feature is no longer needed. Alas, Win 11 reports it as missing so I am stuck with a permanent yellow bang in device manager. As some here might recall this really, really annoyed me. I'm finally past this OCD bugaboo and no longer wash my hands of it 20 times a day.

PCUser · Jan 16, 2025

Scannerman said:
It seemed to function properly in the "performance" Window in Task Manager on Windows 7. BUT* I have a weakness for over clocking and tend to OC my personal builds. I won't overclock a prebuild on warranty but it has been a very long time since I purchased a prebuild desk top for myself. Because this "desk top" (Imagine putting a shipping crate on your desk.) unit is overclocked from 3.2 GHz to 4.1 GHz it runs at that speed constantly and that feature is no longer needed. Alas, Win 11 reports it as missing so I am stuck with a permanent yellow bang in device manager. As some here might recall this really, really annoyed me. I'm finally past this OCD bugaboo and no longer wash my hands of it 20 times a day. View attachment 122273

@Scannerman , I understand. I'd hunt for quite a while for the driver if I saw that yellow icon. I'm funny like that . . . I also understand how there may reach a point to accept certain things potentially due to OC settings outside the norm.

Scannerman · Jan 16, 2025

PCUser said:
@Scannerman , I understand. I'd hunt for quite a while for the driver if I saw that yellow icon. I'm funny like that . . . I also understand how there may reach a point to accept certain things potentially due to OC settings outside the norm.

Oh, it was enervating. I can't believe how patient so many people on this forum were with me. I was about ready to lose it. A certain ASUS Guru who knew his drivers like no other tried to help me with it but alas, there was no fix for it. To be fair, Microsoft did warn us that there would be potential consequences for installing Win 11 on a system it didn't support. This is the first time I actually capitulated to one of those nasties. As a PC builder it's like sacrilege to let something like that go. Alas, I have little choice if I want to run Win 11 on this rig. I can disable it, delete it, zero it out in the registry, but it just keeps on coming back. If this were my only beef with Win 11 it wouldn't be such a bad deal for me. It would seem that Win11 is my nemesis.

CountMike · Jan 17, 2025

Pretty satisfied so far specially after 24H2 introduced better control over AMD Ryzen with two CCDs and substantially reduced latency. CPUis next to best from AMD so now I have full power out of it. GPU, although just middle class also got some boost comparing to 23H2. Never had any large problems, just usual annoyances. Manual updates and no automatic driver updates= no surprises. That and regular maintenance as well as updated drivers is key to stability.

PCUser · Jan 17, 2025

CountMike said:
Pretty satisfied so far specially after 24H2 introduced better control over AMD Ryzen with two CCDs and substantially reduced latency. CPUis next to best from AMD so now I have full power out of it. GPU, although just middle class also got some boost comparing to 23H2. Never had any large problems, just usual annoyances. Manual updates and no automatic driver updates= no surprises. That and regular maintenance as well as updated drivers is key to stability.

Nice to hear 24H2 is working so well for you @CountMike .

Does your Windows Explorer have any weird menu issues in functionality or cosmetic issues? Curious...

PCUser · Jan 17, 2025

Scannerman said:
Oh, it was enervating. I can't believe how patient so many people on this forum were with me. I was about ready to lose it. A certain ASUS Guru who knew his drivers like no other tried to help me with it but alas, there was no fix for it. To be fair, Microsoft did warn us that there would be potential consequences for installing Win 11 on a system it didn't support. This is the first time I actually capitulated to one of those nasties. As a PC builder it's like sacrilege to let something like that go. Alas, I have little choice if I want to run Win 11 on this rig. I can disable it, delete it, zero it out in the registry, but it just keeps on coming back. If this were my only beef with Win 11 it wouldn't be such a bad deal for me. It would seem that Win11 is my nemesis.

Perhaps a solution will be found in the future. Sometimes there are others in a similar scenario and a solution or work around gets posted. Yes, I'm an optimist.

PCUser · Jan 17, 2025

Taliseian said:
I have a nearly brand new system (purchased at the end of Summer 2024), so it had W11 pre-installed. I've also used W11 since it came out of Beta on my previous computer.

It took some getting used to as I liked the Start Menu and Settings app in W10, but I've now settled into using W11 as my daily driver......but not 24H2.

24H2 gave my new system nothing but issues - both driver and software related. I lost a couple of days of streaming due to having to reinstall my system (and yes, I had a complete backup, but when 24H2 autoinstalled again all the problems came back).

Now I'm using GRC's InControl and I'm staying on 23H2 for the foreseeable future. 23H2 is stable for me and works.

I added GRC's InControl on two main PCs tonight. Might be a good trend eh?

Thanks again for mentioning it

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