Can we install 23H2 instead of 24H2 on brand new DIY computer?

Trying to learn · 2025-04-06T01:02:31-0400

Hi. I'm a newbie to all this, hoping for your patience and mercy. lol. Trying to figure things out, but couldn't find an answer. Sorry if I missed it already discussed in a different thread. We've bought the components for a new DIY computer. Only need to buy Win 11 Home next. But I just heard that wherever we buy it from (MS or other online store), it'll be the 24H2 version. Is that right? I was hoping to install 23H2 and hang onto that for some months til the 24H2 problems will be better fixed. Does a person get to choose if they want to install 23H2 or 24H2? Is there any way to *safely* get 23H2 anymore? Thanks for any info/advice you can share. :)

(I forgot to add that we already have 1 Acer OEM Win11 Home in the house running 23H2. I don't know if that one might have some sort of file(s) in it that could be copied onto a USB and used to install on the new comp, so that we'd only have to put the new retail product key in? It's a retail copy that we want to buy this time.)

Scannerman · 2025-04-06T01:24:02-0400

You should be able to find it somewhere although I don't know if you can get it from Microsoft. Best to get it from a trusted friend. I still have the ISO so if you know anyone who is Windows savvy in your neighbourhood perhaps you could talk real nice to them and borrow it from them. I can't possibly be the only geek in town that has it. Otherwise you might have to take your chances online. I don't want to risk violating any forum rules by suggesting a few sites that may or may not be approved. Perhaps this link (which was posted here previously) might be of some help:

category:w11-23h2 - Browse known builds

category:w11-23h2 - Browse known builds on UUP dump. UUP dump lets you download Unified Update Platform files, like Windows Insider updates, directly from Windows Update.

uupdump.net

Anyone else have any suggestions?

Trying to learn · 2025-04-06T01:36:09-0400

Hi. Thanks for your reply. I'll show my husband your link when he gets home later. But I think he's just about as nervous of online 'non-official' downloads as I am. I'm not sure I really understand what ISO is. When we set up the OEM computer last year (which has 23H2), I somehow realized I should do something called a... 'disk image' maybe?... like a backup of the system after the OEM version was installed. I have that on a USB stick and I tried looking into it a bit but didn't find any kind of ISO file type. Does ISO maybe mean that whole actual image folder (with all the files in it)? If so, could it be possible to use that somehow to get Win 11 Home 23H2 also installed on the new DIY build, and then just activate it with the new retail key that we want to buy?

BrianInEngland · 2025-04-06T01:41:08-0400

Scannerman said:
You should be able to find it somewhere although I don't know if you can get it from Microsoft. Best to get it from a trusted friend. I still have the ISO so if you know anyone who is Windows savvy in your neighbourhood perhaps you could talk real nice to them and borrow it from them. I can't possibly be the only geek in town that has it. Otherwise you might have to take your chances online. I don't want to risk violating any forum rules by suggesting a few sites that may or may not be approved. Perhaps this link (which was posted here previously) might be of some help:

category:w11-23h2 - Browse known builds

category:w11-23h2 - Browse known builds on UUP dump. UUP dump lets you download Unified Update Platform files, like Windows Insider updates, directly from Windows Update.

uupdump.net

Anyone else have any suggestions?

I have an official 23H2 ISO from MS, English International version

hsehestedt · 2025-04-06T01:43:49-0400

Welcome to ElevenForum!

There a number of ways to obtain it. One easy would be to use UUP Dump as Scannerman suggested. Here is a tutorial on using UUP:

UUP Dump - Download Windows Insider ISO

UUP Dump is the most practical and easy way to get ISO images of any Insider Windows 10 or Windows 11 version, as soon as Microsoft has released a new build. UUP Dump creates a download configuration file according to your choices, downloads necessary files directly from Microsoft servers, and...

www.elevenforum.com

Note that the tutorial is geared toward downloading Insider builds but you can also download released builds.

On the main page, select Windows 11 and then 23H2.

On the next page my suggestion would be to grab the one I highlighted below. That is the latest non-preview release that includes the March 2025 updates. Make sure to select the X64 architecture.

If that is not suitable for you, let us know. I have other ways to obtain it that I can suggest, although I trust this source the most.

hsehestedt · 2025-04-06T01:46:02-0400

Trying to learn said:
But I think he's just about as nervous of online 'non-official' downloads as I am.

The reason that I said that I trust this source the most is that it pulls all of the files directly from Microsoft servers. You can trust it.

Trying to learn · 2025-04-06T01:54:47-0400

Ohhhh, so it is the official ISO from MS and not tinkered with/customized at all? ... I don't know anything about these kinds of things... Could there be a risk of someone putting malware in it or the data in the file being corrupted somehow?

cereberus · 2025-04-06T01:57:32-0400

The 24H2 problems are greatly exaggerated. Vast majority use it with no significant issues.

Ignore the excessive FUD spread on web.

Just install it and move on.

Trying to learn · 2025-04-06T02:02:07-0400

cereberus said:
The 24H2 problems are greatly exaggerated. Vast majority use it with no significant issues.

Ignore the excessive FUD spread on web.

Just install it and move on.

Oh, are things better now? I was seeing soooo many people talking about a lot of different problems with it. Especially about problems being able to use printers, which we really need because of work. So that was a big reason for the hope to install 23H2 and keep that for a while.

zbook · 2025-04-06T02:18:02-0400

This link may be useful for selecting an iso:

GitHub - AveYo/MediaCreationTool.bat: Universal MCT wrapper script for all Windows 10/11 versions from 1507 to 21H2!

Universal MCT wrapper script for all Windows 10/11 versions from 1507 to 21H2! - AveYo/MediaCreationTool.bat

github.com

hsehestedt · 2025-04-06T02:25:26-0400

If unsure about 24H2 how about this as an idea...

Since this is a new machine and you are installing Windows from scratch, just start with 24H2. Once installed don't take the time yet to configure everything. Maybe do the minimum like install your drivers and get your printer configured. Test the printer. If it works, great! If not, then start over with 23H2. But this way you will at least know if 24H2 works for you.

IMHO, 24H2 should be just fine for the vast majority of people.

XxXxX · 2025-04-06T02:41:48-0400

also just as an add on to all the good advice above.
if you install Windows 11 23H2 it will most certainly try to auto update to Windows 11 24H2.
so in every likelihood you would end up with 24H2 anyway.

best of luck, Steve ..

dacrone · 2025-04-06T03:34:21-0400

Trying to learn said:
But I think he's just about as nervous of online 'non-official' downloads as I am. I'm not sure I really understand what ISO is.

Definitely don’t download an OS image from random sites. There are a lot of members here that hang on to older build ISOs for various reasons. @antspants or I can share a 23H2 ISO for you, if 24H2 won’t work for your needs. You can always verify the CRC and SHA1 hash values for validity too.

Scannerman · 2025-04-06T05:54:25-0400

dacrone said:
Definitely don’t download an OS image from random sites. There are a lot of members here that hang on to older build ISOs for various reasons. @antspants or I can share a 23H2 ISO for you, if 24H2 won’t work for your needs. You can always verify the CRC and SHA1 hash values for validity too.

↑ ↑ ↑ This

Is likely a very good choice. UUP has never done me wrong either. They're professional and their downloads are genuine.

cereberus said:
The 24H2 problems are greatly exaggerated. Vast majority use it with no significant issues.

Ignore the excessive FUD spread on web.

Just install it and move on.

24H2 has reached EOL. Some folks are okay with that. I had no problem with it once I dealt with my little TBMT buggaboo, but 23H2 does seem to be working out for me much better. Of course it'll be reaching EOL this November from what I've heard so. . . User preference, eh?

XxXxX said:
also just as an add on to all the good advice above.
if you install Windows 11 23H2 it will most certainly try to auto update to Windows 11 24H2.
so in every likelihood you would end up with 24H2 anyway.

best of luck, Steve ..

So far I haven't had any issue with it trying to auto update on me. Who knows? Perhaps Rufus killed that little nasty for me.

antspants · 2025-04-06T07:03:53-0400

I’ve sent you a link via Direct Message to a copy of Windows 11 23H2 (Home or Pro) which is on my server.

Trying to learn said:
But I just heard that wherever we buy it from (MS or other online store), it'll be the 24H2 version. Is that right?

If you download the ISO from Microsoft, it will be 24H2. But with a 23H2 ISO you can buy a key for Home or Pro and it will work just fine to register your copy to Home or Pro depending on which way you want to go, it doesn't upgrade a Build because you enter a key.

As it’s a new Build, as mentioned above, Microsoft will most likely install a 24H2 upgrade. You can prevent this by using the following Tutorial:

Specify Target Feature Update Version in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to specify a TargetReleaseVersion version of Windows 11 you want to move to or stay on in Windows Update until it reaches end of service in Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, or Education. Windows Update keeps Windows 11 updated by automatically downloading and...

www.elevenforum.com

You might need to disable the internet before Windows loads so Windows Update doesn’t start an Update download behind the scenes. Then re-enable the internet after you’ve completed the above tutorial.

I hope that helps.

Bree · 2025-04-06T07:32:33-0400

Trying to learn said:
Ohhhh, so it is the official ISO from MS and not tinkered with/customized at all? ... I don't know anything about these kinds of things... Could there be a risk of someone putting malware in it or the data in the file being corrupted somehow?

UUPDump pulls the component files from the Microsoft servers and builds the ISO from them.

There is another way to get 23H2 (or any older version) direct from Microsoft though. The MediaCreationTool script will download the older version of the MCT from Microsoft and run it to build the older ISO or install USB. This will make install media that is identical to that which you could have made at the time it was the current version.

Download the Raw file from GitHub and run it. Choose 23H2, then choose MCT Defaults. You can tell the MCT to make the ISO or (probably more useful for a clean install) to make the install USB.

MediaCreationTool.bat/MediaCreationTool.bat at main · AveYo/MediaCreationTool.bat

Universal MCT wrapper script for all Windows 10/11 versions from 1507 to 21H2! - AveYo/MediaCreationTool.bat

github.com

bobkn · 2025-04-06T11:04:12-0400

Trying to learn said:
Oh, are things better now? I was seeing soooo many people talking about a lot of different problems with it. Especially about problems being able to use printers, which we really need because of work. So that was a big reason for the hope to install 23H2 and keep that for a while.

Some of the issues may follow from an update from 23H2 to 24H2.

As you'd be doing a clean install, the likelihood of problems is less.

Online complaints rarely give perspective as to whether the problems affect dozens of users or millions. But they do get you to click on stuff.

Can we install 23H2 instead of 24H2 on brand new DIY computer?

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