For most people, Windows 10 security updates are slated to stop on October 14, 2025, just over 10 months from today.
A TPM 2.0 module is a “non-negotiable” requirement for boosting Windows 11’s security baseline, says Microsoft, and that apparently won’t be changing.
Windows 11 has other system requirements, though they weren’t the focus of this TPM-centric blog post.
Windows 11 also has nominal requirements for RAM and processor speed, but any system that meets the CPU or TPM requirements will easily clear those bars.
Windows 11 can be installed on unsupported systems, either those with an older TPM 1.2 module or no TPM enabled at all.
On October 14, 2025, just over ten months from now, Windows 10 security updates will no longer be available for the majority of users. Considering that the vast majority of the world’s pieces still use Windows 10, that might turn out to be a major security issue.
Businesses and other organizations will have the option to pay for two additional years after users purchase a one-year reprieve for $30. However, because of Windows 11’s more demanding system requirements, many active PCs are still unable to upgrade to the simplest and least expensive solution to the issue, which is still free for Windows 10 PCs that can run it.
Microsoft has reaffirmed this week that it has no intention of reducing those requirements in order to increase the number of people who are using Windows 11, with a particular emphasis on the requirement for a TPM 2.0 device. TPMs, short for Trusted Platform Module, are used by Windows to smoothly decrypt your computer’s disk at bootup, among other things. They also store encryption keys and carry out other cryptographic tasks. Microsoft claims that a TPM 2.0 module is a “non-negotiable” requirement for improving Windows 11’s security baseline, and it doesn’t seem like that will change.
Although this blog post was centered on TPM, Windows 11 has additional system requirements. In addition to using a supported processor—an AMD Ryzen 2000 CPU, an 8th-generation Intel Core CPU, or a Qualcomm Snapdragon 850 CPU or later—Windows 11 systems must have Secure Boot enabled. Actually, a few generations of AMD and Intel chips with integrated TPM 2.0 support are not included in these CPU requirements.
Any system that satisfies Windows 11’s CPU or TPM requirements will be able to easily overcome the system’s nominal RAM and processor speed requirements. You should be able to manually enable TPM 2.0 in your system’s BIOS or by installing a motherboard BIOS update if your PC doesn’t seem to support it and your CPU is supported.
Unsupported systems, such as those with an outdated TPM 1.2 module or none at all, can run Windows 11. Aside from the fact that installing significant updates on those systems can be more annoying and that Microsoft has the right to remove updates from them at any time, Windows 11 typically performs on these PCs about as well as Windows 10.
