Computers with very old processors will face a problem this fall when Microsoft begins rolling out the next version of Windows 11, as the operating system becomes inoperable on processors that are not equipped with a processor feature called POPCNT.
Microsoft’s big update
Later this year, the software giant is preparing to roll out the next big update called 24H2 of its Windows 11 operating system.
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This update puts an end to the practice of running Windows 11 unofficially on very old computers.
Problem with old computers
Microsoft has updated the minimum hardware requirements, making POPCNT a requirement to run the upcoming Windows 11 version.
Modern processors support the POPCNT feature. The new requirements will not hinder running the next version of Windows 11 if you have a new computer. This change affects people who are still using computers that are more than fifteen years old.
POPCNT feature
The POPCNT feature became standard in processors released in the mid-2000s with AMD’s Barcelona architecture, followed by Intel’s first-generation Core i series processors.
There are still some people using computers equipped with a Core 2 Duo processor, and some of these computers are certainly running the Windows 11 operating system unofficially.
Run the operating system
These computers have so far been able to run the modern operating system from Microsoft, although this may end with the next version of Windows 11.
Microsoft made POPCNT a requirement to run Windows 11 last year. The change first arrived with the preview version of Windows 11 with build number 25905.
USB XHCI drivers
This version includes various system files that require processors that can execute POPCNT instructions, from the Windows 11 kernel to the USB XHCI drivers.
The USB XHCI drivers responsible for managing USB 3.0 and later versions are now using the aforementioned instruction functions.
Ways to install Windows 11
There are several ways to install Windows 11 via unsupported devices, although these unofficial methods may not be able to help bypass Microsoft’s new requirements.
Unlike previous times, the lack of POPCNT support means that a computer with an unsupported processor will not run Windows 11.
