You jumped at the chance and downloaded and updated your Operating System (OS) to Windows 11 – so up-to-date, so ‘now’! The new interface looks so cool – it’s so progressive – AND it has advanced security built-in with Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 . You passed the hardware test and your computer is ready for an upgrade. Woohoo.
After the reboot; you were so excited to test drive the latest and greatest only to quickly realize that some of the software you use for workplace functionality doesn’t work. AND to top it off – your super amazing security software was erased when you installed it. It has been replaced by Microsoft’s security products. NOW WHAT?
Being ‘bleeding edge’ isn’t always the best when it comes to software. Especially when it comes to updating/upgrading your ‘production’ machine. It is less impactful for the average home user – but if you have highly specialized, third-party software on your business machine – it is likely NOT Windows 11 compatible yet. Which leads to a LOT of snags for you and for your company.
To add insult to injury – all new machines being rolled out come with Windows 11. So why are the third-party software vendors not ready yet for this upgrade? It’s a great question that is topmost in our minds here at IntegraMSP – so we decided to find out for not only our benefit – but yours.
The search was difficult, as many programmers are keeping what potential issues they have with compatibility close to the vest. The most we have seen is; “our software is not currently compatible with Windows 11 upgrade’. While digging, what we have been able to find are some of the reasons why some third-party applications are not ready for Windows 11.
- Microsoft is blocking Windows 11 upgrades if customers use applications that create registry keys using some non-ASCII characters.
- Microsoft and Oracle have found a compatibility issue between VirtualBox and Windows 11, when Hyper-V or Windows Hypervisor is installed
- The inability for programs to adequately test if their software is compatible with Windows 11 before roll-out
Through the research we’ve done – it looks like it is possible that there will not be any issues (or few with upgrading) – but the buzz is to be very, very cautious just in case. The biggest determiner for a company would be IF their third-party software provider supported the new Windows 11 OS upgrade. The answer to THAT is mostly no.
As a service provider; we do not yet support Windows 11 as we rely on third-party vendor support for software products. If they are unable to provide support; we cannot either for that product. This is another reason we are not advocating for upgrading to Windows 11.
NOW – say, like we said above – you DID upgrade to Windows 11 and you quickly recognized you made a mistake. How to fix it?
Well – Microsoft gave you an out. Windows 11 Will Give People 10 Days to Roll Back to Windows 10. Of course – it’s not super easy -but it is doable.
Windows 11 is expected to debut later this year on new devices, but Microsoft has indicated that PCs already running Windows 10 won’t be able to upgrade until early 2022. The company reiterated that point in the PDF shared by MSI. “The upgrade rollout plan is still being finalized, but for most devices already in use today, we expect it to be ready sometime in early 2022,” it said. “Not all Windows 10 PCs that are eligible to upgrade to Windows 11 will be offered to upgrade at the same time.”
We advise that you not upgrade your Windows 10 machines until there is third-party vendor support to aid you if there is a snafu with compatibility. If you have to buy a new machine, for now, you can choose to decline the upgrade from 10 to 11.
Further reading on Windows 11
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/11-things-to-do-when-you-get-windows-11/
https://www.techspot.com/news/91888-dust-settles-windows-11-microsoft-readying-rollout-windows.html
https://www.theverge.com/2021/6/29/22555371/microsoft-windows-11-cpu-support-hardware-requirements-tpm-response
https://www.computerworld.com/article/3637879/how-to-get-rid-of-windows-11-and-roll-back-to-windows-10.html