Any problems with activating Windows 11 and changing the product license key?

Find Activation settings in the search field and click Open. Windows 11 activation status will be displayed on the screen. Then go to “Update product key” - “Change product key” and click on the corresponding button. Enter the product key which is a 25-character code, and click Next to check the key and activate Windows 11. If Windows 11 activation failed (malfunctioned): It may happen after you replaced or repaired main computer components (CPU and motherboard). The operating system got updated or reset to the earlier version. Try factory resetting and then activate it again.

Windows 11 can’t find hard disks during the installation.

If you encounter a strange situation when Windows is unable to detect hard disks while you are trying to install Windows 11, try loading corresponding drivers in the course of the installation. For Intel CPU, you need to install Intel Rapid Storage Technology (IRST) driver during the installation of Windows 11. Download Intel Rapid Storage Technology (IRST) driver from the official website. When the download is ready, extract files from the archive. Copy the entire folder to a USB flash drive, and if you install the operating system from a USB drive, then you can copy the folder with drivers right to the root folder of the USB drive. Connect the USB drive and restart Windows 11 installation; in the main screen, click to load the driver. After that, click “Browse” to access the folder containing the drivers. Select the necessary driver and click Next. When the drivers are installed, the hard disks will be displayed correctly.

How to back up and restore files?

Use the File History tool to back up your stuff to an external hard disk; also, you can create backup copies in a network-attached storage. File History regularly backs up your files in such folders as Documents, Music, Pictures, Videos and Desktop, as well as OneDrive files available offline on your PC. After some time, you will have a complete history of all your files stored there. If original copies are ever damaged or deleted, you’ll be able to restore them easily. You can also view and restore various versions of your files.

How to back up files with File History?

Type File History in the search field and click to open it. Click “Select drive.” Choose the drive you would like to back up your files to and click OK. When the drive is selected, the File History feature will be enabled. If you want, you can hit “Advanced settings” to configure backup frequency and backup storage period. Choose “Save copies of files” menu to set up how often you want to back up your files, and “Keep saved versions” to decide how long the files should be stored, then click Save changes. If there are any default folders that you don’t need to back up, choose “Exclude these folders.” Click “Add” to select the folders which should not be backed up, and then click Save changes.

How can I restore files with File History?

You can use the File History feature to restore the files you have backed up earlier. You can choose a specific date to restore a particular version of a file, if there are several backups of the same file, but with different dates. If you have used an external drive to back up your files, make sure it is connected to your computer: Type File History in the search field and click to open it. Click “Restore personal files.” After that, you’ll be able to choose a specific file/folder, a few of them, or all data on the backup drive. After you’ve made your choice, click “Restore.”

This PC Can’t Run Windows 11: It Doesn’t Meet the Minimal System Requirements

The new Windows 11 has been released recently, and many of those who were eager to install it or upgrade from Windows 10 faced the error saying that this PC doesn’t meet the minimum requirements for Windows 11. Read this article to find out how to fix this issue and how to install the new operating system without the TPM and Secure Boot.

Contents

The first build of Windows 11 is already available to members of the Windows Insider program (Windows insider Preview). However, most computers fail to meet the minimal requirements for this operating system as they lack the TPM (Trusted Platform Module) component.

This module is used for data encryption, user authentication, hardware antivirus protection, and so on. Most likely, Windows 11 uses the TPM features to encrypt the computer’s hard disk and protect your data reliably against unauthorized access. If you’re thinking about installing Windows 11 on your computer, keep that in mind. When you try installing Windows 11 to a computer without TPM 2.0, you’ll see this error message saying “This PC can’t run Windows 11.” But never mind this error: I’m going to show you a workaround that disables the TPM and Secure Boot check.

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☝️ How to Install or Upgrade to Windows 11 Without TPM and Secure Boot. Windows 11 Clean Install ☝️

How to get round the TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot requirement in the installer registry

Let’s start with the simplest things. For the first method, you will only need an ISO image of Windows 11. We’re going to disable the TPM and Secure Boot check in the registry before actually starting the installation from the preinstallation environment.

Modern versions of Windows usually boot a minimal version of the operating system known as Windows Preinstallation Environment. It loads a set of drivers required for a particular computer and then launches the main installer.

At this stage of installation, you can edit the registry so that the installer will never check the computer for TPM and Secure Boot. Here is how you can do it:

Make sure you have an empty drive to install the operating system.

Boot your computer from a Windows 11 bootable pen drive. You should have no difficulties in finding an ISO image of this operating system on the Internet. If necessary, you can watch a video on how to create a bootable pen drive with Windows 10 – the steps are absolutely the same, and the only difference in your case would be the ISO image name.

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How To Create a Bootable USB Drive to Install Windows 10, 8, 7 💽💻🛠️

When the pen drive is ready, you have to add a REG file which is supposed to disable the TPM check.

Right-click on your desktop and create a new text document. Choose a random name for the document, and then open it.

Create a text document and then type the code

Type this code:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Setup\LabConfig] "BypassTPMCheck"=dword:00000001 "BypassSecureBootCheck"=dword:00000001

This REG file is used to add to the registry the keys which help you pass the TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot check. After that, you’ll be able to continue with installing your Windows as if nothing happened.

Save the document and then change its extension from .txt to .reg.

If file extensions are not shown, open the File Explorer, click on the View tab and check the box next to File Name Extensions, and then all extensions will become visible.

The .reg file you have just created should be copied to your bootable pen drive containing Windows 11 - and you can copy it right to the root folder.

The .reg file should be copied to your bootable pen drive containing Windows 11

After booting from the installation USB drive, at the stage of choosing the language, time format and input method, press the key shortcut Shift+F10 to start the Command Prompt. One more thing you will need is to start the Notepad application: do it with the simple command - notepad.

Open Notepad by running the notepad command

The program window will open immediately. Then click “File” - “Open.”

Select “All Files” in the file type menu, and then give the path to the reg. file which is now on your USB drive, right-click on it and select “Merge.”

Right-click on the file and select Merge

In the warning window, click Yes and then OK. After that, close the Notepad window, the Command Prompt window, and go on with the installation.

How to add registry settings manually

Also, this can be done manually, and without creating a separate .reg file.

In the Command Prompt, type regedit to open the registry instead of the Notepad.

Open the registry by running the regedit command

Then follow this path:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINES\SYSTEM\Setup\

Right-click on the Setup folder - New Key, and give it the name - LabConfig.

Open this key, and in the right side of the window, right-click - select New - DWORD value - and name it as BypassTPMCheck. Open it and set the value data to “1,” then click OK.

Create a DWORD value and change its name to BypassTPMCheck

Create another value with the name BypassSecureBootCheck, change its value data to “1,” and click OK. Now close the registry and continue the installation.

Create a value named BypassSecureBootCheck with value data 1

How to install Windows 11

Click Next, and then “Install Now.” After that, a standard Windows installation process begins, and it looks absolutely the same as if you were installing Windows 10. This is when you’re asked to enter a product key and activate your Windows; if you have no key to use, click “I don’t have a product key.”

In the next window, type the product key

Select the operating system version and click Next again. Accept the License Agreement.

In the next window, select the installation type. Choose the disk where to install Windows and click Next; the installation process starts. When it’s over, reboot the computer.

After that, settings will be applied and the installation finalized. Select your region, country, and preferred keyboard layout. If necessary, you can add more layouts later.

Now wait a bit while the operating system is checking for updates.

At this stage, select the configuration to be applied to your device: it’s either for personal use or for work and school.

If you already have a Microsoft account, sign in; if you don’t, it’s a good chance to finally create one. Otherwise, select Sign-in options below, click on Offline account, skip for now, then type the username and the password, and then click Next.

Then the operating system will finish with the settings and boot. This is the last step of the Windows 11 installation process.

How to upgrade Windows 10 to Windows 11 without TPM

If you’re trying to upgrade to Windows 11 from the copy of Windows 10 that you are already using, and you get an incompatibility warning, there is one file to be replaced in that ISO image. To have things done, you need a Windows 10 image first.

Open the bootable drive with Windows 11 that you have previously created, and open the sources folder.

Open a folder with the same name in your Windows 10 image (for your convenience, it is better to have it opened in a new window).

The sources folder in the Windows 10 image

Copy a .dll file with the name “appraiserres.dll” to the sources folder in your Windows 11 image, and agree to replace the previous version of the file.

Copy the file named “appraiserres.dll” and replace the existing one

After the replacement, run Setup.exe and upgrade your Windows safely. If you did everything right, your upgrade to Windows 11 will run smoothly, without having to check your PC for TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot.