Swapping motherboards to be ablt to upgrade to Windows 11 Pro

[Sarge2533]

According to Microsoft, my CPU (Intel Core i7-6700) will not support an upgrade from Windows 10 Pro to Windows 11 Pro.  Question:  Can I swap out my Thimphu motherboard with its Intel Core i7-6700 CPU with a Thimphu-K motherboard with an Intel Core i7-7700K CPU which will support an upgrade to Windows 11 Pro?  I have upgraded my desktop over the past 5 years and it runs great for my purposes.  Rather than go througfh all the hastle of a new machine purchase and set up, it seems this motherboard and CPU swap-out is a rather straight-forward solution.   Am I correct? 

[Paul_Tikkanen]

The Intel Core i7-7700K processor does not meet Microsoft's minimum W11 processor requirements of an Intel 8th gen core or newer and the Thimphu-K motherboard does not support Intel 8th gen core processors.

Windows processor requirements Windows 11 supported Intel processors | Microsoft Learn

HP Desktop PCs - motherboard specifications, Thimphu-K | HP® Support

If you are happy with your PC, save your money and install W11 on your PC.  It will run just fine.

If you are interested in installing W11 on your PC as is, you can read this discussion for how I upgraded several HP and Dell notebook and desktop PC's that did not meet the W11 hardware requirements to W11 22H2/22H3

You have to use the version of the Rufus utility that I zipped up and attached in the discussion (v3.18).

Re: Issues upgrading to windows 11 - HP Support Community - 8517912

If the in-place upgrade fails, you should be able to clean install W11 using the bootable W11 installation flash drive you made with Rufus.

[Sarge2533]

Paul:

Thank you very much for you reply.  Not being a PC expert but at least being able to upgrade memory, graphics cards, and HDD's with SSD's, I am not willing to keep doing the updates you noted that woudl hve tob edone each year to keep my old workhorse going.  Your advice of "I do not recommend upgrading to W11 if one is not willing to accept those inconveniences of having to do the annual hardware bypass or possible clean installs." is noted.  

Thanks for your help, I guess I'll have to go through the hastle of buying a new machine to replace my 8 year old nag.

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You're very welcome.

It's really not that hard, and with W11 22H3, that rolled out differently than the other two updates did.

I jumped the gun and ran the installer I referenced and the PC's updated OK, but I think that 22H3 may have installed automatically if I hadn't been so impatient to upgrade when the update first came out.

It was released as a feature update just like W10 22H2 was and was not a big file.

This year, I will not be impatient and wait until things roll out.

But updating your PC's hardware to meet the W11 hardware requirements would not be an option.

[Sarge2533]

Maybe I should have asked a different question, i.e., Is there a replacement motherboard for the Thimphu IPM17-TP I have that is a direct exchange that I could put an 8th gen or higher CPU into that will satisfy my original need? 

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Unfortunately, that I do not know for sure, but I doubt it.

I looked at the PCs that use the same case as yours, up through the 750-500 model series, and none of them even with different motherboards (Odense 2K) only supported up to the Intel 7th gen core processors.

HP Desktop PCs - motherboard specifications, Odense2-K | HP® Support

[Sarge2533]

I'm confused by some previous information you provided.  You said that Windows 11 is only supported by 8th gen cpu's yet the list of cpu's in the MS site lists the i7-7700K as one that supports windows 11.  What list are you looking at?  Are we looking at the same list?

If the 7700K cpu supports windows 11, then the Thimphu-K motherboard loaded with the i7-7700K cpu would work.  No?

[Paul_Tikkanen]

This is Microsoft's list of W11 supported processors.

You would have to show me where on this list you see an i7-7700K processor because I don't.

Windows processor requirements Windows 11 supported Intel processors | Microsoft Learn

I'm still at a loss to understand why you don't install W11 on your PC.

I could understand if your PC was beat up or you didn't like it but since you like it...

It will take probably 30 minutes to do and reduce this planet's e-waste surplus, and save you a ton of money in the bargain.

[Sarge2533]

We were looking at different lists of processors.  My bad.  Question now dead.

As for why I don't just upgrade 'and it will work just fine' - is because I don't want to have to be performing some exercise of manual processes every time Windows 11 is updated.  I'm not a 'techie' who understands a lot of the software jargon or who is good at understanding how it all ties together.  I'm concerned I'll screw them up.  Logical fears for a 79-year-old retiree? 

Make me comfortable with what I'd have to do and I might do it.

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Sorry, but I can't write it much easier to upgrade any PC to W11.

You download the W11 ISO file from the link below (3rd option).

Download Windows 11 (microsoft.com)

You transfer the ISO file to a USB flash drive using the Rufus version 3.18 utility that I attached in the discussion and also below.

Downloading the ISO file if you have a decent internet connection will take less than 5 minutes,

Transferring the ISO file to Rufus will take another 5 minutes.

On the right side of the Rufus program window click on the Select button and select the W11 ISO file you downloaded.

Then right under the boot selection line where you see the ISO file listed, select the Extended Windows 11 installation (no TPM/no secure boot)

Partition scheme GPT (since your notebook is running W10 in UEFI mode).

Target system is the default (UEFI non CSM).

Click on the Start button on the lower right side of the screen and it will take a while for Rufus to build the bootable USB flash drive.

When it reports 'Ready,' close out of the Rufus utility.

You have the PC running and you go to 'This PC.

Go to 'This PC' click on your USB flash drive to open it and you will see a list of files there.

Click on the Setup application to launch the W11 upgrade.

There is only one thing you want to change and that is when you get to this screen:

You want to select 'Not right now.'

Depending on how much stuff you have on your PC's hard drive, the upgrade can take 20 minutes to a couple of hours.

If the upgrade fails (it happened on 2 of my 13 PC's I upgraded to W11), you are returned to the Windows desktop as if nothing ever happened.

No errors, nothing.

At that point you will have to decide whether or not you want to clean install W10 on the PC which would require reinstalling your programs and files.

I chose to clean install W11 on the 2 PC's that would not do an in-place upgrade to W11.

That is where you have to ask if you should do that, or just buy a fully supported W11 PC, because you will have to do the same thing either way--reload all of your programs and files.