6/30/2021 Windows 11 Specifications - Microsoft

Find Windows 11 specs, features, and computer

requirements
Here's an overview of how to find device specification requirements, versions,
and languages available for Windows 11.

Table of contents

System requirements

Feature-specific requirements for Windows 11

Feature deprecations and removals

Keeping Windows 11 up-to-date

Language versions

System requirements

These are the basic requirements for installing Windows 11 on a PC. If your device does
not meet these requirements, you may not be able to install Windows 11 on your device
and might want to consider purchasing a new PC . If you are unsure whether your PC
meets these requirements, you can check with your PC Original Equipment Manufacturer
(OEM) or, if your device is already running Windows 10, you can use the PC Health Check
app to assess compatibility.

1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster with 2 or more cores on a compatible

Processor:
64-bit processor or System on a Chip (SoC)

RAM: 4 gigabyte (GB)

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64 GB or larger storage device

Storage: Note: See below under “More information on storage space to
keep Windows 11 up-to-date” for more details.

System
UEFI, Secure Boot capable
firmware:

TPM: Trusted Platform Module (TPM) version 2.0

Graphics card: Compatible with DirectX 12 or later with WDDM 2.0 driver

High definition (720p) display that is greater than 9” diagonally, 8

Display:
bits per color channel

Windows 11 Home edition requires internet connectivity and a

Microsoft account to complete device setup on first use.
Internet
Switching a device out of Windows 11 Home in S mode also
connection
requires internet connectivity. Learn more about S mode here .
and Microsoft
For all Windows 11 editions, internet access is required to perform
accounts:
updates and to download and take advantage of some features. A
Microsoft account is required for some features.

There may be additional requirements over time for updates, as well as requirements to
turn on specific features within the OS.

Feature-specific requirements for Windows 11

Some features in Windows 11 have increased requirements beyond those listed above in
the minimum requirements section. Below are some additional details regarding
requirements for key features:

5G support requires 5G capable modem.

Auto HDR requires an HDR monitor.

BitLocker to Go requires a USB flash drive (available in Windows Pro and above
editions).

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Client Hyper-V requires a processor with second level address translation (SLAT)
capabilities (available in Windows Pro and above editions).

Cortana requires a microphone and speaker and is currently available on Windows 11

for Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Spain,
United Kingdom, and United States.

DirectStorage requires an NVMe SSD to store and run games that use the "Standard
NVM Express Controller" driver and a DirectX12 GPU with Shader Model 6.0 support.

DirectX 12 Ultimate is available with supported games and graphics chips.

Presence requires sensor that can detect human distance from device or intent to
interact with device.

Intelligent Video Conferencing requires video camera, microphone, and speaker (audio
output).

Multiple Voice Assistant (MVA) requires a microphone and speaker.

Snap three-column layouts require a screen that is 1920 effective pixels or greater in
width.

Mute/Unmute from Taskbar requires video camera, microphone, and speaker (audio
output). App must be compatible with feature to enable global mute/unmute.

Spatial Sound requires supporting hardware and software.

Teams requires video camera, microphone, and speaker (audio output).

Touch requires a screen or monitor that supports multi-touch.

Two-factor Authentication requires use of PIN, biometric (fingerprint reader or

illuminated infrared camera), or a phone with Wi-Fi or Bluetooth capabilities.

Voice Typing requires a PC with a microphone.

Wake on Voice requires Modern Standby power model and microphone.

Wi-Fi 6E requires new WLAN IHV hardware and driver and a Wi-Fi 6E capable
AP/router.

Windows Hello requires a camera configured for near infrared (IR) imaging or
fingerprint reader for biometric authentication. Devices without biometric sensors can
use Windows Hello with a PIN or portable Microsoft compatible security key.

Windows Projection requires a display adapter which supports Windows Display Driver
Model (WDDM) 2.0 and a Wi-Fi adapter that supports Wi-Fi Direct.

Xbox (app) requires an Xbox Live account, which is not available in all regions. See
Xbox Live Countries and Regions for the most up-to-date information on availability.

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Some features in the Xbox app will require an active Xbox Game Pass subscription.
Learn more about the pass .

Feature deprecations and removals

When upgrading to Windows 11 from Windows 10 or when installing an update to

Windows 11, some features may be deprecated or removed. Please see below for
information regarding some of the key features impacted:

Cortana will no longer be included in the first boot experience or pinned to the Taskbar.

Desktop wallpaper cannot be roamed to or from device when signed in with a

Microsoft account.

Internet Explorer is disabled. Microsoft Edge is the recommended replacement and

includes IE Mode which may be useful in certain scenarios.

Math Input Panel is removed. Math Recognizer will install on demand and includes the
math input control and recognizer. Math inking in apps like OneNote are not impacted
by this change.

News & Interests has evolved. New functionality has been added which can be found
by clicking the Widgets icon on the Taskbar.

Quick Status from the Lockscreen and associated settings are removed.

S Mode is only available now for Windows 11 Home edition.

Snipping Tool continues to be available but the old design and functionality in the
Windows 10 version has been replaced with those of the app previously known as Snip
& Sketch.

Start is significantly changed in Windows 11 including the following key deprecations

and removals:

Named groups and folders of apps are no longer supported and the layout is not
currently resizable.

Pinned apps and sites will not migrate when upgrading from Windows 10.

Live Tiles are no longer available. For glanceable, dynamic content, see the new
Widgets feature.

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Tablet Mode is removed and new functionality and capability is included for keyboard
attach and detach postures.

Taskbar functionality is changed including:

People is no longer present on the Taskbar.

Some icons may no longer appear in the System Tray (systray) for upgraded devices
including previous customizations.

Alignment to the bottom of the screen is the only location allowed.

Apps can no longer customize areas of the Taskbar.

Timeline is removed. Some similar functionality is available in Microsoft Edge.

Touch Keyboard will no longer dock and undock keyboard layouts on screen sizes 18
inches and larger.

Wallet is removed.

The following apps will not be removed on upgrade but will no longer be installed on new
devices or when clean-installing Windows 11. They are available for download from the
Store:

3D Viewer

OneNote for Windows 10

Paint 3D

Skype

Keeping Windows 11 up-to-date

As part of the effort to continually improve the Windows experience, software updates and
fixes are created and released. These updates are delivered to your device during the
device’s supported lifecycle.

Ensuring that your device is kept up to date is important for your device security and
functionality. With an internet connection, Windows 11 will periodically check for updates
so you don’t have to (ISP fees might apply). You can check to see if there are any pending

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or optional updates available for your device by going to Settings | Update & Security |
Windows Update .

It is important to ensure you have enough free storage space to install updates and you
may need to check to see if your hardware is still supported by your Original Equipment
Manufacturer (OEM).

Visit the Lifecycle FAQ for Windows products to learn more about Windows lifecycle and
servicing policies.

More information on storage space requirements to keep Windows 11 up-to-date

The size of the Windows operating system that comes with your device and the amount of
free storage space needed to download and install Windows updates are highly variable
as they depend on a variety of factors. Visit here to learn why . The factors that impact the
amount of free space needed to take an update include: the versions of Windows
previously installed on the machine; the amount of free storage space available from
Windows files to reuse, such as the virtual memory pagefile or hibernation file; which
applications are installed on your device; and how those applications store data. When
updating, Windows will attempt to free up enough space automatically and to guide you
through freeing up even more if the automatic cleanup is not sufficient. You can also take
steps on your own to free up space.

Language versions

Windows 11 full localization languages include: Arabic (Saudi Arabia), Bulgarian (Bulgaria),
Chinese (PRC), Chinese (Taiwan), Croatian (Croatia), Czech (Czech Republic), Danish
(Denmark), Dutch (Netherlands), English (United Kingdom), English (United States),
Estonian (Estonia), Finnish (Finland), French (France), French (Canada), German (Germany),
Greek (Greece), Hebrew (Israel), Hungarian (Hungary), Italian (Italy), Japanese (Japan),
Korean (Korea), Latvian (Latvia), Lithuanian (Lithuania), Norwegian, Bokmål (Norway), Polish
(Poland), Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Romanian (Romania), Russian (Russia),
Serbian (Latin, Serbia), Slovak (Slovakia), Slovenian (Slovenia), Spanish (Spain), Spanish
(Mexico), Swedish (Sweden), Thai (Thailand), Turkish (Turkey), Ukrainian (Ukraine).

Additional languages available as Language Interface Packs

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