Hey everyone,
I know the “supported hardware” list for Windows 11 has been a point of contention here since the OS launched. Like many of you, I found it hard to stomach that perfectly capable silicon—specifically the high-end Skylake (6th Gen) and Kaby Lake (7th Gen) chips—was relegated to the “unsupported” pile due to the lack of TPM 2.0 or arbitrary CPU generation cutoffs.
About a year ago, I decided to move my secondary workstation (an Intel i7-6700K on a Z170 platform with 32GB DDR4) over to Windows 11 Pro to see if the “unsupported” experience was actually a ticking time bomb or just marketing-driven e-waste.
Now that I’ve hit the 12-month mark, I wanted to share a long-term stability and driver report for the AnandTech community.
The Setup & Installation
I used the Rufus bypass method to create a bootable USB that stripped the TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot requirements. The installation was as clean as any official build. I’m running Windows 11 Pro (Build 22H2/23H2) on a Samsung 970 Evo NVMe.
1. Long-Term Stability & Updates
The biggest question most people ask: “Do you still get updates?”
The answer is yes. Over the last year, I haven’t missed a single Cumulative Update or .NET Framework patch. Microsoft has occasionally issued a “watermark” on the desktop reminding me of unsupported hardware, but it’s easily cleared via a registry tweak and doesn’t affect functionality. I haven’t experienced a single “hard” block during the monthly Patch Tuesday cycles.
2. Driver Compatibility (The Legacy Hurdle)
This was my biggest concern. Interestingly, Windows 11 handles legacy drivers better than I expected.
- Chipset/SATA: Most Intel INF utility packages for Windows 10 work 1:1 on Win 11.
- Audio: Realtek ALC1150 drivers installed without a hitch.
- GPU: Running an NVIDIA GTX 1080 Ti on this rig; the latest Game Ready drivers install and perform exactly as they do on my “supported” Ryzen 5000 build.
- Legacy Hardware: I’m even running an old FireWire PCIe card for some legacy audio gear. The legacy 1394 drivers required a manual “have disk” install, but they have been rock solid ever since.
3. Performance Delta: Win 10 vs. Win 11 Pro
I ran a few quick benchmarks (Cinebench R23 and PCMark 10) before and after the switch.
- Synthetic Benchmarks: Within a 1-2% margin of error. There is no noticeable “performance tax” for running on older hardware.
- The VBS/HVCI Hit: Since this is legacy hardware, I manually disabled Virtualization-Based Security (VBS). On older CPUs, VBS can cause a 5-10% performance hit in gaming. Keeping this off keeps the legacy chip feeling snappy.
4. Stability & Reliability (BSOD Report)
Total Blue Screens in 12 months: 0.
System uptime usually hits 14+ days between patches. I’ve used this machine for heavy Adobe Lightroom exports and some light 1080p video editing. No memory leaks or weird kernel-level hangs to report.
The Verdict: Is it worth it?
If you are holding onto a 6th/7th Gen Intel or a first-gen Ryzen build, Windows 11 Pro is perfectly viable. The UI refinements and improved window snapping are nice quality-of-life upgrades, and WSL2 performance feels slightly more polished here than on Win 10.
However, the “sword of Damocles” remains: Microsoft could theoretically block updates for these IDs at any time. But as of mid-2024, the “unsupported” experience is surprisingly identical to the supported one.
Anyone else in the community still rocking “obsolete” hardware on Win 11? Have you run into any specific driver blocks with 23H2?
Curious to hear your data points.