Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET's key takeaways Microsoft stopped supporting Windows 10 on Oct. 14, 2025. Many PCs with Windows 10 don't pass Microsoft's strict requirement check. It's possible to bypass this and install Windows 11 in 10 easy steps. I built my current desktop back in 2020, and it's had Windows 10 installed for the duration of its lifecycle. I went with what was -- at the time -- a solid, midrange Asus motherboard and Intel Core i9-9900 CPU, both of which still perform quite well in 2025. Also: How to upgrade your 'incompatible' Windows 10 PC to Windows 11 - 2 free options But there's one problem: This motherboard -- and many out there just like it -- is right on the cusp of being eligible for Windows 11. It doesn't have a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) version 2.0, so Microsoft deems it ineligible for Windows 11. The TPM is a secure cryptoprocessor and an important component of your PC, designed to mitigate security risks and handle encryption keys on the system. However, the average PC user is not likely to be familiar with TPM, and this is the only thing keeping my otherwise solid PC from upgrading. In the weeks and days leading up to Windows 10's loss of support on October 14, I experienced first-hand the pop-ups and notifications from Microsoft nudging me that "It's time to buy a new PC." Microsoft is hoping consumers will forgo dealing with the potential headache of an upgrade and just fork over the money for a new PC to "get up to speed" with Windows 11. But if you're like me and have a PC that would otherwise run Windows 11 just fine, don't give up so fast. There are workarounds, and we've covered them extensively at ZDNET. Senior Editor Ed Bott wrote a comprehensive guide on how to upgrade your "incompatible" PC to Windows 11, and it's helped many of our readers (just take a look at the comments) upgrade systems that were initially deemed ineligible -- myself included. Also: Windows 11 upgrade not working? Try my 4 favorite troubleshooting tricks The method that worked for me -- and the one I bet applies to most folks with a PC around five years old -- involves 10 short steps and the third-party program Rufus. This method is most likely to be your best bet if... Your PC is from around 2020. Your hardware is in otherwise good health. Windows says your system is not eligible because of the TPM check. Your PC otherwise meets all the other requirements (enough storage, etc.). Note: You will need an empty USB thumb drive with at least 8GB of storage space on it. Don't forget to move everything off the thumb drive; otherwise, it will be deleted in this process. 10 steps to install Windows 11 Download Rufus. Go here and download the Windows 11 multi-edition ISO under "Disk Image (ISO) for x64 devices" to the Downloads folder on your PC. Insert your empty thumb drive and launch Rufus. In Rufus, select your thumb drive in the Device menu. Under Boot Selection, click "Disk or ISO image." Click Select and find the Windows 11 ISO file you just downloaded to your Downloads folder. Click Start. When the Windows User Experience window pops up, make sure the first box is checked: "Remove requirement for 4GB+ RAM, Secure Boot and TPM 2.0". The rest of the boxes are up to your preference. Click OK, and then Start. Once it's done, open up the USB drive in File Explorer. Double-click Setup. This will run the Windows 11 installation. A final step: When the "Install Windows 11" window pops up, click "Change how Setup downloads updates" and make sure you select "Not right now." Click Next and go through with the rest of the installation. At this point, your computer will exit Windows and enter the OS installer, which could take some time. It'll restart a few times during this process, which is normal. If all goes well -- and it should! -- your PC will boot up into a fresh version of Windows 11. Also: Windows 10's final update is a big one - with a record 173 bug fixes If you have any issues during this installation, I recommend reviewing the comprehensive guide or our Windows 11 troubleshooting guide. Get the morning's top stories in your inbox each day with our Tech Today newsletter.