Windows 11 PC upgrade

snaver
snaver Posts: 157 Forumite
Part of the Furniture 10 Posts Combo Breaker
Hi, can anyone help me please?

I keep getting messages from Microsoft on my Windows 10 PC, telling me to upgrade to Windows 11 before updates become obsolete. I'm fine with this, as my tower PC is rather old, having bought it nearly 9 years ago, in 2016, but anything with the same or similar specifications (below) now seems to cost thousands of pounds, rather than the few hundreds (just over £400, I think) that I paid. What's the way around this please? Should I buy a cheap laptop and upgrade the RAM and possibly graphics card and plug in my monitor and a larger 2gb external hard drive, with my files on, into it? Or are there any reliable cheaper tower options, with the same or higher spec please?

Any advice or suggestions gratefully appreciated.

Lenovo PC
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-6400 CPU @ 2.70GHz   2.71 GHz
Installed RAM 16.0 GB (15.9 GB usable)
Storage 1.82 TB HDD ST2000DM001-1ER164
Graphics Card Intel(R) HD Graphics 530 (128 MB)
System Type 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor
Pen and touch No pen or touch input is available for this display
Edition Windows 10 Home
Version 2009

Comments

  • BFBW
    BFBW Posts: 51 Forumite
    10 Posts Name Dropper
    What is this? :) Storage 1.82 TB HDD ST2000DM001-1ER164

    How can you still be running Windows on an HDD in 2025? :) 

    Fit an SSD as the Boot Drive. Create installation media and install Windows 11 using RUFUS. It's perfectly legitimate. Read the RUFUS FAQ for confirmation. Microsoft include 'flags' within the installation media that allow you to switch off the compatibility check in order to upgrade or clean install Windows 11 24H2 to pre-2017 devices.
    Windows 11 24H2 is supported until October 2026. No need for you to spring for a new device. With an SSD(Solid State Drive) fitted(takes a few minutes to fit), your PC will be a lot faster and more efficient. Keep the 2TB within as secondary storage and easy access to your files.
    Try to ignore the baseless conjecture that may follow my post.


  • GDB2222
    GDB2222 Posts: 25,960 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    I would recommend getting a new processor, motherboard and RAM. You can get that for £120. Fitting it takes a few minutes, and it is not difficult. If you want specific recommendations, I am happy to help. 

    No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?
  • debitcardmayhem
    debitcardmayhem Posts: 12,506 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    BFBW said:
    What is this? :) Storage 1.82 TB HDD ST2000DM001-1ER164

    How can you still be running Windows on an HDD in 2025? :) 

    Fit an SSD as the Boot Drive. Create installation media and install Windows 11 using RUFUS. It's perfectly legitimate. Read the RUFUS FAQ for confirmation. Microsoft include 'flags' within the installation media that allow you to switch off the compatibility check in order to upgrade or clean install Windows 11 24H2 to pre-2017 devices.
    Windows 11 24H2 is supported until October 2026. No need for you to spring for a new device. With an SSD(Solid State Drive) fitted(takes a few minutes to fit), your PC will be a lot faster and more efficient. Keep the 2TB within as secondary storage and easy access to your files.
    Try to ignore the baseless conjecture that may follow my post.


    This is not conjecture ….. it’s how I would do it 😎
    4.8kWp 12x400W Longhi 9.6 kWh battery Giv-hy 5.0 Inverter, WSW facing Essex . Aint no sunshine ☀️ Octopus gas fixed dec 24 @ 5.74 + Octopus Intelligent Flux leccy
  • RavingMad
    RavingMad Posts: 726 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    If you find the speed of the pc fine, then you shouldn't need to change anything. In Windows update, does it give you the option to update to Win11?
  • debitcardmayhem
    debitcardmayhem Posts: 12,506 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    RavingMad said:
    If you find the speed of the pc fine, then you shouldn't need to change anything. In Windows update, does it give you the option to update to Win11?
    Not with that cpu.
    4.8kWp 12x400W Longhi 9.6 kWh battery Giv-hy 5.0 Inverter, WSW facing Essex . Aint no sunshine ☀️ Octopus gas fixed dec 24 @ 5.74 + Octopus Intelligent Flux leccy
  • Heedtheadvice
    Heedtheadvice Posts: 2,725 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    BFBW said:
    What is this? :) Storage 1.82 TB HDD ST2000DM001-1ER164

    How can you still be running Windows on an HDD in 2025? :) 

    Fit an SSD as the Boot Drive. Create installation media and install Windows 11 using RUFUS. It's perfectly legitimate. Read the RUFUS FAQ for confirmation. Microsoft include 'flags' within the installation media that allow you to switch off the compatibility check in order to upgrade or clean install Windows 11 24H2 to pre-2017 devices.
    Windows 11 24H2 is supported until October 2026. No need for you to spring for a new device. With an SSD(Solid State Drive) fitted(takes a few minutes to fit), your PC will be a lot faster and more efficient. Keep the 2TB within as secondary storage and easy access to your files.
    Try to ignore the baseless conjecture that may follow my post.


    This is not conjecture ….. it’s how I would do it 😎

    Me too. Good post BFBW
  • HillStreetBlues
    HillStreetBlues Posts: 5,545 Forumite
    1,000 Posts Third Anniversary Homepage Hero Photogenic
    The only different is that I would use Flyby11
    Let's Be Careful Out There
  • grumpycrab
    grumpycrab Posts: 5,015 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Bake Off Boss!
    edited 4 May at 5:08PM
    Flyby11 recommended by me also.  Buy a shiny new SSD (if your motherboard has a slot for M.2 NVMe do that otherwise a nice big cheap SATA SSD will do).  Unplug the 2TB HDD and clean install W11 to the SSD.
    ** I haven't had much success upgrading from 10 -> 11 but a clean install of 11 has always worked.  Then plug your 2TB HDD in either to motherboard (as D drive) or external caddy.  Main issue with this of course is you have to reinstall your old programs (sorry apps :-)
    GitHub - builtbybel/Flyby11: Windows 11 Upgrading Assistant
    If you put your general location in your Profile, somebody here may be able to come and help you.
  • Vitor
    Vitor Posts: 417 Forumite
    100 Posts First Anniversary Photogenic Name Dropper
    edited 4 May at 6:07PM
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