Windows 11 compatibility with Intel i5 5th generation processors

No, the fifth generation of i5 family of Intel processors does not support the Windows 11 operating system. i5 processors above the 7th generation are compatible with Windows 11. This is assuming your computer is compatible with the other hardware requirements for running Windows 11. Below, we look at the specific processors from the i5 family 5th generation that do not support Windows 11. You can always verify your processor’s compatibility with Windows 11 by visiting the Microsoft page that lists the compatible processors.

Content in this i5 5th generation process post:

Which i5 5th generation processors do not support Windows 11?
Can I install Windows 11 on i5 5th generation computers?
Can Intel i5 5th generation continue with Windows 10?
Summary

Which i5 5th generation processors do not support Windows 11?

There are 10 processors from the Intel 5th generation family of core processors. All these processors have at least 2 cores and a frequency over 1 GHz. However, none of these are compatible with Windows 11. By being incompatible with Windows 11, there is an implication that you will not be able to update to Windows 11 through the Windows Update program of the control panel.

The following processors from the i5 5th generation do not support the Windows 11 operating system:

Intel i5-5350H
Intel i5-5575R
Intel i5-5675C
Intel i5-5675R
Intel i5-5200U
Intel i5-5250U
Intel i5-5257U
Intel i5-5287U
Intel i5-5300U
Intel i5-5350U

Out of these 10 Intel i5 5th generation processors, eight are discontinued by Intel. Only the i5-5257U and i5-5350U are in a launched state and available for buying. As mentioned above, all these processors comply with the processor requirements of at least 2 cores and a clock speed or frequency of 1 GHz or more. However, Microsoft has not listed any of these 10 Intel i5 processors compatible with Windows 11.

In the absence of any description of the cause of the underlying incompatibility, we can only speculate about the likely reason for the i5 5th generation processors’ incompatibility with Windows 11. It looks like the i5 5th generation processors failed to make a cut to the compatibility standards of Windows 11 on account of performance reasons. It could be a higher than usual crash rate on Windows 11 operating system running on Intel i5 5th generation computers.

It is unclear if the i5 5th generation processors may be considered compatible by Microsoft at a later date. For now, it is apparently clear that the i5 5th gen does not support Windows 11.

Can I install Windows 11 on i5 5th generation computers?

I5 5th generation processors are incompatible with Windows 11. However, Microsoft released a registry hive entry that can be used to go around the eligibility requirements for installing Windows 11 on unsupported computers. This registry entry will bypass the eligibility requirement for installing Windows 11. CPU type and TPM 1.2 restrictions will be bypassed once the registry entry is created. At the same time, Microsoft suggests that this strategy is not recommended for upgrading to Windows 11.

The bypass TPM and CPU eligibility entry needs to be created as under:

Launch the registry editor using the Regedit command on a Windows computer.
Open the registry hive – HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Setup\MoSetup. In the right pane, look for an entry that has the name: AllowUpgradesWithUnsupportedTPMOrCPU. It is of the type of Type: REG_DWORD.
Right-click on the entry to modify the REG_DWORD entry to set a value of 1.
The Value of 1 for AllowUpgradesWithUnsupportedTPMOrCPU tells Windows to bypass eligibility requirements.

The method above is not recommended by Microsoft. There is no clarity if you will get security updates for Windows 11 after having bypassed the eligibility requirements on unsupported computers on i3 processors. Therefore, we do suggest that such methods should be used only on non-business computers that are incompatible with Windows 11 operating system.

Once you have created the registry hive entry, you could choose to upgrade to Windows 11 through one of the below-mentioned methods.

Yes, you can perform a clean installation of Windows 11 on an Intel i5 5th generation computer. Microsoft has suggested three different approaches to installing Windows 11 on unsupported PCs or computers.

You can create an ISO image and download it from the Microsoft website to run through the installation of Windows 11 on your computer.
You can create a USB or DVD drive as an installation media using the Media creation utility from the Microsoft website. Use the media so created to boot the system and run through the process of installing Windows 11 on your computer.
Lastly, you could download the installation assistant from the Microsoft website. The installation assistant for Windows 11 helps you through different phases and hand holds you throughout the Windows 11 installation process.

If you are keen on installing Windows 11 on an unsupported computer, you could download Windows 11 from the aforementioned page on the Microsoft website. Before performing a clean install of Windows 11 on an unsupported computer, please do understand that your access to Windows Update will remain blocked on Windows 11 installations on unsupported computers. This means you will not be able to access Windows 11 quality updates, feature updates, security updates, or any other updates that happen through the Windows Update program. Your build that you installed on the unsupported computer remains unpatched, less secure, and more vulnerable at all times. This is something that small businesses need to be wary of. Yes, a clean install of Windows 11 on unsupported Intel i5 5th generation computers may be a good experimental feature for students. But, we cannot say the same for small business owners who are running on Intel i5 5th generation. It is not worth the hassle to install Windows 11 on an unsupported computer.

Can Intel i5 5th generation continue with Windows 10?

Yes, Intel i5 5th generation processor-based computers can continue to work with Windows 10. Windows 10 came into being sometime in 2015. So, it will continue to get Microsoft support until October 2025. At that point, Windows 10 will become end-of-life, and support for Windows 10 will cease to exist. Until 2025 though, you can continue to run Windows 10 on your computer. It will receive all the Microsoft Windows 10 updates that are published through the Windows Update program on your computer.

You can always buy a new computer with Windows 11. Or better still, you can save some money and upgrade the processor and motherboard of your computer to make them compatible with the Windows 11 standards. Before you contemplate an upgrade of the processor or motherboard of your computer, you may want to check your computer’s overall hardware compatibility with Windows 11. A Windows 11 compatible computer needs to be compliant with all the following hardware requirements:

Processor with a clock speed of 1 GHz or higher with at least 2 cores.
at least 4 GB RAM.
64 GB internal storage.
Hardware firmware that is compatible with UEFI and Safe boot.
Trusted Platform Module 2.0.

Summary

Intel i5 5th generation has 10 different models of processors. 2 of these 10 processors are still available for purchase.
None of these 10 processors of the i5 family of processors is compatible with Windows 11.
You will not have access to the Windows 11 updates through the Windows Update program in the control panel.

You may also like to read the following content about Windows 11:

Rajesh Dhawan

Rajesh Dhawan is a technology professional who loves to blog about smart wearables, Cloud computing and Microsoft technologies. He loves to break complex problems into manageable chunks of meaningful information.