Intel i5 Core processors of the seventh generation are not compatible with the latest Windows 11 operating system. Infact, Intel’s 7th generation processors across different cores including the i3, i5 and i7 are not compatible with Windows 11 operating system. Intel i5 core processors beginning with 8th generation fully support Windows 11 and you will be able to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 from such supported i5 processors.
As of writing this, there are 89 processors of the i5 series from Intel that support Windows 11. These include Intel i5 core processors of the 8th generation, 9th generation, 10th generation and the 11th generation. And, there are 19 processors of the Intel i5 Core 7th generation that are not compatible with the Windows 11 operating system.
Table of Content:
- Why are Intel i5 7th generation processors not compatible with Windows 11 installation?
- Bypass TPM and Processor checks for Windows 11
- Which Intel i5 7th generation processors are incompatible with Windows 11?
- Can I install Windows 11 on Intel i5 7th generation processors?
- What are the options for Intel i5 Core 7th generation processors?
- Is there a chance that the Intel i5 Core 7th generation processors may become compatible with Windows 11 at a later date?
- Are Intel i5 7th generation processors getting Windows 11 update?
- Summary
Why are Intel i5 7th generation processors not compatible with Windows 11 installation?
Intel i5 7th generation processors are not compatible with Windows 11. As a result, Windows 10 cannot be upgraded on such systems through the Windows Update program to Windows 11 operating system. While the exact cause of incompatibility between i5 7th generation processors is unclear, our guess is that this could be on account of performance issues with the 7th generation Intel processors. Microsoft has listed compatible processors with Windows 11 based on internal testing and performance scores for each family of processors. Intel’s 7th generation processors have failed to make it to the list of compatible processors, and there are high likelihood of this being on account of the less than optimum performance of the processors.
It remains unlikely that we will ever get to the root cause of the incompatibility between Intel’s 7th generation processors and Windows 11 operating system.
Bypass TPM and Processor checks for Windows 11
Microsoft has released a registry modification process that allows you to bypass the TPM and CPU compliance checks for Windows 11 upgrade. By adding these registry entries, the TPM and CPU requirements for Windows 11 are not considered at the time of upgrade.
By creating these registry entries, you are installing Windows 11 on unsupported computers. These include the Intel i5 7th generation computers as well. Do remember that the process is not recommended by Microsoft. Also, there is no clarity if your unsupported i5 7th generation computer will receive any security or feature updates for Windows 11. Should you still wish to clean install Windows 11 on an unsupported i5 7th generation computer, please do follow the instructions below:
- 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.
Which Intel i5 7th generation processors are incompatible with Windows 11?
All the 7th generation processors of the Intel i5 core family are incompatible with Windows 11. The list below contains names of the Intel i5 core processors that are incompatible with the Windows 11 operating system.
There are 19 Intel i5 core processors from the 7th generation that do not support Windows 11 operating system.
- Intel® Core™ i5-7200U Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7Y54 Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7500T Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7500 Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7600K Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7400 Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7600 Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7600T Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7400T Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7300HQ Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7440HQ Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7Y57 Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7300U Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7440EQ Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7267U Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7287U Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7442EQ Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7360U Processor
- Intel® Core™ i5-7260U Processor
If your system is running on any of these processors, you will not be able to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 through the Windows Update program.
Can I install Windows 11 on Intel i5 7th generation processors?
Yes, you can install Windows 11 on computers that run on the Intel i5 7th generation. Such installation of Windows 11 on unsupported Intel i5 7th generation processors will not be supported by Microsoft. You are unlikely to get any feature updates on such systems through the Windows Update program. In terms of security updates from Microsoft, there is no clarity if such unsupported Intel i5 7th generation processors will have access to the periodic security updates from Microsoft. As of now, it is confirmed that Microsoft will not support Windows 11 that has been installed on computers running on unsupported processors.
To install Windows 11 on Intel i5 Core processors of the 7th generation, you could download an ISO image of the Windows 11 from the Microsoft site and perform a clean install. Alternatively, you could use the Microsoft’s Media creation tool to create a bootable DVD or USB drive and install Windows 11 through such media. In both cases, we advise that you must take a backup of your data before attempting an installation of Windows 11. You could also use the ‘Windows 11 Installation Assistant’ to help you through the process of installing Windows 11.
What are the options for Intel i5 Core 7th generation processors ?
As a word of caution, if you use your computer for business and your computer runs on Intel i5 Core 7th generation processor, we suggest that you may exercise one of the following two options:
- It really is not worth having a computer system that is incompatible with the operating system. If you are fine with Windows 10, please continue to work on the Windows 10 operating system. Windows 10 will become end of life in October, 2025. Until then, you will get access to the feature and security updates from Microsoft. That means, your current investment on the computer system is worth its value until October 2025, and you are reasonably sure of optimum system performance.
- Understandably, you may be very keen on using Windows 11 and your Intel i5 Core 7th generation processor is incompatible with Windows 11. We suggest that you buy a new computer that comes pre-loaded with Windows 11. Or, buy any Windows 10 based computer system which has an Intel processor of 8th generation or higher than the 8th generation. This will ensure that you will get access to the Windows 11 upgrade through the Windows Update program of Microsoft.
Is there a chance that the Intel i5 Core 7th generation processors may become compatible with Windows 11 at a later date?
It is highly unlikely that the Intel i5 Core 7th generation processors will become compatible with Windows 11 at a later date. Microsoft has already had a re-look at the list of supported processors from the Intel family. And, none of the 7th generation Intel processors made a cut to the list of compatible processors for Windows 11. Given the fact that the Intel 7th generation processors have been looked at from the performance and compatibility perspective by Microsoft multiple times, it is best to assume that the Intel i5 Core 7th generation processors will remain unfit for Windows 11 operating system. Things may change though, so keep an eye for any optimistic news coming in from Intel or Microsoft about the impact on the Intel 7th generation processors.
Are Intel i5 7th generation processors getting Windows 11 update?
There have been a few cases wherein users of Intel i5 7th generation processor based computers have received Windows 11 update through the Windows update program. This development has been confirmed by at least a couple of Intel i5 7th generation users. The Windows update happened alongside the update of entire set of drivers on the computers. This included Intel drivers for chipset and graphic drivers. The driver update also worked on the audio drivers for the system and update these files.
It is unclear if more 7th generation processors from the i5 family of Intel will get Windows 11 update. But, there is a strong likelihood that Microsoft and Intel may be testing Windows 11 on 7th generation processors. This reinforces the thinking that the 7th generation processors may be in line for Windows update in a sequenced manner. But, there has been no public disclosure of this from Microsoft or Intel at all.
Again, if you are a business computer user, it makes sense to wait for the entire Windows 11 update to come to a logical end. Microsoft has already accelerated the pace of rolling out Windows 11 updates to the eligible Windows 10 computers. In a matter of next six months, we should, potentially, have very clear and definite workarounds for the Intel 7th generation processors and Windows 11 compatibility. Or else, we will have a definite status of the updates on Intel 7th generation processors across the i5 family of processors.
If you work on a lab computer or an experimental computer, you may choose to install Windows 11 as a fresh install. You would do well to remember that in such cases, you are not eligible to receive updates through the Windows update program. This includes the feature updates, security updates and quality updates.
You may read this page for more details about the availability of Windows 11 update on i5 7th generation computers.
Summary
Intel i5 Core 7th generation processors are not supported by Microsoft for Windows 11 operating system. Such systems that run on the Intel i5 7th generation processors will not have access of a direct upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 through the Windows update program.
You may also like to read more content on Windows 11 as per the content below:
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- Does Windows 11 have dark mode?
- i7-7700K is not compatible with Windows 11
- Missing ‘Update’ option for Windows 11
- Can Windows 11 be installed on computers without TPM 2.0?
- Can Windows 11 run on Intel 7th generation processors?
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.