Windows 11 Update Keeps Failing To Install

[zero_cool1]

Hi everyone, I have a Windows 10 Pro license that was purchased from the Microsoft store and it has been serving me well for many years. Recently, I tried to update to Windows 11 through the Update assistant or windows updates but the update never successfully installs. It downloads to the PC, attempts installation only to run into BSOD and reverts back to Windows 10 and then again starts to download. I tried to look up for this issue online but the only solutions I received were to format the drive. I want to avoid and keep it as a last resort as this will involve taking inventory of all the software & games and then painstakingly reinstalling them. Currently as a quick fix, I end up deleting the downloaded update files every time but I am in need of a permanent solution.

[PunkX_75]

What is the reason shown during the BSOD?

[Futureized]

If not wrong, you can use Windows 11 installation key using Windows 10 key.

[The_Eternal_Guest]

@Futureized

If not wrong, you can use Windows 11 installation key using Windows 10 key.

He wants to keep his existing software & settings so need to upgrade not fresh install using key.

@zero_cool

Recently, I tried to update to Windows 11 through the Update assistant or windows updates but the update never successfully installs.

Have you checked your pc hardware compatibility for win 11?

[captivating]

@zero_cool

Hi everyone, I have a Windows 10 Pro license that was purchased from the Microsoft store and it has been serving me well for many years. Recently, I tried to update to Windows 11 through the Update assistant or windows updates but the update never successfully installs. It downloads to the PC, attempts installation only to run into BSOD and reverts back to Windows 10 and then again starts to download. I tried to look up for this issue online but the only solutions I received were to format the drive. I want to avoid and keep it as a last resort as this will involve taking inventory of all the software & games and then painstakingly reinstalling them. Currently as a quick fix, I end up deleting the downloaded update files every time but I am in need of a permanent solution.

Windows 11 is a major update . It’s highly recommended to do the fresh install so that you won’t face any problems later on . Just back up everything first and go ahead with the fresh install . This is the only and safest solution

[Emperor]

Is your hardware matching with windows 11?

Somewhere I read that Windows become more stricter with hardware requirements for windows11 than before for better user experience with Win11 on compatible machine.

[rootyme]

@Emperor

Somewhere I read that Windows become more stricter with hardware requirements for windows11 than before for better user experience with Win11 on compatible machine.

It’s a joke.

The “stricter” hardware requirement is just a cheap trick employed by MS to force users into purchasing new hardware. All this artificial restriction can be easily bypassed. Windows 11 can be installed and run perfectly fine on all machines that run Windows 10. And Windows 10 is genuinely better than 11 in my opinion.

@zero_cool

Hi everyone, I have a Windows 10 Pro license that was purchased from the Microsoft store and it has been serving me well for many years. Recently, I tried to update to Windows 11 through the Update assistant or windows updates but the update never successfully installs. It downloads to the PC, attempts installation only to run into BSOD and reverts back to Windows 10 and then again starts to download. I tried to look up for this issue online but the only solutions I received were to format the drive. I want to avoid and keep it as a last resort as this will involve taking inventory of all the software & games and then painstakingly reinstalling them. Currently as a quick fix, I end up deleting the downloaded update files every time but I am in need of a permanent solution.

It’s very simple, honestly. Don’t update it from Windows Update or the Assistant. Grab the ISO, mount it and install it from there.

[Emperor]

@rootyme

It’s a joke.

The “stricter” hardware requirement is just a cheap trick employed by MS to force users into purchasing new hardware. All this artificial restriction can be easily bypassed. Windows 11 can be installed and run perfectly fine on all machines that run Windows 10. And Windows 10 is genuinely better than 11 in my opinion.

I too installed Win11 on old laptop in 2021.
I don’t know if MS11 tweak latest updates in such way that it refuse to boot non-compatible hardware.
If you or any one installed Win11 in 2024 on non-compatible machine than please update here.

[ibose]

@rootyme

Grab the ISO, mount it and install it from there.

Better to use Rufus to create the bootable install USB bypassing any restrictive checks, if installing on older H/w.
Fresh install is always recommended when jumping from 10 to 11.

[enthusiast29]

@rootyme

It’s a joke.

The “stricter” hardware requirement is just a cheap trick employed by MS to force users into purchasing new hardware. All this artificial restriction can be easily bypassed. Windows 11 can be installed and run perfectly fine on all machines that run Windows 10. And Windows 10 is genuinely better than 11 in my opinion.

Until now, yes.
Starting 24H2 update which is coming, Microsoft has made POPCNT instruction support (SSE 4.2 feature) mandatory.
CPUs without that won’t be able to install Windows 11 24H2 and above and there will be no bypass as they won’t be able to even boot.

To my knowledge, it only affects CPUs older than 15 years which are like Core2 Quad era etc.

[rootyme]

@Emperor

I don’t know if MS11 tweak latest updates in such way that it refuse to boot non-compatible hardware.
If you or any one installed Win11 in 2024 on non-compatible machine than please update here.

The newer restriction you’re talking about is the mandate of “POPCNT” instruction set in the microprocessor architecture. Microsoft, as always, thinks that it knows what’s best for the end users. They have enforced this restriction owing this reason “No AI without POPCNT”. It’s a stupid artificial restriction that is unfortunately not bypass-able. But have a look -

It was introduced in the Intel processor lineup in 2008. The micro-architecture in question would be "[Nehalem](’

Nehalem - Wikipedia(microarchitecture

)')" to be precise. Unless you’ve a processor that dates back to the times before Nehalem, eg. some ancient Core 2 Duo, you’re still perfectly capable of running the newest Windows 11 builds.

As for AMD, they had added this instruction before Intel. POPCNT was introduced to AMD processors in 2006-07 with its [Barcelona architecture](’

The Chip - Barcelona Architecture: AMD on the Counterattack’

).

All other restrictions can be easily bypassed using a diverse range of methods.

• Rufus:

How to Use Rufus to Bypass TPM and Secure Boot Requirements in Windows 11

• Ventoy: It bypasses everything by default since version 1.0.86:

Ventoy

• Or you can manually do that by editing Registry:

How to Bypass Windows 11's TPM, CPU and RAM Requirements

@enthusiast29

Until now, yes.
Starting 24H2 update which is coming, Microsoft has made POPCNT instruction support (SSE 4.2 feature) mandatory.
CPUs without that won’t be able to install Windows 11 24H2 and above and there will be no bypass as they won’t be able to even boot.

To my knowledge, it only affects CPUs older than 15 years which are like Core2 Quad era etc.

Yep. The Intel CPUs before 2008. To be honest, machines that old should use Linux. But it’s important to recognise that 2008 is 10 years older than 2018, the year Coffee Lake was released. [Microsoft tells us that Windows 11 can’t run on Intel Processors older than Coffee Lake](’

Windows processor requirements Windows 11 supported Intel processors | Microsoft Learn’

).

For AMD, Microsoft suggest that [not even the first generation of AMD Ryzen processors are capable of running Windows 11](’

Windows processor requirements Windows 11 supported AMD processors | Microsoft Learn’

).

Further reading:

Update on Windows 11 minimum system requirements and the PC Health Check app

@ibose

bypassing any restrictive checks, if installing on older H/w.

You can bypass it even without booting to USB install. Just add a switch to setup.exe as instructed here.

Windows 11 system requirements (TPM/ CPU) can be bypassed via this single...

[zero_cool1]

Hi everyone, thanks a lot for the plethora of useful responses. I really appreciate the help. I will respond to each query individually below but to summarise, my system is definitely compatible and its specifications are i5 10400, 32 GB RAM, GTX 1060, Samsung 840 Pro SSD, MSI B560i.
The plan is to figure a way to take a stock of the all the softwares I have installed and format the PC for good this week.

@PunkX 75

What is the reason shown during the BSOD?

I will need to attempt an installation again but I think it read*** System Thread Exception Not Handled***

@Futureized

If not wrong, you can use Windows 11 installation key using Windows 10 key.

That is correct and I do have a key.

@The_Eternal_Guest

He wants to keep his existing software & settings so need to upgrade not fresh install using key.

Have you checked your pc hardware compatibility for win 11?

Yes, I did. The hardware is compatible. I had installed Windows 11 on my laptop with a 8th Gen processor and it ran just fine.

@captivating

Windows 11 is a major update . It’s highly recommended to do the fresh install so that you won’t face any problems later on . Just back up everything first and go ahead with the fresh install . This is the only and safest solution

This will be the last resort and I will need figure out a way to take a stock of all the softwares I’ve installed which is a bit painstaking. I have managed to keep my Steam games on a separate drive so I hope these will be won’t need to be downloaded again but the plethora of softwares and then setting them up as per my need will need to be downloaded again, which I want to avoid.

@Emperor

Is your hardware matching with windows 11?

Somewhere I read that Windows become more stricter with hardware requirements for windows11 than before for better user experience with Win11 on compatible machine.

Yes, I mentioned it in a previous response, the hardware is capable and compatible to run Windows 11.

@rootyme

It’s a joke.

The “stricter” hardware requirement is just a cheap trick employed by MS to force users into purchasing new hardware. All this artificial restriction can be easily bypassed. Windows 11 can be installed and run perfectly fine on all machines that run Windows 10. And Windows 10 is genuinely better than 11 in my opinion.

It’s very simple, honestly. Don’t update it from Windows Update or the Assistant. Grab the ISO, mount it and install it from there.
[ATTACH type=“full” alt=“11.png”]193507[/ATTACH]

So, I did try this as well and it worked almost well until I faced the same BSOD error that reverted my system back to Windows 10.

@ibose

Better to use Rufus to create the bootable install USB bypassing any restrictive checks, if installing on older H/w.
Fresh install is always recommended when jumping from 10 to 11.

Got it. I have the used Rufus tool to create a bootable USB drive so will keep in this mind if all else fails.

@enthusiast29

Until now, yes.
Starting 24H2 update which is coming, Microsoft has made POPCNT instruction support (SSE 4.2 feature) mandatory.
CPUs without that won’t be able to install Windows 11 24H2 and above and there will be no bypass as they won’t be able to even boot.

To my knowledge, it only affects CPUs older than 15 years which are like Core2 Quad era etc.

Not the case here but a this was a good read and something I did not know.

@rootyme

The newer restriction you’re talking about is the mandate of “POPCNT” instruction set in the microprocessor architecture. Microsoft, as always, thinks that it knows what’s best for the end users. They have enforced this restriction owing this reason “No AI without POPCNT”. It’s a stupid artificial restriction that is unfortunately not bypass-able. But have a look -

It was introduced in the Intel processor lineup in 2008. The micro-architecture in question would be "[Nehalem](’

Nehalem - Wikipedia(microarchitecture

)')" to be precise. Unless you’ve a processor that dates back to the times before Nehalem, eg. some ancient Core 2 Duo, you’re still perfectly capable of running the newest Windows 11 builds.

As for AMD, they had added this instruction before Intel. POPCNT was introduced to AMD processors in 2006-07 with its [Barcelona architecture](’

The Chip - Barcelona Architecture: AMD on the Counterattack’

).

All other restrictions can be easily bypassed using a diverse range of methods.

• Rufus:

How to Use Rufus to Bypass TPM and Secure Boot Requirements in Windows 11

• Ventoy: It bypasses everything by default since version 1.0.86:

https://www.ventoy.net/

• Or you can manually do that by editing Registry:

How to Bypass Windows 11's TPM, CPU and RAM Requirements | Tom's Hardware

Yep. The Intel CPUs before 2008. To be honest, machines that old should use Linux. But it’s important to recognise that 2008 is 10 years older than 2018, the year Coffee Lake was released. [Microsoft tells us that Windows 11 can’t run on Intel Processors older than Coffee Lake](’

Windows processor requirements Windows 11 supported Intel processors | Microsoft Learn’

).

For AMD, Microsoft suggest that [not even the first generation of AMD Ryzen processors are capable of running Windows 11](’

Windows processor requirements Windows 11 supported AMD processors | Microsoft Learn’

).

Further reading:

Update on Windows 11 minimum system requirements and the PC Health Check app | Windows Insider Blog

You can bypass it even without booting to USB install. Just add a switch to setup.exe as instructed here.

Windows 11 system requirements (TPM/ CPU) can be bypassed via this single command - Neowin

Thanks for the insightful response. I did read it completely and enjoyed it.

[The_Eternal_Guest]

@zero_cool

Yes, I did. The hardware is compatible. I had installed Windows 11 on my laptop with a 8th Gen processor and it ran just fine.

Assuming your processor has integrated graphics & not the “F” version then uninstall the 1060 card from device manager & select “delete the driver files” or better use DDU tool from guru3d & take out the card. Then start again upgrading.

[Futureized]

@zero_cool

That is correct and I do have a key.

Then go ahead, backup, download windows 11 installers from MS and do a fresh install.

Check windows 11 upgrade compatibility test from windows 10 if your hardware supports 11.

Dirty install (upgrade from 10 to 11)will give issues most of times.

[zero_cool1]

Hi everyone, I decided to do one last attempt at installing Windows 11 and find out the exact error message resulting the BSOD.

@PunkX 75

What is the reason shown during the BSOD?

@zero_cool

I will need to attempt an installation again but I think it read*** System Thread Exception Not Handled***

It turns out, I was wrong, the correct error was Attempted Write To Read-only Memory. A quick Google search implies this is a driver issue and possible to resolve and I am planning to go down this rabbit hole to see if it is possible to fix it without formatting. I will check in my BIOS if I have enabled XMP Profile and disabling it might fix it. I will keep everyone posted on the updates.

Reference Links

[SOLVED] Attempted to Write to Read-Only Memory Issue(0x000000BE

)%20error,STOP%20message%20on%20the%20screen.

Redirecting

Redirecting

Redirecting

【2025】Extensive Fixes For Attempted Write to Readonly Memory Windows 10/11

8 Ways To Fix Attempted_Write_to_Readonly_Memory BSOD Error

Attempted Write to Readonly Memory in Windows 11 [Fixed]

[The_Eternal_Guest]

@zero_cool

A quick Google search implies this is a driver issue and possible to resolve and I am planning to go down this rabbit hole to see if it is possible to fix it without formatting

@The_Eternal_Guest

Assuming your processor has integrated graphics & not the “F” version then uninstall the 1060 card from device manager & select “delete the driver files” or better use DDU tool from guru3d & take out the card. Then start again upgrading.

Did you try my suggestion?

[zero_cool1]

Update: I tried a few possible solutions and nothing worked.

@zero_cool

I will check in my BIOS if I have enabled XMP Profile and disabling it might fix it.

I checked this and XMP was disabled but corrected a few wrong setting in the BIOS. I also found out the version of the BIOS on my motherboard did not support Windows 11 so I updated it to the newest version but nothing changed thereafter.

@The_Eternal_Guest

Did you try my suggestion?

After updating the BIOS and failing the installation, I tried this bit. I enabled iGPU from the BIOS, removed the GPU drivers in safe mode, removed the GPU from its slot, very difficult on an ITX system, and then tried installation with the upgrade assistant but that failed too.

I guess this will require a bit more tinkering so I will see what else can I try here. Will keep you posted.

[The_Eternal_Guest]

@zero_cool

After updating the BIOS and failing the installation, I tried this bit. I enabled iGPU from the BIOS, removed the GPU drivers in safe mode, removed the GPU from its slot, very difficult on an ITX system, and then tried installation with the upgrade assistant but that failed too.

The last option regarding drivers outside of a fresh install, remove drivers for mobo chipset/igpu/audio anything that didn’t come from MS updates (check your downloaded drivers files to see for which devices you installed/using manufacturer drivers & not The MS ones).

[zero_cool1]

FWIW, final update, I resorted to a clean install and that did the job. Took half of my day to restore all the programs but the system has been running fine. I wish I could figure out what was causing the crashes.