Windows 11 is change, which is not new

Microsoft announced Windows 11, and with it a set of requirements for the hardware that is required to run Windows 11. This is not new; all versions of Windows have had a list of "minimum required hardware". Yet some folks are quite upset about the requirements. Why are they so upset?

Looking back over the history of PCs (and going back the the first IBM PC, before the days of Windows), we can see a steady pattern of improvements to hardware and operating systems that took advantage of those improvements. New versions often required better hardware.

The first IBM PCs came without hard disks, and floppy disks were an option. DOS, the PC operating system before Windows, required floppy disks. IBM's PC XT included a hard disk, and DOS version 2 took advantage of the hard disk. (And was required to use the hard disk.) One could run DOS 2 on a floppy-only PC -- if you had enough memory -- but it provided little advantage. Systems with insufficient memory were not supported.

Windows 3.0, the first version of Windows to achieve popularity, would run on a PC with an 8088 processor, but it required a hard drive, and the multimedia operations required an 80286 processor and a CD drive. Here we see that older, less capable systems, are not supported.

Windows NT and each of its successors have set requirements for processor, memory, graphics, and disk space. Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 8, and Windows 10 all have requirements for hardware.

So we should be used to the idea that new operating systems will not support older systems.

But I keep coming back to the question: why are people so upset about this version of Windows? What is it with Windows 11 that makes people complain?

I can think of several reasons:

First, this announcement was a surprise. Microsoft has, for the past several years, released Windows 10 and kept the hardware requirements unchanged. Those requirements allowed for a broad swath of PCs to run Windows 10. (I myself have PCs from 2007 and 2012 that are running Windows 10.) There has been nothing in the messages from Microsoft that Windows 10 would be replaced, or that hardware requirements would change. Until now.

Second, the new requirements have dropped support for a lot of PCs, and perhaps folks are still using these older PCs. By raising the hardware bar for Windows, Microsoft has declared some (okay, lots of) PCs are "unworthy". If a person happens to have one of those PCs, they may consider this an insult.

But the reason I truly suspect is a different one.

Past updates and changes to hardware requirements have had clear benefits. When Windows/386 wanted a VGA card, we understood that the graphics capabilities of earlier video cards were not sufficient for the desired experience. When an operating system required a 16-bit card for the network interface, we understood that the transfer speeds of the older 8-bit cards were not sufficient. When Windows NT required an Intel 386 processor, we understood that the older 8088 and 80286 processors were not sufficient to provide multitasking the way we wanted it.

With past upgrades, we understood the reasons for the required hardware. That's not true with Windows 11.

Windows 11 needs a certain amount of memory and disk space; that's understood. It also needs the TPM 2 chip; we understand that. But Windows 11 has requirements for a certain, not-well-understood subset of Intel processors. (It's not clear that Microsoft understands the subset, either.)

Part of the problem is Intel's product line. Intel has gobs of processor models. It has so many that the old names of "8088" and "80286" or "Pentium 1" and "Pentium 3" don't work. Instead, Intel uses letters and numbers, something like i7-6550 and i5-5204. (Those aren't real models; I made them up. Or maybe they are real, maybe I hit on actual product numbers. But you get the idea.)

Intel has shipped, over the past decade, possibly thousands of different processor models, each with  different features. Most people don't care about most of the differences. The typical person looks at the processor clock speed and the number of cores, and little else. Hardware enthusiasts and game players may look at socket type and cache size.

Only the folks who write operating systems and low-level drivers go beyond those to look at the arcane aspects of the different processors. Those aspects can include the handling of interrupts, privileged execution of certain instructions, fixes to errors in the instruction set, virtual memory, and virtual machines.

It is these differences that are important to Microsoft. Windows has to work with all of those processors. It has to handle the quirks of each processor. It has to "know" that it can trust an instruction on some processors and not trust it on others. All of those quirks add up, and they can interact in strange and subtle ways.

On top of that, Microsoft has to test each of those configurations (preferably on real processors, not simulations). That means that Microsoft has to maintain a large collection of hardware.

By limiting the processors to those designed and shipped in the past three years, Microsoft eliminates the older processors and in so doing reduces the variation that they cause. The reduced set of processors allows for (relatively) simpler code for Windows, and a simpler test process.

But none of this is obvious. Microsoft has not said "we're limiting the supported processors to those we can test on", nor have they said "we're limiting the supported processors to those that have these (insert arcane aspect) features".

All we have is a vague announcement. (And I will say that the whole "Windows 11" announcement seems rushed. It doesn't have the depth and details of previous announcements from Microsoft. But that's another topic.)

That vague announcement does not give us understanding. And because we don't understand the reasons, we resent the change. That's basic psychology.

I will close with a few thoughts:

- Microsoft, I think, has thought about Windows 11 and its requirements, and has made a good decision.
- That decision is not available to us, so we see the change as arbitrary.
- It is easy to resent what we do not understand.
- Microsoft was probably surprised by the reaction to the announcement, and may be working on more announcements.
- While I don't understand Microsoft's decision, I have faith that they have a good process.

A poor message can hide a good process; let's wait for more information.

Also - Microsoft is not alone in changing hardware requirements. Apple has done so with every new version of macOS (I think). Even Linux drops support for older systems. I have an old 32-bit MacBook running Ubuntu 16.04 with no way to upgrade because Ubuntu now requires 64-bit processors.

Windows 11 is for the enterprise

Microsoft's recent announcement of Windows 11 has gotten a lot of people asking questions? Why now? Why the change for minimum requirements? And why was the announcement so plain and unassuming?

I think the answer lies in Microsoft's customers for Windows. So let's look at the different types of customers. We can see that there are a few different types of customers for Windows.

Enterprises: Large companies with lots of computers. They authenticate with Exchange. They use Microsoft Office, SQL Server, and other Microsoft products. They buy lots of licenses. They pay for support. And -- importantly -- they depreciate computers over a three year schedule, and they frequently replace computers every three years. They have dedicated IT support teams (possibly outsourced or contractors) and they have discussions and plans for IT.

We can consider large non-profit organizations and large government agencies in this group, as long as they replace their computers every three years.

Small businesses: Companies with fewer computers (probably less than 100). They don't use Exchange for authentication; they assign everyone a computer with a password and share data via workgroups. They use the software that comes with the computer (Windows and Office). And they don't replace their computers every three years; they keep them longer.

Small business do not (typically) have plans for IT, other than "keep things running and replace computers when they fail". They let their computers age in place, with no specific plans to upgrade Windows or applications.

We can consider small non-profit organizations and small government agencies in this group, as long as they don't have formal plans to replace computers every three years.

Typical individuals: Like small businesses, they have few computers, they use the software that comes with the computer (possibly Office 365), and they keep their computers for longer than three years. They, too, let their computers age in place.

Enthusiasts: These are individuals who enjoy tinkering with hardware or software. Like the typical individual, they have a few computers. Unlike the typical individual, they take a more active interest in IT. They probably have more computers than the typical individual, and they tend to have some computers with the latest versions of Windows. (They may also have older computers with older versions of Windows, just for fun.)

Enthusiasts were important in the early days of Windows. They downloaded beta versions, showed Windows to their friends, and learned how to make Windows work on different types of hardware. The were an important part of the "Windows revolution" over DOS.

Gamers: These individuals have few computers. They take an interest in hardware, and software when it helps their gaming experience. They use powerful computers, either built by themselves or off-the-shelf with custom video and replaced disk. They may replace equipment every three years; the time is driven not by depreciation schedules but by hardware and game software.

Browsers: Individuals who use Windows like a Chromebook. That is, they have a computer running Windows but they use only web apps. They don't use local applications (not even Office). Like typical users, they have no plans for upgrades and tend to use computers for a long time.

With these different groups in mind, we can gain some insight into Microsoft's motivations.

Microsoft's announcement for Windows 11, and specifically the requirements for 64-bit, and TPM 2.0, limit Windows 11 to recent computers. This is going to cause some problems for some users, because the equipment they currently have will not support Windows 11. But look at the groups, and see which will be affected:

Small businesses, typical individuals, and browsers will not be affected by Windows 11. They probably do not run the latest version of Windows 10, and may be running Windows 8.1 or even Windows 7. (The latter is unlikely due to the lack of support for Internet Explorer.)

Enterprise businesses will not be affected (much) by Windows 11. They will have equipment that is ready to run Windows 11 (thanks to their policy of replacing computers every three years) and they have an IT support team who can coordinate the installation of the new version. (That IT group may not be happy about a new version of Windows, but they can handle the task.)

The groups most affected by Windows 11 will be gamers and enthusiasts. Gamers will have to review the benefits of Windows 11, and will probably replace older PCs when games come out that are for Windows 11 only. Enthusiasts will be the hardest hit: their curated older hardware that is running Windows 10 (because it can) will not be able to run Windows 11. They will have to pony up for new hardware (and find space for it, while keeping their older PCs).

So my conclusion is this: Windows 11 is for the enterprise. Microsoft is targeting enterprise customers (the ones who pay lots of licensing fees) and keeping them happy. (Enterprises love security!)

The other types of users are going along for the ride. Small businesses and typical individuals won't be affected (they already have hardware, and when they buy new PCs they will come with Windows 11).

The folks most affected will be the enthusiasts who won't be able to install Windows 11 on their old hardware. (And probably won't be able to install Windows 10 after its end-of-life in 2025.) That's a small crowd, and they are less important today than they were in the early days of Windows.

Microsoft cannot support old hardware forever. The advantages of increased security are obvious and necessary. A special version of Windows 11 ("Windows 11 minus"? "Windows for the tinkerers"?) that supports older (less secure) hardware would require a lot of time and effort, and the return for that time and effort would be very small.

The enthusiasts and tinkerers need another home, one that is not dominated by the concerns (and economics) of the enterprise.