I've been trying to install Windows 11 Pro on an older laptop that originally came with Windows 10 Home. I've previously built PCs and had no issues installing Windows 11 Pro from a bootable USB, but I've never done this with a commercial laptop that had Windows pre-installed. However, when I reformatted the hard drive and tried to install Windows 11 Pro, the installer only offers me the option to install Windows 11 Home. I'm guessing there's something in the SSD or motherboard that remembers the original Windows 10 Home license. What do I need to check or change to fix this? Is there a way to get the installer to show all the options?
1 Answer
It seems like the Windows 11 installer might be performing a hardware compatibility check, and it could be limiting your options based on what's detected. Can you share the make and model of your laptop? Also, check if the original manufacturer ever supported Windows 11 on that model. If it’s older, it might lack certain newer features like UEFI BIOS or TPM that Windows 11 requires.
It's a Lenovo T15g. I've read that when the installer finds a previous version of Windows, it tries to match that version. Ideally, I just want to remove anything it’s detecting.