Saving old PCs
Hi Doc, I had a Ryzen 5 2400G
running on a Gigabyte Aorus
B450 Pro Wi-Fi, with 32GB
RAM and 500GB Samsung
EVO M.2 NVMe boot drive
plus 2TB hard drive that I
built two years ago. I was
running the Windows 11
Pro Insider Preview (Dev
channel) when I discovered
the Ryzen wasn’t compatible
with Windows 11 due to the
well-known TPM issue, so I
purchased a Ryzen 7 5700G.
I had to update the BIOS and
do a clean reinstall but am
now running a great system
with no problems. I will have
to build a new system for my
wife because her system isn’t
compatible, despite running
Windows 10.
I have been repairing older
computers to be donated to
senior groups in need and it’s
too bad that these computers
will soon be bricks because
of TPM. It ’s simply hard luck
on those who can’t afford a
new box. —Rick GTHE DOCTOR RESPONDS: Did
you know that TPM 2.0 can be
added to many systems even
when the CPU itself doesn’t
support it? That’s because
TPM can be rendered one of
two ways: through the CPU’s
own firmware, or through
a discrete module on the
motherboard itself. Even if
your CPU fails the TPM check,
all may not be lost.
Many motherboards come
with a header for connecting
plug-in TPM modules (check
your mobo manual), enabling
you to render TPM support
directly from the mobo.
There’s no standard header,
so you’ll probably need to
source the TPM module from
your mobo manufacturer.
Originally available for
$20, the value of these chips
soared on the back of the
original announcement that
Windows 11 would require
TPM 2.0 support. Taking
Rick’s PC as an example, his
Gigabyte Aorus B450 Pro
board supports the Gigabyte
GC-TPM2.0 module. At the
time of writing, newegg.comsells these for $80, but
you’ll find much cheaper
‘compatible’ modules from
third-party manufacturers
on eBay that ship direct
from China for as little as
$15. Take care when buying
these—some offer chips
for multiple manufacturers
within a single listing, so
select the correct one. Look
for listings that provide
detailed descriptions and pin
diagrams to help you pick the
correct module.
For those PCs locked out
of Windows 11, Windows 10
will continue to be supported
until 2025, which buys a
little time for those without
the funds to buy a new box.
Should you be desperate to
move to the newer version,
you can bypass this check
for now (see the following
question) but the Doc also
wonders if now isn’t the right
time to take another look at
Linux. There are some great
user-friendly distros out
there to tempt you away—
Ubuntu, Mint, Elementary,
and Deepin Linux to name
but four.Virtualizing TPM 2.
In your response to Morris
Pomey’s question (‘Boot
Camp Updates’, Holiday
2021 issue) you indicate
that Parallels “creates a
‘virtual’ TPM chip to meet
the Windows 11 TPM 2.
requirement”. This confirms
my theory that Microsoft
could create virtual TPM
2.0 functionality to allow
Windows 11 to run on older
hardware. Performance
might be slower, but I doubt
that chip is being pounded
every microsecond. Or am I
inferring too much from the
statement? —Gary LaveryTHE DOCTOR RESPONDS:
The Doc’s cynical side says if
this were possible, it would
have already happened.
The TPM 2.0 requirement
was a deliberate choice by
Microsoft to lock out older
hardware. This is shown by
the fact Windows 11 can run
on machines without theTPM 2.0 chip by instructing
Windows to skip the TPM
check through a Registry
tweak. This can be applied
whether you’re planning
to upgrade an existing
Windows 10 installation
or do a clean install.
In both cases, it’s
carried out through an
administrative command
prompt—if you’re upgrading
Windows, type ‘cmd’ into
the Search tool and click
the option to ‘Run as
Administrator’. If you’re
using installation media
to perform a clean install,
follow the setup wizard
to the point where you’re
told your PC has failed
the upgrade check, then
press Ctrl + F10 to open a
command prompt window,
then type the following
command and press Enter:
REG ADD HKLM\
SYSTEM\Setup\LabConfig
/v BypassTPMCheck /t
REG_DWORD /d 1
Upgraders can now
launch the update through
Windows, while those opting
for a clean install should
close the command prompt,
then click Back in the install
wizard before proceeding as
normal. The issue with this
workaround is that there’s no
guarantee it’ll work forever.
What’s to stop Microsoft
from closing the loophole or
blocking updates to systems
where no TPM 2.0 chip has
been detected?
The irony is that you can
run Windows 11 in a virtual
environment on systems
that fail the TPM 2.0 check—
that’s true for Microsoft’s
own Hyper-V virtualization
solution that ships with
Windows 10 Pro.If this approach appeals,
then when creating your
virtual machine with
Hyper-V, select ‘Generation
2’ at the ‘Specify Generation’
screen. After the VM has
been set up, open its
settings to the Security
section, where you should
enable Secure Boot, select
Microsoft Windows from the
Template dropdown, and tick
‘Enable Trusted Platform
Module’ before clicking OK.Insider Prisoner
Little did I know when I
signed up for Windows
Insider Preview that along
would come Windows 11. I'm
running Windows 10 Pro on
an HP Z800 that can’t run
Windows 11 but, as Windows
Preview tries to install Win11,
I keep getting, “This build of
Windows will expire soon”.
Is there any way I can get
back on track without having
to jump through the backup
and reinstall Windows 10 Pro
circus? —Frank D GunseorTHE DOCTOR RESPONDS: It
appears you’re running on
the Dev channel of Windows
Insider—confirm this by
going to Settings > Update
& Security > Windows
Insider Program. If you’re
on Release Preview or Beta
channel, you could switch
this off and revert to regular
Windows 10 updates from
the next major release
(22H2, due later this year).
The fact you’re receiving
this message suggests
otherwise—had you been in
the Beta channel, Microsoft
would have moved you to the
Release Preview channel
when your laptop failed to
meet the requirements.
So, you’ll need to make a
backup and then download
the latest Windows Media
Creation tool (www.
microsoft.com/software-
download/windows10) to
create the Windows 10
installation media you’ll
need to wipe your system
drive clean and install a
fresh copy of Windows
© ASUS from scratch.
Many mobos support
TPM2.0 directly.APR 2022 MAXIMU MPC 15