Install Windows 11 25H2 on Unsupported Hardware

In this video I will explain how to perform a fresh installation of Windows 11 25H2 on unsupported hardware.

In the video, we will take a look at the required steps, then prepare a bootable USB drive, which can be used on multiple machines, followed by an installation where we bypass the hardware limitations and eventually also the requirement for a Microsoft account. This works for both Windows 11 Home and Professional.

Other scenarios:
- Upgrade from Windows 11 which is already on 24H2 on unsupported hardware: https://youtu.be/LkG87oX-aRU
- Upgrade from Windows 10 or an older version of Windows 11 like 23H2 or 22H2 to the latest version of Windows 11: 25H2 on unsupported hardware: https://youtu.be/uVnQaG06XOA

If you prefer to have the step-by-step instructions in written form: https://jensd.be/2689/windows/upgrade-to-or-install-windows-11-25h2-on-unsupported-hardware

Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction
00:29 - Other scenarios
01:23 - Windows 11 and unsupported hardware
03:03 - SSE 4.2 and POPCNT
04:07 - USB drive preparation
05:58 - Create Windows 11 installer
07:32 - Fresh Install of 25H2
08:36 - Skip hardware checks
11:25 - Initial setup and bypass Microsoft account
13:12 - Updates after upgrade