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Watermarks to Start Appearing on Unsupported Windows 11 PCs

By Laura Tucker
Windows 11 Watermark Featured

You may have been patting yourself on the back after loading Windows 11 onto your unsupported machine. If so, your celebration will be ending soon. Some users with beta and preview releases of Windows 11 are seeing a watermark stating that their unsupported PCs don’t meet the system requirements.

Also read: The Ultimate Guide to Check Windows 11 Compatibility with Your PC

Windows 11 Watermark

Windows 11 made a big splash even before it was released. Many Windows users were anxious to get their hands on it. The only problem is that it carries many stiff requirements that leave older machines in the dust.

At the time of release, people trying to install Windows 11 on an unsupported system saw a message that read, “This PC doesn’t currently meet Windows 11 system requirements” with a short explanation.

Windows 11 Watermark Install

But there was also a longer message that appeared to be experimental. It directed the user to a situation on their machine that “needs your attention.” It was much more stern than the other message, stating that if the user proceeded with the install, their PC would no longer be supported, wouldn’t be “entitled” to updates, and damages wouldn’t be covered under warranty.

In February, Dev Channel users reported seeing a watermark on Windows 11 that said, “System requirements not met. Go to Settings to learn more.” It appeared in the bottom-right corner of the screen.

Windows 11 Watermark Desktop
Image Source: Twitter

More recently, that same watermark showed up in Beta and Release Preview channels. A Twitter user posted a screenshot of the watermark that appeared on his Windows 11 PC, remarking that “it’s only one line and something you’ll only see on the desktop.”

Getting Rid of the Annoying Message

The Windows 11 watermark appears because your device doesn’t meet the required specifications. This includes a supported Intel, AMD, or ARM processor, Secure Boot support, and TPM 2.0. Even if Secure Boot or TPM has been disabled, it can still bring up the warning watermark.

Also read: How to Safely Bypass the TPM 2.0 Requirement in Windows 11

If you don’t want to see the watermark, you’ll want to correct the situation soon. The chain of events shows that it will be appearing on your PC soon.

Luckily, the watermark doesn’t affect functionality. But if it’s annoying to you, there are things you can do. The most obvious is to update your machine with those requirements. The other methods are ways of bypassing the warning or fooling the machine. I won’t go on to discuss those here, but they are a very short Google search away.

Unsure if you want to upgrade to Windows 11? Read on to learn why you should upgrade.

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Laura Tucker Avatar
Laura Tucker
Laura has spent more than 20 years writing news, reviews, and op-eds, with the majority of those years as an editor as well. She has exclusively used Apple products for the past 35 years. In addition to writing and editing at MTE, she also runs the site’s sponsored review program.

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