Windows 11 24H2 has been rolling out for a few months now, but Microsoft has just officially released its CPU support list for the first time. Notably absent from this list are Intel's 8th, 9th, and 10th generation Core processors, indicating they are no longer officially supported.
Considering that 10th generation Comet Lake Core CPUs were released in 2020, it's quite a surprise to see them dropped after less than five years. The flagship Core i9-10900K, with its 10 cores, 20 threads, all-big-core architecture, and a high boost clock of 5.3GHz, seems more than capable of running Windows 11 24H2. So, why the exclusion?
In a seemingly ironic twist, the Celeron 6305, while an 11th generation Tiger Lake CPU also launched in 2020, is officially supported. This despite having only 2 cores, 2 threads, and a base clock of just 1.8GHz.
While Microsoft hasn't explicitly stated the reason for dropping support for 8th, 9th, and 10th generation Core CPUs, Intel likely bears a significant portion of the responsibility.
Back in December of last year, Intel quietly moved the integrated graphics of its 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th generation Core processors (including Pentium, Celeron, and Atom) into a legacy support mode. This typically means only critical security updates will be provided, with no further feature or performance enhancements.
It's highly probable that Microsoft is simply following Intel's lead in this matter. However, it's worth noting that Intel hasn't completely abandoned support for these older CPUs.
On a brighter note, Microsoft's updated compatibility list does include several new processors, such as Intel's Core Ultra 200 series (Lunar Lake/Arrow Lake) and AMD's Ryzen 9000 and Ryzen AI 300 series.
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