
However, Windows is not the most used operating system when including both mobile and desktop OSes, due to Android's massive growth. Windows is the most popular desktop operating system in the world, with 75% market share as of April 2022, according to StatCounter. The first version of Windows was released on November 20, 1985, as a graphical operating system shell for MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces (GUIs). Defunct Windows families include Windows 9x, Windows Mobile, and Windows Phone. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for servers, and Windows IoT for embedded systems. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft.

The installation takes some time, involves several restarts and you will need a Microsoft account.


Remember to select the option to Keep personal files and apps.Once downloaded, follow the installation guide prompts.For most users, I recommend ‘Installation Assistant’ but there is also an option to create a boot drive for clean installs.Click on the Windows 11 download page link here.Install Windows 11 Manually (via Assistant) Just navigate to: Start > Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Check for updates and Windows 11 should show up, if your PC is compatible. Install Windows 11 Via Windows 10 Settings Tip: always backup your PC before upgrading to a new operating system or at least ensure your important files and documents are saved elsewhere, such as a cloud service like Google Drive or Dropbox. With that caveat out the way, if your PC qualifies, this is how you get Windows 11 for free. Windows 11 can be tricked to run on older PCs, but that seems a pointless endeavour because Microsoft is refusing to guarantee access to feature and security updates. But if you have a modern PC and choose to run an older operating system, then you can first get a free Windows 10 upgrade and use that to then jump to Windows 11. If you run Windows 7 / 8 it is highly unlikely your computer meets all these requirements.

Graphics card: DirectX 12 compatible with WDDM 2.0 driver.Security: Enable TPM 2.0, UEFI firmware and Secure Boot capable on your PC.CPU: 1 GHz or faster with two or more cores.
