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Context: This article was originally written shortly after the announcement of Windows 11 and its new hardware requirements around TPM 2.0, Secure Boot and supported processors. Since then, the criticism of early replacement has become more concrete: Windows 10 reached end of support on October 14, 2025, while many still usable computers cannot officially move to Windows 11. Microsoft then offered Extended Security Updates, relaxed the conditions for free access in the European Economic Area and later extended the Consumer ESU programme until October 12, 2027. At the same time, Europe has paid more attention to repair, longer product lifetimes, digital sovereignty and government dependence on Microsoft and other U.S.-based technology platforms. The text remains relevant as historical and social context for software-driven obsolescence, ownership, repairability, vendor lock-in, privacy and digital autonomy.
Follow our fight for Right to Repair
Microsoft has recently released Windows 11. To our surprise, or actually we kinda expected this, most computers can't be upgraded to the latest operating system offering from Microsoft.
We already had a lot of critique and privacy issues with Windows 10 during it's release and hoped for improvement. We already realised that Windows 11 would also be a disappointment in that regard. Especially when the news came that Windows 11 would refuse to boot when a laptop did not have a working camera or Bluetooth (anymore). It would not be a viable operating system choice for laptops without this potential spy hardware build in. Nor for laptops that are equipped with build-in hardware kill switches. Nor for people who disconnect their camera, microphone, Bluetooth or WiFi for one reason or another.
We and others have tried out and tested Windows 11. Or in better words, we're completely unable to test Windows 11 on real hardware. Microsoft not only requires a computer with a TPM and with secure boot enabled. It also has a seemingly artificial line in the sand, requiring a processor designed, not made, after a certain date.
The newest hardware we've got here at our office, has a recently manufactured, 7th generation Intel Core I7 processor. In fact, you can buy brand new computers today, that will not be able to run Windows 11. We've looked into the differences between both the Intel and AMD processors that are, and aren't supported. We seriously can’t find a real reason why this line has been drawn. Even the members of our staff who have years of experience with motherboard design and embedded computer design have no clue as why slightly older generation processors are not supported. And older as in designed in recent years, but still being produced to this day.
Microsoft claims this is for your protection, otherwise you are in danger. But it is a false argument, because these processors of older design can provide these security features, only with more impact on performance. There is no good real reason why an operating system would demand these security features being present, enabled, and fully done in hardware, under all circumstances, for everybody and for all computers in any situation. It's like a knife manufacturer who desides that from now on all knives will be sold in a box that can only be opened by the newest iteration of a kitchen robot because otherwise, some people would misuse the knife and potentially hurt themselves or others.
Millions of computers will end up in a landfill, long before their expected lifespan is reached. Perfectly working, usable and secure computers. Otherwise, people have little choice other than running unsupported Windows 7, 8 and 10 with potential security risks and not being able to install newer applications. The other option is to switch to a different operation system such as POP!_OS, CentOS, Ubuntu, SUSE Linux, Haiku OS and others, like we've done years ago.
We can only conclude that it is very clear Microsoft is no longer an operation system manufacturer. Again Microsoft gives Windows 11 away for free, and focusses on sales of new hardware and data collection.
The core of this article did not become less relevant after 2021. It became more concrete. Microsoft continued to tie Windows 11 to formal hardware requirements such as TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, UEFI and a processor on the approved list. As a result, many still usable Windows 10 computers remained outside the official upgrade path, even when those machines were still perfectly suitable for office work, education, web use, light development or local administration.
On October 14, 2025, Windows 10 officially reached end of support. Without an additional arrangement, users of working but unsupported machines would have to choose between running insecure software, buying new hardware or switching to another operating system. That is exactly the problem this article pointed to in 2021: replacement is then no longer determined by the physical condition of the computer, but by the software and platform choices of the supplier.
Microsoft introduced a Consumer Extended Security Updates programme for Windows 10. At first, this was not simply a free continuation of security updates: outside the European Economic Area, consumers had to pay, use Microsoft Rewards points or enable Windows Backup. In the European Economic Area, access was relaxed after pressure from consumer organisations, so Windows Backup was no longer required. A Microsoft account still remained part of the enrolment process.
In 2026, the Consumer ESU programme was extended further. Instead of ending in October 2026, Microsoft’s current information now says the programme runs until October 12, 2027. That matters because Microsoft has effectively acknowledged that moving to Windows 11 is not timely, reasonable or practical for everyone. It does not remove the original problem, but it gives users, repairers, organisations and refurbishers more time to keep machines secure or migrate carefully.
The European context has also changed since 2021. The EU directive on the repair of goods was adopted in 2024 and entered into force on July 30, 2024. Member States must apply the rules from July 31, 2026. One important element is that consumers receive an extra year of legal guarantee when they choose repair instead of replacement during the guarantee period.
That development is not specifically about Windows 11, but it touches the same principle. Products should remain usable for longer, repair should become more attractive and manufacturers should not unnecessarily block repair through contractual terms, hardware or software techniques. For computers and software platforms, the question therefore remains broader than hardware alone: who decides when a device is economically, technically or socially “finished”?
After 2021, European political attention for digital sovereignty also increased. In the Netherlands, parliament adopted motions in 2025 calling on the government to reduce dependence on U.S. software and cloud providers. In Denmark, the Ministry of Digitalisation started a pilot with an open source alternative to Microsoft Office. In Schleswig-Holstein, LibreOffice was already used on almost eighty percent of workstations outside the tax administration by the end of 2025.
These developments show that the problem is not limited to individual consumers. When one supplier controls the operating system, cloud services, office software, accounts, updates and hardware requirements, dependence appears at several levels at once. For citizens, businesses, schools and governments, this is not only about cost or convenience, but also about control, continuity, repairability, auditability and the ability to keep making independent choices.
That is why the Windows 11 discussion remains a Right-to-Repair and ownership issue. A computer that still works technically, but is pushed outside the official path by platform requirements, account dependencies or update policy, is not fully under the user’s control in the practical sense. The user may own the hardware, but the usable lifetime is strongly determined by an external software supplier.
| Microsoft | 2021–2026 | Windows 11 specifications and system requirements |
| Microsoft Support | October 14, 2025 | Windows 10 support has ended |
| Microsoft | 2026 | Windows 10 Consumer Extended Security Updates through October 12, 2027 |
| The Verge | September 25, 2025 | Microsoft relaxes Windows 10 ESU conditions in the European Economic Area |
| European Parliament | April 23, 2024 | Right to Repair: making repair easier and more appealing to consumers |
| European Commission | July 30, 2024 | Directive on repair of goods: application from July 31, 2026 and extra year of legal guarantee after repair |
| Reuters | March 19, 2025 | Dutch parliament calls for reducing dependence on U.S. software companies |
| Digitaliseringsministeriet, Denmark | June 19, 2025 | Danish Ministry starts digital sovereignty pilot with open source office software |
| Schleswig-Holstein | December 4, 2025 | LibreOffice replaces Microsoft on almost eighty percent of workstations outside the tax administration |
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