Microsoft continues to make changes regarding the requirements that must be met to be able to continue enjoying the Windows 11 operating system. Now the entity introduces a new requirement that has not generated good impressions among users due to how unexpected it was and the way in which it was discovered.
This is not the first time that there has been talk of meeting requirements to use Windows 11. The latest news that has been arriving has made it clear that one of Microsoft’s concerns includes further delimiting the number of computers that will be able to continue taking advantage of the version. current platform. Not on a whim, but to possibly ensure that everyone can enjoy their technology to the fullest. Now take action another requirement.
Will your processor meet the requirements?
The Windows 11 24H2 update is in the testing process and will mark another turning point in the history of Microsoft’s operating system. According to information received from Insider program users, this update will force the computer’s processor to be able to support the POPCNT instruction.
The problem is that, as you are probably imagining, it is, at first glance, confusing. Just by reading something like that you surely won’t be able to know if your computer will be able to support to the operating system or not. This is something that has also happened to other users and is the main reason why controversy has been generated among the community.
What do we know?
As has happened in other cases, this requirement is not reported by Microsoft and explained in depth. In reality, it was discovered by a user who reported it in an X publication, where he mentions that with the support of POPCNT There’s no turning back. If your computer has a processor capable of running it, you can continue using Windows 11, but otherwise it will not be possible in any way and you will have to look for an alternative.
The situation is so extreme that, even if you have a processor that supports POPCNT and you deactivate it, you will not be able to get Windows 11 to work. As we read due to this news, it has been proven that the reason for this is because the kernel of Windows 11 resort to this instruction for many of the system files it uses. So if the processor is not supported, there is no way for the platform to work.
The good news, and now we will tell you a little more about all this, is that most likely the processor that your computer has does incorporate this support for POPCNT. It would be strange if he didn’t, although there may be exceptions. The reason why you probably don’t have problems is because it is not exactly a new type of instruction. In reality, it is much older than you can imagine. It was initially introduced in the 1960s and, since then, it has been maintained in the computer market giving it different uses.
Of course, until now it had never become a requirement for Windows to work. And that is what makes the situation so strange, that it has generated discomfort and that everything, in general, seems a bit crazy. Why is Microsoft so interested in ensuring that all Windows 11 computers are compatible with this instruction? One of the reasons, and it is not surprising at all because it is the trend lately, can be found in the fact that POPCNT is now being used in machine learning and artificial intelligence.
It may be related to the role that AI is going to play in the immediate future of Windows and it is also said that it is a very present instruction in everything related to neural networks. Because of this, Microsoft would like it to be present as a compatible technology and that there is no user who cannot use it. However, making it a requirement to continue using Windows 11 is something that draws quite a bit of attention.
Nobody forgets how, behind Windows 11, Windows 10, version of the platform that already has its days numbered and that millions of people around the world continue to use. That means that this type of news is received with less positive feelings if possible.
