Windows 11 will get a brand new desktop watermark on unsupported {hardware}

Microsoft is pushing forward with plans to warn Windows 11 customers which have put in the working system on unsupported {hardware}. In a new update to Windows 11, a watermark has appeared on the desktop wallpaper for unsupported methods, alongside an analogous warning within the touchdown web page of the settings app.

Microsoft had been testing these modifications final month, however they’re now rolling out to Release Preview simply forward of a full launch to all Windows 11 customers within the coming days. While Microsoft doesn’t point out the addition of a watermark in its “improvements” list for this replace, testers have noticed it’s included.

If Windows 11 is working on unsupported {hardware}, a brand new desktop watermark will state “System requirements not met. Go to settings to learn more.” It’s related, however far much less outstanding, to the semi-transparent watermark that seems in Windows in the event you haven’t activated the OS.

It’s been potential to bypass Microsoft’s minimal {hardware} necessities for Windows 11 and set up the working system freely. The controversial {hardware} necessities imply Windows 11 solely formally helps Intel eighth Gen Coffee Lake or Zen+ and Zen 2 CPUs and up, leaving tens of millions of PCs behind. Anyone that has used the workaround will now begin to see this warning in Windows 11.

Microsoft has used related warnings for unactivated variations of Windows previously, and restricts options like darkish mode, personalization settings, and themes from being modified till a system is activated. Microsoft doesn’t look like experimenting with any related characteristic restrictions, and the desktop watermark can probably be disabled with some registry modifications.