Microsoft's Windows 11 does not explicitly support first-generation AMD Ryzen processors. But it also doesn't support Intel processors made before the Coffee Lake generation. So anything from the Ryzen 1000 series or the 7th Gen Kaby Lake lineup isn't listed as a win for Windows 11.
But put that fork away. The lists of supported Intel and AMD processors for Windows 11 are long, but not exhaustive, and that also doesn't mean that these chips won't let you run the new operating system. This is the difference between what Microsoft calls the “hard floor” and the “soft floor” in its Windows 11 Compatibility Cookbook.
It's the difference between not being able to install Windows 11 and simply not being recommended. This is an arbitrary threshold for affected processors, and Microsoft may have chosen to stop checking chips for Windows 11 compatibility.
The announcement of Windows 11 was met with interest and dismay. On the one hand, the terribly serious “What’s Next for Windows” livestream showed us a vision of Windows 11 as an open, aesthetically pleasing update to Windows 10, with more than a bias towards gamers. And it is indeed free.
On the other hand, we had a Windows 11 health check app that seemed to tell gaming PCs, with monstrously powerful rigs, that their machines weren't up to the task of running the next-gen operating system. Microsoft.
Having a long list of supported processors, which seems to omit any silicon born less than four years ago, is just another stab in the heart.
“There are new minimum hardware requirements for Windows 11. In order to run Windows 11, devices must meet the following specifications. Devices that do not meet the hard floor cannot be upgraded to Windows 11, and devices that meet the soft floor will receive a notification that upgrading is not advised.”
Hard Floor:
- CPU: Core >= 2 and speed >= 1 GHz
- System memory: TotalPhysicalRam >= 4 GB
- Storage: 64 GB
- Security: TPM Version >= 1.2 and SecureBootCapable = True
- Smode: Smode is false, or Smode is true and C_ossku in (0x65, 0x64, 0x63, 0x6D, 0x6F, 0x73, 0x74, 0x71)
Soft floor:
- Security: TPMVersion >= 2.0
- CPU generation
I have to say that I am not 100% aware of what ‘Smode' is, but I can tell you that the ‘hard floor' of a 1GHz+ dual-core CPU will allow you to install Windows 11 on your first generation Ryzen machine. It may just be that the system is as unstable as a new operating system can ever be on older hardware.
One of those “installer beware” type situations, I guess.