Windows 11 is putting enterprise PCs in a tough spot, says report

Windows 11 Install
Windows 11 Install (Image credit: Windows Central)

What you need to know

  • Riverbed, a network solutions firm, published a report exploring the state of Windows 11 in the enterprise space.
  • The report's findings are "based on data aggregated from millions of employee devices from hundreds of global companies" all managed by Riverbed and its Aternity Digital Experience Management platform.
  • The findings indicate that over a third of enterprise devices aren't in a position to adopt Windows 11.

It was no secret that Windows 11 was going to have a particular effect on enterprise hardware. But now we have a better idea of what kind of concrete fallout has come with Microsoft's newest operating system, courtesy of networking solutions firm Riverbed.

Riverbed's report indicates that over a third of enterprise devices aren't ready for Windows 11 (via ZDNet. It claims that 23% can be upgraded to meet the operating system's requirements but that 12% are obsolete and unsalvageable. If you've been following Windows 11's system requirements and the debacles surrounding them, this next part won't come as a surprise to you: The leading cause of said figures is the operating system's TPM 2.0 cutoff.

But that's not all. Riverbed also found that almost one out of every five devices is going to need a storage buff as well in order to have the 64GB of available space that Windows 11 migrations demand.

Putting enterprise aside, plenty of regular consumers have also expressed issues with Windows 11's requirements. Those restrictions, as well as the operating system's core design (Start menu, anyone?) have proven divisive for a vocal subset of the Windows community. Not that that's stopping the OS. It's continuing its climb to dominance and there isn't a force in the world equipped to halt its progress, at present — unless the year of Linux kicks into overdrive.

Robert Carnevale

Robert Carnevale is the News Editor for Windows Central. He's a big fan of Kinect (it lives on in his heart), Sonic the Hedgehog, and the legendary intersection of those two titans, Sonic Free Riders. He is the author of Cold War 2395. Have a useful tip? Send it to robert.carnevale@futurenet.com.