Feature request: Remove all Windows 11 restrictions

[com-github-michael]

Checklist

• I looked at https://github.com/pbatard/rufus/wiki/FAQ to see if my question has already been answered.
• I performed a search in the issue tracker for similar issues using keywords relevant to my problem, such as the error message I got from the log.
• I clicked the 'Log' button or pressed Ctrl-L in Rufus, and copy/pasted the log into the line that says <FULL LOG> below.
• The log I am copying is the FULL log, starting with the line Rufus version: x.y.z - I have NOT removed any part of it.

Additionally (if applicable):

• I ran a bad blocks check, by clicking Show advanced format options then Check device for bad blocks, and confirmed that my USB is not defective.
• I also tried one or more of the following:
  • Using a different USB drive.
  • Plugging the USB into a different port.
  • Running Rufus on a different computer.
• If using an image, I clicked on the (✓) button to compute the MD5, SHA1 and SHA256 checksums, which are therefore present in the log I copied. I confirmed, by performing an internet search, that these values match the ones from the official image.

Issue description

There are more Windows 11 restrictions than TPM and Secure Boot, i.e. for CPU, RAM, Storage etc.
It's possible to remove those restrictions, too: Just in the same way as with "BypassTPMCheck" and "BypassSecureBootCheck".
New additional values in HKLM\SYSTEM\Setup\LabConfig with value "1":

• BypassRAMCheck
• BypassStorageCheck
• BypassCPUCheck
• BypassDiskCheck

So, it looks like that in format.c in line 1448 the list could be extend, i.e.:
const char* key_name[] = { "BypassTPMCheck", "BypassSecureBootCheck", "BypassRAMCheck", "BypassStorageCheck", "BypassCPUCheck", "BypassDiskCheck" };

Perhaps an new additional option (besides the existing ones) like "Extended Windows 11 Installation (no restrictions at all)" would be best.

BTW: Rufus rocks!

Log

<FULL LOG>

[pbatard]

I'm afraid I agree with Microsoft's RAM and Storage restrictions. And I have yet to see evidence that BypassCPUCheck, which appears to have been suggested as a key that might exist on a user forum, actually does anything.

Do you have evidence to demonstrate that BypassCPUCheck does anything?

For the record, I did install Windows 11 on platforms where the CPU was quite old and definitely not in the list of CPUs supported by the official requirements from Microsoft, and had no issue, even as I wasn't using BypassCPUCheck.

Also, BypassDiskCheck is a new one to me. Can you provide some links of where it originated (preferably that demonstrate that it was the result of research and was validated that it actually changes the behaviour, rather than a suggestion that this key might exist)?

I still don't plan to add BypassCPUCheck, even if valid, on account that if you try to run software on versions of Windows where this key is actually needed, which, from my experience, would have to be very old CPUs then, you are going to run into trouble, and I don't want to end up in a situation where people who used Rufus, and who many not be too tech-savvy, run into problems with their Windows installation (such as running out of disk space for updates, or software that crashes because their CPU is way too old, and so on) because Rufus allowed them to.

Therefore, if you want to take risks with regards to slowdown, poor performance or lack of disk space, I will ask that you use the well publicised method of hitting Shift-F10 and regedit during install to add the keys yourself, or use a different method, as I really don't want people to end up with an installation of Windows 11 that doesn't perform as well as expected in terms of performance and ability to apply updates (i.e. with enough disk space).

For the record, that's also the reason why I don't even want to put these options behind a separate option or a cheat mode (for instance with a big warning that would alert the user that they may run into trouble) because users too easily forget those.

I will therefore reject this request and close it. But I hope that you can understand where my position comes from (mostly that Rufus is not designed for power users, but for regular users, for whom making these options too easy to apply will create major problems down the line).

But even as it is closed, you can still reply to it, as I am genuinely interested in finding out if you have evidence for BypassCPUCheck and BypassDiskCheck actually doing anything...

[pbatard]

PS: See also #1791.

[com-github-michael]

I perfectly understand your reasoning.

Unfortunately, I have no proof that BypassCPUCheck does anything.

And it's acceptable to do the Shift-F10 and regedit trick. So it's fine for me that you closed this.

On question:
Is there a chance to do the regedit trick with a Windows To Go installation on a stick?

[pbatard]

Thanks for understanding. I think I'll add a FAQ entry about this, as I've been asked about adding these extra options a few times (and of course I'll mention the ShiftF10 + regedit there for those who still want to apply these keys).

Oh, and I'd still like to know about that BypassDiskCheck, which I hadn't heard of before. Where did you get that from?

Is there a chance to do the regedit trick with a Windows To Go installation on a stick?

The thing to understand is that these registry keys are there to let Windows setup go through its various checks before it applies the install.wim image to the target disk.
And Windows To Go is basically Rufus applying the install.wim image to the target disk (which would be a USB drive in most cases).

So you don't need to apply these for Windows To Go, since, technically, you're way past the point where these keys would have any use as what these keys allow you to do (applying the install.wim image) has already been accomplished.

That's also why, even before these keys were discovered, people reported that they had no trouble running pre-release images of Windows 11 in Windows To Go mode, on hardware that didn't meet the TPM or Secure Boot specs, because once the WIM has been applied, you don't need to bother with registry keys that are only relevant to the pre-installation process.

[com-github-michael]

Yes, a FAQ entry about this Windows 11 restrictions stuff is a very good idea.

I got the BypassDiskCheck from:
https://www.deskmodder.de/wiki/index.php?title=Windows_11_auch_ohne_TPM_und_Secure_Boot_installieren

It's a German site. Unfortunately, they do not provide an explanation for BypassDiskCheck...

And thanks a lot for your explanation regarding Windows To Go!
That's exactly what I wanted know.

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