Microsoft’s new operating system officially launches in three days’ time. If you own a copy of Windows 7 or 8, you could be in line for a free upgrade. However, first you need to check whether your machine is up to the task. Here are the minimum hardware requirements for each version of the new OS.
Microsoft is releasing seven different flavours of Windows 10: Windows 10 Home, Windows 10 Pro, Windows 10 Enterprise, Windows 10 Education, Windows 10 Mobile, Windows 10 Mobile Enterprise and Windows 10 IoT Core (Internet of Things).
All versions should run smoothly on almost any Windows 8.1 machine. However, if you’re using Windows 7 on an older laptop, you’ll need to make sure you meet the system requirements. (Windows XP and Vista users will need to do a clean install.)
The system requirements are as follows:
CPU: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster
RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit)
Free hard disk space: 16 GB
Graphics card: Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver
Display: 1024×600
A Microsoft account and internet access
Microsoft also strongly recommends that you are running the latest version of your current OS (either Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8.1 Update). You can download the updates here and here, respectively.
You can check if your PC or tablet meets the minimum requirements by heading to the system info in the Control Panel. Alternatively, you can try using the “Check my PC” function in the Get Windows 10 app.
Bear in mind that other mitigating factors such as driver support, existing firmware and app compatibility can also play a role in your device’s compatibility. There are also some features that will not work without special hardware. These include Windows Hello which requires an infrared camera and touch gestures which naturally require a multi-touch display.
Source: lifehacker.com.au
