- May 19, 2011
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First, I'll identify the problem by stringing together a few topics:
1 - Windows 11's unusual system requirements:
forums.anandtech.com
2 - Win11 25H2 contains no improvements:
forums.anandtech.com
3 - Instead of bug-fixing Win11, MS devotes time to closing MS account setup loopholes:
forums.anandtech.com
My conclusion is that Microsoft is attempting to juggle two priorities: The greater priority is for them to slurp as much user data as possible, the secondary priority is to throw OEMs a bone because Microsoft still needs them to get the Windows product to the user. The logic that had escaped me until recently is that this is another case of "we are no longer the customer, we are the product", and perhaps the logic escaped me for a while because I'm routinely buying Windows licences for not insignificant sums of money from Microsoft, "it's hardly as if I'm receiving a service for free and that's why I'm the product", my buying patterns are the miniscule exception and not the rule.
Addressing point 1 and 3 a little further - if you buy a new PC from a big-name manufacturer and set it up the way MS wants you to, then two significant things happen: a - your storage drive is encrypted, b - all your data is in OneDrive and your Edge browsing data in the cloud, all available for Microsoft to rake through. What's the point in say encrypting grandma's desktop PC's drive? If her PC goes titsup then her only recourse is the cloud: the limiting of end users' ability to work around big tech's hold on their data, and partly that you'll be paying for OneDrive space after "the first taste is for free" 5GB. There's a performance hit with enabling disk encryption, but that's a problem for the end user; it also helps slow PCs down and make them more likely to be replaced sooner (another bone thrown to OEMs).
We know that Win11 doesn't need the hardware it is supposed to require and will work perfectly well with hardware that falls short, but the reason is to throw a bone to the OEMs who got cheated out of a potential hardware renewal when Win10 was released.
Elaborating on point 2 - It's a tough question to answer if Windows is becoming more buggy, but IMO the answer is yes. For example, on clean Windows 11 installs, I've seen on multiple occasions in the last few months that unpinning icons that Microsoft have placed on the taskbar does nothing (though maybe this is by design). I have two workarounds but on one occasion both have failed me: a - uninstall the app (Copilot is a common offender), b - engage in tactics to reset the taskbar. The occasion that both failed was the Store icon not unpinning, and uninstalling that on a customer's computer is either problematic or impossible. Also on 24H2 doing a chkdsk of the boot drive on startup routinely doesn't work (it reboots as if the check has already been done), and the only workaround I've found that works is to shift-restart then command prompt and run chkdsk from there. Another example is how pinned taskbar apps are often having an underline as if the app is running when it isn't. Really basic bugs that I've been seeing on different PCs pretty much on a weekly basis.
IMO MS considers Windows (and probably most of its products) to be "good enough" for the end user and rather than improving Windows for the end user (which would traditionally have been a much higher priority), instead they're re-arranging deckchairs in the UI and the QA has gone to pot since they got rid of that department in 2014 and the ascension of "Windows As A Service". No doubt when the livestock starts screaming loud enough about a particular bug then MS will benevolently come to their aid, but that's probably the best we can hope for in terms of actual improvements to Windows.
On the topic of data slurping - Historically I've generally assumed that the reason is marketable data is a profitable sideline, but IMO for so many companies (and not just big tech) to realign how they do things for maximum slurping potential, for example news sites saying you can either pay to get in or consent to data slurping, it's got to be sufficiently profitable to realign Microsoft's priorities with Windows, which I think most people will agree is still MS's keystone in their business model. These days I think AI training is a significant reason for it.
My predictions for the future of Windows therefore are:
A migration to ARM - this represents a new opportunity to create a PC that either locks out Linux as an alternative completely or at least makes peoples' lives harder if they want to go down that route, e.g. Windows file systems being encrypted and obstacles like UEFI Secure Boot being put in the way.
Microsoft succeeding in making a MS account a requirement at least to sign into Windows with.
Microsoft's AI helping everyone become dumber, e.g. helping guide your buying decisions along paths most profitable for Microsoft.
More arbitrary hardware requirements, because the last thing that OEMs need are computers that last say 10-15 years for most users.
Side note - I wonder if we're going to be seeing OEMs attempting to slurp data to a similar extent as MS, and big-name PC performance fixing will be a case of trying to shut as much down as possible.
1 - Windows 11's unusual system requirements:
Discussion - Theories for why Win11 has shall we say 'unusual' official system requirements
And by 'unusual' I mean the "processor must be ~2018 or later", TPM and secure boot. My theories are: 1 - Microsoft was throwing a bone to OEMs after offering Win10 for 'older PCs' for free which would no doubt have cut into their bottom line a bit. 2 - Microsoft has a massive crush on Apple...
forums.anandtech.com
2 - Win11 25H2 contains no improvements:
News - Win11 25H2 apparently contains *no improvements*
https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/30/microsoft_windows_11_25h2/?td=rt-3a Jason Leznek, Principal Project Manager for Windows Servicing and Delivery, said: "Windows 11, version 24H2 and version 25H2 share the same source code, with only the additional features turned on. My default suspicion...
forums.anandtech.com
3 - Instead of bug-fixing Win11, MS devotes time to closing MS account setup loopholes:
News - Instead of spending time bugfixing Win11, MS again tries to stop MS account bypasses during setup
https://www.techpowerup.com/341656/microsoft-blocks-online-account-bypass-on-windows-11 Hopefully OEMs will stick with 24H2 images for a long time yet!
forums.anandtech.com
My conclusion is that Microsoft is attempting to juggle two priorities: The greater priority is for them to slurp as much user data as possible, the secondary priority is to throw OEMs a bone because Microsoft still needs them to get the Windows product to the user. The logic that had escaped me until recently is that this is another case of "we are no longer the customer, we are the product", and perhaps the logic escaped me for a while because I'm routinely buying Windows licences for not insignificant sums of money from Microsoft, "it's hardly as if I'm receiving a service for free and that's why I'm the product", my buying patterns are the miniscule exception and not the rule.
Addressing point 1 and 3 a little further - if you buy a new PC from a big-name manufacturer and set it up the way MS wants you to, then two significant things happen: a - your storage drive is encrypted, b - all your data is in OneDrive and your Edge browsing data in the cloud, all available for Microsoft to rake through. What's the point in say encrypting grandma's desktop PC's drive? If her PC goes titsup then her only recourse is the cloud: the limiting of end users' ability to work around big tech's hold on their data, and partly that you'll be paying for OneDrive space after "the first taste is for free" 5GB. There's a performance hit with enabling disk encryption, but that's a problem for the end user; it also helps slow PCs down and make them more likely to be replaced sooner (another bone thrown to OEMs).
We know that Win11 doesn't need the hardware it is supposed to require and will work perfectly well with hardware that falls short, but the reason is to throw a bone to the OEMs who got cheated out of a potential hardware renewal when Win10 was released.
Elaborating on point 2 - It's a tough question to answer if Windows is becoming more buggy, but IMO the answer is yes. For example, on clean Windows 11 installs, I've seen on multiple occasions in the last few months that unpinning icons that Microsoft have placed on the taskbar does nothing (though maybe this is by design). I have two workarounds but on one occasion both have failed me: a - uninstall the app (Copilot is a common offender), b - engage in tactics to reset the taskbar. The occasion that both failed was the Store icon not unpinning, and uninstalling that on a customer's computer is either problematic or impossible. Also on 24H2 doing a chkdsk of the boot drive on startup routinely doesn't work (it reboots as if the check has already been done), and the only workaround I've found that works is to shift-restart then command prompt and run chkdsk from there. Another example is how pinned taskbar apps are often having an underline as if the app is running when it isn't. Really basic bugs that I've been seeing on different PCs pretty much on a weekly basis.
IMO MS considers Windows (and probably most of its products) to be "good enough" for the end user and rather than improving Windows for the end user (which would traditionally have been a much higher priority), instead they're re-arranging deckchairs in the UI and the QA has gone to pot since they got rid of that department in 2014 and the ascension of "Windows As A Service". No doubt when the livestock starts screaming loud enough about a particular bug then MS will benevolently come to their aid, but that's probably the best we can hope for in terms of actual improvements to Windows.
On the topic of data slurping - Historically I've generally assumed that the reason is marketable data is a profitable sideline, but IMO for so many companies (and not just big tech) to realign how they do things for maximum slurping potential, for example news sites saying you can either pay to get in or consent to data slurping, it's got to be sufficiently profitable to realign Microsoft's priorities with Windows, which I think most people will agree is still MS's keystone in their business model. These days I think AI training is a significant reason for it.
My predictions for the future of Windows therefore are:
A migration to ARM - this represents a new opportunity to create a PC that either locks out Linux as an alternative completely or at least makes peoples' lives harder if they want to go down that route, e.g. Windows file systems being encrypted and obstacles like UEFI Secure Boot being put in the way.
Microsoft succeeding in making a MS account a requirement at least to sign into Windows with.
Microsoft's AI helping everyone become dumber, e.g. helping guide your buying decisions along paths most profitable for Microsoft.
More arbitrary hardware requirements, because the last thing that OEMs need are computers that last say 10-15 years for most users.
Side note - I wonder if we're going to be seeing OEMs attempting to slurp data to a similar extent as MS, and big-name PC performance fixing will be a case of trying to shut as much down as possible.
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