If you want to upgrade from Windows 10 to 11 while dodging the system requirements, the de facto suggestion is to use Rufus. While Microsoft has been patching out the different ways people have been using its tools to skirt around the restrictions, Rufus uses methods that Microsoft hasn't patched out, if it even could. While this sounds like a perfectly fine solution, it's kind of risky to put all of that pressure on a single developer - what if they decide to take a break from doing upkeep on Rufus?

That's why it's important to have more than one third-party tool out there that can pick up the slack if a developer quits. That's why I was really happy when I saw that a new tool called Flyby11 was released to help people upgrade to Windows 11 without needing compatible hardware. So, I broke out my five-year-old Windows 10 laptop and gave Flyby11 a shot.

Exploring what Flyby11 does differently

Why use it over Rufus?

So, what does Flyby11 bring to the table that Rufus doesn't? Flyby11 uses a strange loophole to get your PC past the system requirements check. When you install Windows 11's desktop version, it'll perform a hardware check and refuse to install if it detects incompatible hardware. However, no checks are performed if you install the Windows 11 version of Windows Server.

Flyby11 works by using the Windows Server installation method and replacing the regular installation package with the Windows 11 desktop ISO. When you run Flyby11, you feed it a Windows 11 ISO that it can download for you. Then, it'll start up the Windows Server installation process, which doesn't check your hardware requirements and lets you continue without any issues. Then, instead of installing Windows Server, it uses the ISO you just gave it. This then installs Windows 11 on your PC, regardless of its hardware.

Upgrading my incompatible laptop to Windows 11 24H2

Let's get this show on the road

This is usually the part where I break down all the complexities and nuance of an app, but Flyby11 made it ridiculously easy to get Windows 11 24H2 running on unsupported hardware. To start, I wanted to see how far I could get with Flyby11 if all I did was visit the GitHub page, download the latest build, and run it. No ISO, no plan, no guides, nothing.

Right off the bat, Flyby11 gave me a few options. The first one (the Windows Server option we explored above) was the "recommended" option. The second seems to adopt the method used during the Rufus update, which is reassuring to have around in case Rufus vanishes off of the internet one day.

I picked the first option and went through the steps. Flyby11 had me select which ISO I'd like to install using drop-down boxes for each option. Once done, the app opened my browser and pointed it to the ISO download page. Once the ISO had been downloaded, Flyby11 asked me to point to where it was on my system. I selected it, continued with the setup, and Flyby11 got to work.

From this point forward, it really is just a case of sitting tight and letting Flyby11 do its thing. It fired up the Windows Server installation tool and then used the ISO I just downloaded to perform the installation. I didn't have to do anything on my end, so I set the laptop aside for a few moments and kept tabs on it.

Windows 11 24H2 finally installs on my laptop

Well, that was painless

So, imagine my surprise when I checked back on my laptop and - voila - it was now running Windows 11 24H2. I didn't even have to do anything past the initial setup; once Flyby11 had gotten all the files it needed, it could truck on by itself until the job was done. I was especially pleased that this method still kept my files and apps around, which I specifically asked it to do during setup.

I don't have a Windows 11 23H2 machine on hand right now, but I can't imagine that using Flyby11 to surpass the 24H2 hardware check is much different. As such, if you want to upgrade your system to Windows 11 24H2 without any of the complexities, I really recommend using Flyby11.

Now I see why it's called "Flyby11"

It's funny how effective and useful Flyby11 is, given how its developer says they "wrote the tool in about an hour for a good friend, just to make a quick solution for a specific problem they were facing." I had a far more pleasant experience with this hour-long coding venture than I have with apps with years of expertise and development under their belts. I'm not sure how long this Windows Server method will remain unpatched, but until then, Flyby11 gets two thumbs up from me.