Microsoft is gearing up to release the Windows 10 Anniversary Update later this summer. The new update is set to deliver a significant number of changes and features, including improvements on Cortana, redesigned Start menu, a more unified core between platforms (PC, tablet, phones, and Xbox), and much more. However, it seems that PCs will need to be a little more powerful to handle the operating system.
A Microsoft developer page shows that Microsoft is increasing the minimum system requirements. The upcoming Anniversary Update for Windows 10 will require a minimum of 2GB of memory for the 32-bit version. That doubles the previous requirement of 1GB that has been around since Windows Vista, and matches the minimum requirement of 2GB of memory for the 64-bit version of the operating system.
The minimum system requirements are changing, but not dramatically. Other than the increase to 2GB of RAM for memory requirement for the 32-bit version of Windows 10, the minimum requirements remains the same.
- 1GHz or faster processor or SoC.
- 16GB of storage space for 32-bit and 20GB for 64-bit version.
- Microsoft’s DirectX 9 or later with WDDM 1.0 driver.
However, this means that after the Windows 10 Anniversary Update releases a small number of PCs it won’t be able to run the operating system, which will force customers to upgrade their hardware or roll back to the previous version of Windows if they were devices upgraded to Windows 10.
Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 14 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 20 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me. Email him at [email protected].