Skip to main content

Possible Windows 12 hardware system requirements revealed

After the debacle over the controversial Windows 11 system requirements, the question of how they would change in future versions remains a point of interest.

And now, some of the first details about Windows 12’s system requirements are beginning to surface despite its prospective launch still being some time away.

Microsoft / Microsoft

According to the German publication Deskmodder, Microsoft has been working on the future operating system version since February 2022 and is referring to the software internally as “Next Valley.” Though the final version is not expected to roll out to the general public until the second half of 2024, there has already been enough progress on the software to draft a decent list of specifications and minimum requirements for installation.

Recommended Videos

There is word that Microsoft plans to make Windows 12 compatible with Intel’s 14th Gen Meteor Lake-S desktop processors out of the box, suggesting that devices with such CPUs might be the first to run Next Valley. However, there have been few details about Meteor Lake-S circulating, particularly not any connecting the component to Windows 12, according to Neowin.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Deskmodder also claims that Windows 12 might support the Pluton coprocessor, which was first introduced on the Ryzen 6000 mobile CPUs in January 2022.

As for protection, Windows 12 will likely use the same TPM 2.0 Trusted Platform Module for its security crypto-processor that was seen on Windows 11, despite Microsoft testing out SHA-3 (Secure Hash Algorithm 3) support in a recent Insider Build.

Other hardware specs potentially include 8GB RAM, which would be an upgrade for Windows 12 at twice the capacity as for Windows 11.

There is no word on whether there would be a boost in minimum storage requirements. Currently, the minimum disk space needed to install Windows 11 is 64GB. However, Neowin noted that Microsoft could nix hard disk drives (HDD) in favor of solid-state hard drives (SSD) for software installation. This was a Windows 11 rumor that didn’t come to pass, but perhaps it could be a feature of Windows 12.

Overall, Windows 12 is expected to be “cloud-powered and AI-driven,” according to Microsoft’s chief product officer Panos Panay.

The company is still not finished updating Windows 11, which has been available to the general public since October 2021. The current OS will also be inundated with some of the features that will eventually make it to Next Valley. Users can also expect the retirement of such legacy features as MSDT and VBScript, which have been prone to exploitation.

Fionna Agomuoh
Fionna Agomuoh is a Computing Writer at Digital Trends. She covers a range of topics in the computing space, including…
Windows 11 to finally address this webcam deficiency
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x front view showing webcam.

The latest Windows 11 Insider Preview Build (26120.2702) was released a couple of days ago and it adds a new camera feature that probably should have been added ages ago. Once the build rolls out to all Windows 11 PCs, you'll be able to let multiple apps use your camera at the same time.

Microsoft says the reason it developed this feature is to "enable video streaming to both a sign language interpreter and the end audience at the same time" but users will surely find a range of uses for it.

Read more
Bid farewell to this small but helpful Windows 11 feature
The Surface Pro 11 on a white table in front of a window.

As Microsoft mentions in a December 12 blog post, Windows 11 users will soon no longer receive future updates for the suggested actions menu. The helpful feature would offer you related actions when you copy items like dates or phone numbers with actions to create an event or make a call.

Microsoft first introduced the feature in a Windows 11 2022 update. It made the suggested actions menu appear and gave contextual information based on the copied data. Microsoft describes the feature as follows: "Suggested actions that appear when you copy a phone number or future date in Windows 11 are deprecated and will be removed in a future Windows 11 update."

Read more
Windows 11 can now run on unsupported systems, but there’s a catch
A laptop sits on a desk with a Windows 11 wallpaper.

Microsoft is now allowing users to update to Windows 11 on older, unsupported hardware, including systems that don’t meet the operating system’s strict hardware requirements.

While the company initially set these requirements — including the need for a TPM 2.0 chip and specific processor models — to ensure performance, reliability, and security, it has now provided a manual installation option for those who want to use Windows 11 on unsupported machines.

Read more