Windows 11 24H2 support has ended. Here's how to update

Check which version you have

Press Windows + R, type winver, and press Enter. A small About Windows box opens. The second line shows the version and the OS build, for example Version 24H2 (OS Build 26100.xxxx).

You can also open Settings → System → About and look under Windows specifications for Version and OS build.

The first five digits of the build tell you the version even if the name is cut off:

Dates are from Microsoft's Windows 11 Home and Pro lifecycle page and its Windows 11 release information, checked October 28, 2026.

If the box says Windows 10 instead, this page isn't for you. Windows 10 gets security updates only through ESU, and my Windows 10 end of support guide covers how to turn them on.

What ended on October 13

Every Windows 11 version gets monthly security updates for 24 months on Home and Pro, and 36 months on Enterprise and Education. For 24H2 on Home and Pro, the last one came out on October 13, 2026.

• The PC keeps working. Nothing turns off, and your files and programs stay where they are.
• Windows stops getting security fixes. The November 2026 update and every one after it skip 24H2 Home and Pro. Holes found from now on stay open.
• Your browser still updates. Chrome, Edge, and Firefox update themselves separately from Windows, but a current browser doesn't patch Windows.

Enterprise and Education editions of 24H2 are covered until October 12, 2027, so a work laptop on 24H2 may be fine. Ask whoever manages it before changing anything.

Why to go straight to 26H2

Versions 24H2, 25H2, and 26H2 are the same Windows underneath. They get the same monthly updates, and the newer versions are turned on by a small file called an enablement package. Installing it changes the version number, switches on a few features that are already on the drive, and needs one restart. It isn't a reinstall.

Microsoft offers the 26H2 package to PCs on either 24H2 or 25H2, according to its KB5121794 support page. 25H2 runs out in October 2027 and 26H2 in October 2028, so there's no reason to stop at 25H2.

The one requirement is a recent cumulative update. The PC needs the September 22, 2026 preview update (KB5124010) or anything newer, and the October 13 security update counts. If you've been installing updates, you already have it.

On a supported PC: Windows Update

If the PC passed Windows 11's hardware check when you got it, Windows Update handles this. Microsoft generally installs a newer version on its own when a Home or Pro version reaches its end date, but you don't have to wait.

1. Open Start → Settings → Windows Update.
2. Click Check for updates and install everything it finds. Restart if it asks.
3. Check again. When Windows 11, version 26H2 is available appears, click Download & install.
4. Restart when it's ready. Expect one restart that takes a little longer than usual.
5. Run winver again. It should say Version 26H2 with a build starting with 26300.

If 26H2 never appears after all other updates are installed, the PC is probably one Windows Update treats as unsupported. Run PC Health Check to find out why, then use the next section.

On an unsupported PC

If Windows 11 went on with Rufus or another workaround, Windows Update usually won't offer new versions. These PCs have generally kept getting the monthly updates for whatever version they're on, though Microsoft doesn't promise that, and for 24H2 Home and Pro those monthly updates have now ended. There are two ways to move to 26H2. Try the first one before the second.

Option 1: install the enablement package yourself

This is the same small package Windows Update would install. Microsoft's KB5121794 page lists the Microsoft Update Catalog as one place to get it.

1. Install every waiting update first, so the PC has the October 2026 cumulative update or a newer one. Check Settings → Windows Update → Update history.
2. Search the Microsoft Update Catalog for KB5121794. Download the version for x64 unless the PC has an ARM processor. It's a .msu file.
3. Double-click the file and click Yes to install it.
4. Restart, then run winver and look for Version 26H2.

Some sites report that the Catalog search doesn't always find this package. If it doesn't, use Option 2 instead of downloading the file from somewhere else. A Windows update from a third-party download site is a good way to install something that isn't a Windows update.

Installing it doesn't make the PC supported. Future updates are still at Microsoft's discretion.

Option 2: upgrade in place from the 26H2 ISO

This runs Windows Setup from the full 26H2 download and keeps your files, settings, and programs. It uses a setup switch, /product server, that skips the Windows 11 processor and TPM checks. Microsoft doesn't document it as an upgrade method, so treat it as a workaround that could stop working.

1. On Microsoft's Download Windows 11 page, under Download Windows 11 Disk Image (ISO) for x64 devices, pick Windows 11 and your language, and download the ISO. It's several gigabytes, so give it time.
2. Right-click the downloaded ISO and choose Mount. It opens as a new drive in File Explorer.
3. In that drive's window, right-click an empty spot and choose Open in Terminal.
4. Type the command below and press Enter, then click Yes when Windows asks for permission.

A setup window titled Install Windows Server opens. That's expected: the switch changes the label and skips the hardware check, but the files being installed are still Windows 11 26H2.

5. Accept the license terms.
6. On the next screen, choose Keep files, settings, and apps. If that choice is greyed out or missing, stop and close Setup. It usually means the ISO's language or edition doesn't match what's installed, and continuing would wipe the PC.
7. Click Install. The PC restarts several times. Leave it plugged in and don't turn it off.
8. When it's back at the desktop, run winver and look for Version 26H2.

One limit no workaround gets around: since version 24H2, Windows 11 needs a processor with the SSE4.2 and POPCNT instructions. A PC that's already running 24H2 has them, so this only matters if you're starting from an older version on very old hardware. My guide to Windows 11 on unsupported PCs covers that, and the Rufus clean install if you'd rather start fresh.

After you update

• Check for updates once more. Install whatever cumulative update shows up for 26H2.
• Check Secure Boot. Microsoft's original 2011 Secure Boot certificates expired this year, and PCs need the 2023 certificates to keep getting boot-level security fixes. Here's how to check yours, which matters most on PCs where Secure Boot was turned off to install Windows 11.
• Put the next date on the calendar. 26H2 runs to October 10, 2028. Next fall there will be a newer version, and moving to it is the same small update.

If the PC can't move to 26H2

If neither option works and the PC stays on 24H2, it's in the same position as a Windows 10 PC without ESU: fine for now, less safe every month. Your choices:

• Switch it to Linux. Linux Mint runs well on older PCs and gets updates for years.
• Replace it. A refurbished business PC from 2018 or later runs Windows 11 officially.
• Keep it offline. A PC that only runs one old program and never goes online isn't exposed to the usual threats. Do your email and banking somewhere else.