Et tu, AMD? No Ryzen drivers for Windows 7
Microsoft announced back in January of 2016 that the upcoming chip generations of Intel and AMD would only support Windows 10, and not the more widely used Windows 7, or Windows 10's predecessor Windows 8.x.
It was not really clear what Microsoft meant by that at the time, but we figured it out some time later. Basically, what it means is that Microsoft does not support these processors on older versions of Windows, and that both Intel and AMD won't support them officially either.
So, no official drivers, and no support for new features that these processors may ship with on older versions of Windows.
Some or even all of these processors may work however; a YouTube video was published that demonstrated that Windows 8.x could be installed on a PC equipped with Intel's Kaby Lake processor (check the link above for the video).
Unsupported means that some new features may not work as intended, and that Microsoft, Intel and AMD won't provide support on devices equipped with these processors if they run Windows 8.x or Windows 7.
It was not really clear what AMD's intentions where with the company's Ryzen processors. Microsoft did mention back in 2016 that upcoming Intel and AMD chips would not run on older versions of Windows.
Information on AMD stances has come to light recently. While AMD appears to have validated Ryzen processors on machines running Windows 7 and Windows 10, the company stated that it would only offer support and drivers for Windows 10 (via Infoworld).
PC users who upgrade hardware components on their PCs, and those who want to stay on Windows 8.x or 7, face a difficult decision now.
While they may be able to install a Ryzen or Kaby Lake processor on the machine, and run Windows 7 or 8.1 on it, they'd be left alone if they require support. Neither Microsoft, nor Intel or AMD will provide support on unsupported operating system version.
So, if you want to run the latest Intel or AMD processors, you need to get your hands on Windows 10 if you want them to be supported officially by those companies.
It is unclear if Ryzen processors will perform the same on Windows 7 or Windows 10, or if driver support and better operating system support make Windows 10 beat earlier versions of Windows performance and stability wise.
This is something that has to be tested extensively, but it seems likely that without proper drivers and operating system support, performance and stability are probably going to be worse on older versions of Windows.
Closing Words
The decision to limit support for next generation silicon to Windows 10 seems anti-consumer to me. Windows 7 is still the operating system that is most widely used, and that is not going to change in the next couple of years.
Did Microsoft convince AMD and Intel to drop support for older versions of Windows? I cannot see any of the two companies drop support for the Windows version with the largest user base. We will probably never know for sure.
Now You: What is your take? Why are AMD and Intel supporting only Windows 10 for their next gen chipsets?
What mental age of reader are you targeting with the first sentence? 10?
Why not write an article on how to *avoid* upgrading from W10 to W11. Analogous to those like me who avoided upgrading from 7 to 10 for as long as possible.
If your paymaster Microsoft permits it, of course.
5. Rufus
6. Ventoy
PS. I hate reading these “SEO optimized” articles.
I used Rufus to create an installer for a 6th gen intel i5 that had MBR. It upgraded using Setup. No issues except for Win 11 always prompting me to replace my local account. Still using Win 10 Pro on all my other PCs to avoid the bullying.
bit pointless to upgrade for the sake of upgrading as you never know when you’ll get locked out because ms might suddenly not provide updates to unsupported systems.
ps…. time travelling?
written. Jan 15, 2023
Updated • Jan 13, 2023
This happens when you schedule a post in WordPress and update it before setting the publication date.
Anyone willing to downgrade to this awful OS must like inflicting themselves with harm.
I have become convinced now that anybody who has no qualms with using Windows 11/10 must fit into one of the following brackets:
1) Too young to remember a time before W10 and W11 (doesn’t know better)
2) Wants to play the latest games on their PC above anything else (or deeply needs some software which already dropped W7 support)
3) Doesn’t know too much about how computers work, worried that they’d be absolutely lost and in trouble without the “”latest security””
4) Microsoft apologist that tries to justify that the latest “features” and “changes” are actually a good thing, that improve Windows
5) Uses their computer to do a bare minimum of like 3 different things, browse web, check emails, etc, so really doesn’t fuss
Obviously that doesn’t cover everyone, there’s also the category that:
6) Actually liked W7 more than 10, and held out as long as possible before switching, begrudgingly uses 10 now
Have I missed any group off this list?
You have missed in this group just about any professional user that uses business software like CAD programs or ERP Programs which are 99% of all professional users from this list.
Linux doesn’t help anyone who is not a linux kid and apple is just a fancy facebook machine.
Microsoft has removed KB5029351 update
only from windows update though
KB5029351 is still available from the ms update catalog site
1. This update is labaled as PREVIEW if it causes issues to unintelligent people, then they shouldn’t have allowed Preview updates ot install.
2. I have installed it in a 11 years old computer, and no problems at all.
3. Making a big drama over a bluescreen for an updated labeled as preview is ridiculous.
This is probably another BS internet drama where people ran programs and scripts that modified the registry until they broke Windows, just for removing stuff that they weren’t even using just for the sake of it.
Maybe people should stop playing geeks and actually either use Windows 10 or Windows 11, but don’t try to modify things just for the sake of it.
Sometimes removing or stopping things (like defender is a perfect example) only need intelligence, not scripts or 3rd party programs that might mess with windows.
Windows 11 was a pointless release, it was just created because some of the Windows team wanted to boost sales with some sort of new and improved Windows 10. Instead, Microsoft cannot support one version well let alone two.
Windows 11 is the worst ugly shame by Microsoft ever. They should release with every new W11 version a complete free version of Starallback inside just to make this sh** OS functionally again.
motherboard maker MSI has recently released a statement regarding the “unsupported processor” blue screen error for their boards using Intel 600/700 series chipsets & to avoid the KB5029351 Win11 update:
https://www.msi.com/news/detail/MSI-On–UNSUPPORTED-PROCESSOR–Error-Message-of-Windows-11-Update-KB5029351-Preview-142215
check out the following recent articles:
Neowin – Microsoft puts little blame on its Windows update after UNSUPPORTED PROCESSOR BSOD bug:
https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-puts-little-blame-on-its-windows-update-after-unsupported-processor-bsod-bug/
BleepingComputer – Microsoft blames ‘unsupported processor’ blue screens on OEM vendors:
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/microsoft-blames-unsupported-processor-blue-screens-on-oem-vendors/
While there may be changes or updates to the Windows 10 Store for Business and Education in the future, it is premature to conclude that it will be discontinued based solely on rumors.
My advice, I left win 15 years ago. Now I’m a happy linux user (linuxmint) but there is Centos, Fedora, Ubuntu depending on your needs.
motherboard maker MSI has recently released new BIOS/firmware updates for their Intel 600 & 700 series motherboards to fix the “UNSUPPORTED_PROCESSOR” problem (Sept. 6):
https://www.msi.com/news/detail/Updated-BIOS-fixes-Error-Message–UNSUPPORTED-PROCESSOR–caused-BSOD-on-MSI-s-Intel-700-and-600-Series-Motherboards-142277
I try to disable the Diagnostics Tracking Service (Connected Devices Platform User Services) but it wont let me disable it, any help will be greatly appreciated.
Tank you for your help