How to Upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11

This article explains how to upgrade your Middlebury College Device from Windows 10 to Windows 11. 

This update needs to be done before October 2025 due to Windows 10 no longer being supported after that date. If you do not see the prompts for updating to Windows 11, your device is not eligible to be updated, and it will need to be replaced. 

Please submit a ticket with the Help Desk if you need help with this process.

Update Instructions

1. On your computer, open Settings. There are a few ways of doing this:

   • Open the Start Menu (Windows icon) and type "Settings". Hit Enter or select the Settings option that appears.

   • Open the Start Menu (Windows icon) and click the gear button located on the left side of the menu.

2. Scroll to the bottom of the Settings window and click "Update & Security."

3. If you see a prompt saying "Windows 11, version 24H2 is ready" or "Windows 11, version 24H2 is ready -- and it's free!" you will be update to Windows 11. If not, your device is not able to be updated, and will need to be replaced.

4. Press Download and Install to start the installation process. 

5. It will change the screen, saying "Windows 11, version 24H2 is downloading". You can continue to use the system while this is happening. This process of downloading the update can take an hour or two.

6. You will be required to reboot your system before the update to Windows 11 will happen. The update will now install - this process can also take an hour or two.

7. Once the system has updated to Windows 11, you should be able to sign in with your normal credentials and use your system. 

If the above process doesn't work, you can follow the below procedure to upgrade your system.

Alternate Instructions

The Windows 11 Installation Assistant is an app that provides assistance with upgrading to Windows 11. Microsoft recommends waiting until a device is offered the Windows 11 upgrade via Windows Update before using the Windows 11 Installation Assistant app; however, the Windows 11 Installation Assistance app can be used before Windows Update offers the Windows 11 upgrade.

The Windows 11 Installation Assistance can be downloaded from the following link: Windows 11 Installation Assistant.

When the Windows 11 Installation Assistant is run (double click in the File Explorer), the window will show Install Windows 11 if the program determines that your device meets the hardware requirements for Windows 11. To proceed with the install, in the Windows 11 Installation Assistant window:

1. Select the Accept and install button to start the upgrade to Windows 11.

2. When the Windows 11 upgrade process prompts to restart, select the Restart now button.

3. The device restarts and the Windows 11 upgrade process continues. The device restarts automatically a few more times to finish installing Windows 11.

4. The Windows sign-on screen is displayed once the Windows 11 upgrade is done. Sign into the device to complete the upgrade.

If the program does NOT show Install Windows 11 or you are otherwise running into an error in the installation process, please see Troubleshooting below.

Troubleshooting

Issue installing update

If you see that the update is available to download & install but get an error during the installation process, you may have insufficient disk space available and will need to free up storage before you can continue. For reference, Microsoft recommends that you have at least 64 GB free on your device to properly download & install the update, although you can likely complete the update as long as you have a minimum of 40 GB available. Please see our article Managing Disk Space on a Computer to learn how to manage the space available on your disk.

If you have sufficient disk space available but are still running into errors, please contact the Helpdesk.

Issue connecting to networked printers post-update

There is a known issue of networked printers disappearing from the listed printers after the upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11, due to a difference in how the two operating systems deal with networked connections.

To fix the issue:

1. Right-click the Windows icon and select Run. 

2. Type \\walnut (Middlebury Campus) or \\seaotter (Monterey Campus) as appropriate, then press the Enter key to open and view the full list of printers.

3. Double-click any printer that you did not have installed before the update. 

   • Important: if you select a printer you already had installed, you will likely get the 0x00000bc4 error, "No printers were found".

4. Now, the printer you wish to connect to should automatically re-appear in your known printer list.

   • You can uninstall the miscellaneous printer installed to prompt the reconnection.