Microsoft to End Windows 11 HDD Boot Drive Support Next Year?

Just merely on a general consumer level, there are many excellent reasons why you should install your Windows operating system on a solid state drive (SSD). Not only are they, generally speaking, significantly more reliable than their HDD counterparts, but in terms of comparative boot times, for most SSDs you’re looking at a cold start to log in time of around 10-20 seconds. On an HDD, it’s (generally speaking) something closer to a minute (and sometimes even longer than that!)

Even following the recent release of Windows 11, however, it should be noted that the requirement of having an SSD as your boot drive has never been mandated on any consumer operating system. – Following a report via TrendFocus, however, internal sources at various OEM PC/laptop companies have said that Microsoft is making more than a few overtures that by as early as 2023 Windows 11 may mandatorily require its installation on an SSD.

Microsoft to Mandate SSD Boot Drives on Windows 11?

According to the report, a significant number of OEMs have reported that Microsoft has been in touch with them to politely request (and by proxy require) that any new PC or laptop systems coming with their operating system pre-installed should have it located on an SSD storage device.

Apparently requiring that this become standard by late 2023 (or coming at the risk of OEMs no longer being provided with authenticated operating systems), the clear implication of this news is that, sooner or later, Microsoft may start incorporating a new minimum system requirement to its already pretty terse Windows 11 specifications.

What Do We Think?

The chances are that the vast majority of people who have upgraded to Windows 11 probably already have it installed on an SSD. SSD ownership (when compared to HDD) is, after all, very much on the up. And especially so given the aforementioned benefits of having an operating system installed upon it. – If Microsoft should push ahead by making Windows 11 required to be installed on an SSD though, will this provide any problems to those who currently have it on an HDD?

Although just our opinion, the short answer to that question is probably no. In fact, we doubt that Microsoft will ever formally go as far as to effectively remove the option for HDD installation on Windows 11.

The bottom line is that we suspect that this may (unofficially) remain an OEM-only requirement. – Then again, given the already pretty terse system requirements that the operating system has, we wouldn’t 100% rule it out for general consumers either!

Given how amazingly sluggish the adoption rate to Windows 11 has been so far though, we’re pretty sure that for those of you who do have it on an HDD (or only have HDD storage devices on your system), we’re a long way from having to worry too much about this yet!

What do you think? – Let us know in the comments!