This article explains how to upgrade your university-own computer to Windows 11. 

For more general information about the Windows 10 to Windows 11 project, please visit the Windows 11 SharePoint page.

This article is for users with a device that is compatible with Windows 11.

What to do before launching the Windows 11 upgrade

Overview

Before upgrading your university-owned computer, you will need to identify how your computer’s configuration is managed.

Windows university-owned computers are built and managed through two different configurations:

• Autopilot devices managed through Microsoft Intune
• MCM devices, managed through Microsoft Configuration Management

Identify your device before starting the upgrade

You will be able to identify whether your device is an Autopilot device or a MCM device by looking at the upgrade icon that will appear on your desktop once the upgrade is ready for you.

If you are using an Autopilot device, you will see an icon saying "Upgrade to Windows 11":

If you are using a MCM device, you will see an icon saying "Win 11 MCM Upgrade":

If your device is not compatible with Windows 11, you will see no upgrade icons.

What you need to know in advance

You will start upgrading your computer though the icon that will appear on the desktop.

Note about Autopilot devices

Before launching the upgrade, we recommend checking there’s enough free space on your local storage. If you need guidance on free up storage, please read the article "How to free up storage space in your computer".

Note about MCM devices

To take advantage of all the modern features of Intune, we will upgrade your device and configure it to be an Autopilot device. 

To do that we will run a program that removes all the data stored in your local filestore, and then launch the upgrade to Windows 11. 

Before starting, please:

• Make sure you have saved anything local into OneDrive or another filestore. If you need guidance on updating files and folders to OneDrive, please read the article "Uploading files to OneDrive".
• To perform the upgrade, you will need to be onsite and connected to the university network (also called "Soton Network") either through an ethernet cable or a docking station. This upgrade cannot be done over eduroam Wi-Fi.

Note about devices not compatible with Windows 11

If your device is not compatible with Windows 11, you should have already received a communication from iSolutions. If you have not received this email yet, please contact ServiceLine or visit one of our Tech Hubs.

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Upgrading your device

Step-by-step instructions for Autopilot devices

Step 1 - Check Free Disk Space

1. Open File Explorer

2. Select This PC

3. Ensure you have at least 50 GB of free space on your C: drive

If you need information on how to free up space, please read the knowledge base article "How to free up storage space in your computer".

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Step 2 - Open Windows Update

1. If your device is compatible with Windows 11 and the update is available, you will receive an "Upgrade to Windows 11" shortcut on your desktop:

2. Run this to open Windows Update and you should see the update to Windows 11 available to download and install.

3. If you have any other pending updates on this screen, it is recommended to complete any pending updates (and any restarts) before beginning the installation of Windows 11.

Please note: if you have the icon but the update is not listed, select the Check for Updates button and it should appear.

4. When you select Download and Install, the update will download and then install.

5. You can close the window at this point. The update will carry on processing in the background.

6. When the update has completed you will receive a restart notification:

From here you can either:

• Schedule the restart
• Restart it over night
• Restart immediately.

6. What you will see when you choose to restart:

1. The installation will begin
2. Your computer will reboot a few times
3. Then you will see Windows 11 on your machine.

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Step-by-step instructions for MCM devices

Step 1 – Check your device is compatible with Windows 11

If your device is compatible with Windows 11 and the update is available, you will receive a Win 11 MCM Upgrade shortcut on your desktop:

Step 2 – Upload files stored locally to OneDrive

Make sure you have saved anything local into OneDrive or an alternative filestore. If you need guidance, please read the article "Uploading files or folders from your local storage to OneDrive". 

The upgrade window will remind you to save your data before starting the process.

Step 3 – Connect your device to the university network

For this upgrade to function, you must plug the device into the university network (also called "Soton Network") through an ethernet cable or a docking station.

This upgrade cannot be done over eduroam Wi-Fi.

Step 4 - Open Windows Upgrade

1. Double-click the Win 11 MCM Upgrade shortcut on your desktop:

2. The window "Win 11 MCM Upgrade" will appear on your screen. There you will see a description of what is happening:

If all is well the user will see the following message written in green: ‘The rebuild take sequence is loading, please wait for a new window to open’. The picture above shows this message in the last row. Please do not close this window – at the end of the process it will automatically disappear.

If there is an error, the message will change to red with a message asking the user to contact iSolutions

3. After approximately 5 minutes you will see a new interface called "Windows 11 Rebuild – Assessing and starting upgrade":

The interface lists the following information:

Computer information:

• Date and time of the upgrade
• Computer name (also known as Asset number)
• System Readiness:
  
  Available RAM
  
  Microsoft Compatibility Check
• Power connection
  
  Soton Network
• Storage Drive
• TPM Version
• UEFI Enabled

4. If all the readiness checks are marked with the green tick symbol, this means that:

• Everything is okay 
• You can select the Next button and proceed to the next page

If there are any errors with the computer, you will not be able to proceed to the next page. In the example below, the errors are marked with a red cross symbol and close to them you will see a brief description of the error:

If you see the "Power Connection" or "Soton Network" errors, you can:

1. Try to fix them by yourself
2. Once fixed, select the Refresh button to check the system readiness again to get green ticks

If you see the "Available RAM", the "Microsoft Compatibility Check" or the "TPM Version" errors, please contact ServiceLine or visit one of our Tech Hubs. A technician will get back to you as soon as possible to analyse your case.

5. After selecting Next on the step 4, you will then see the following message:

 
Alternative text to the image above:

Important information

If you continue with this process, you will be rebuilding your computer to Windows 11. This means your computer will be completely wiped and any local data will be deleted. Make sure your data is backed up to OneDrive or an alternative location.

If you are unsure about proceeding, please click "Cancel" and contact iSolutions.

To continue you must type the following into the text box: WIPE MY DEVICE.

I agree for you to [text box]

6. Now you must type "WIPE MY DEVICE" into the text box to allow the process to continue.

7. Select the Finish button on the bottom-right corner of the rebuild interface.

8. The rebuild interface will close and you will see a new window showing the installation progress bar:

 
The task sequence will fully take over and automatically restart the device to rebuild it once the initial processing is completed within Windows.

This process might take up to 1 hour before it will automatically restart the computer. 

9. Now your computer will then wipe the storage drive in WinPE and install Windows 11 24H2. This step takes about 30mins. 

Once finished, you will see a new screen asking you to select the country and go ahead with the Autopilot procedure described in the page "Welcome to your University of Southampton device".

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What to do if you need help

If you need help, please contact ServiceLine or visit one of our Tech Hubs.

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Related content

Windows 11 - SharePoint

How to free up storage space in your computer

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