ASRock Confirms These AMD And Intel Motherboards Are Compatible With Windows 11
In case there was any doubt, the answer is yes, your ASRock Z590 OC Formula motherboard will play nice with Windows 11 when it ships out later this year. Same goes for ASRock's X570 Aqua and a host of other motherboards based on various AMD and Intel chipsets. There are still other Windows 11 requirements at play, but as far as motherboards go, anything relatively modern should be good to go.
For the most part, we have not had to discuss motherboard compatibility when new versions of Windows came out in the past. For example, if your PC was running Windows 7, the motherboard would not have prevented you from running Windows 8/8.1 when it arrived, or Windows 10. It has become a topic now, however, because of Microsoft's requirement that PCs running Windows 11 feature support for Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0 technology.
This has created some confusion among consumers. To help determine compatibility, Microsoft released a PC Health Check app, and one of things it looked for was TPM 2.0 support. By default, most motherboards have this option disabled. This prompted a lot of modern PCs to fail the compatibility check. I ran into this myself, until I visited my system's BIOS and enabled the security protocol. Then it passed with flying colors.
Microsoft actually ended up yanking the app and plans on releasing it closer to when Windows 11 arrives.
In the meantime, motherboard makers have sought to ease concerns by announcing compatibility for a wide range of boards. We've seen lists from ASUS, Biostar, Gigabyte, and MSI, and now we can add ASRock to the mix.
In the meantime, motherboard makers have sought to ease concerns by announcing compatibility for a wide range of boards. We've seen lists from ASUS, Biostar, Gigabyte, and MSI, and now we can add ASRock to the mix.
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Here's a look...
ASRock's Intel Motherboards Supporting Windows 11
There are nearly two dozen Intel chipsets listed in ASRock's list of compatible platforms.As for the asterisks on the 100 and 200 series, ASRock says, "Intel PTT is supported. The actual support may be varied based on official release of Windows 11 by Microsoft."
Intel has been injecting TPM support into its processors since 2013. So instead of requiring an actual TPM chip on the motherboard, users only need to go into the BIOS and enable the feature, which is typically labeled PTT (Platform Trust Technology). On ASRock's motherboards, you can find this by navigating to the Security section.
ASRock's AMD Platform Motherboards Supporting Windows 11
As for ASRock's lineup of AMD motherboards, there are 10 chipsets listed, from A320 all the way up to X570, along with TRX40 for Threadripper CPUs. AMD also bakes TPM support into its CPUs, and the option can be found in the BIOS by heading to Advanced > CPU Configuration, and then enabling the AMD fTPM switch option.
"To use Windows 11, TPM 2.0 is required. However, TPM 2.0 verification can be passed by firmware TPM (fTPM) built in BIOS, which means TPM 2.0 hardware module is not necessary for Windows 11. If you are interested in trying the latest operating system, no need to worry about lack of TPM module," ASRock explains.
This means there is no need to go and panic-buy an overpriced TPM chip on eBay, where scalpers are selling them for grossly inflated prices. And who knows, by the time Windows 11 ships, Microsoft might even ease back on the requirement (it's already left the door open for OEMs to bypass the TPM requirement).
