https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/02/new-preview-build-adds-microsoft-account-requirement-to-windows-11-pro/

"But tucked away toward the bottom of the changelog is one unwelcome addition: like the Home edition of Windows 11, the Pro version will now require an Internet connection and a Microsoft account during setup. In the current version of Windows 11, you could still create a local user account during setup by not connecting your PC to the Internet—something that also worked in the Home version of Windows 10 but was removed in 11. That workaround will no longer be available in either edition going forward, barring a change in Microsoft's plans."

I will absolutely not tolerate this, and will be switching to Linux Mint when I have to abandon my grudgingly accepted Win 10. I wonder how GOG will deal with this going forward, seeing as the majority of their users care about being DRM-free. I sincerely hope they'll focus on Linux, and/or drum up pressure to put on microsoft.

That will be for the pro version, the average user could use Home. But yeah, it's a bitch move from Microsoft.

I will starting learning to use Linux too, when Windows 10 is EOL on the 10th of October 2025. I'll advice my parents to make the switch as well, but I won't now if it'll be easy to adapt to new habits at age 83.

But maybe I'll go for Manjaro instead of Linux Mint for ease-of-use: https://manjaro.org/

Nope, there is no escape, home or pro.

I'll see in 2025. Entirely possible I will stay on Windows 10 well past its EOL. The switch from 32 bit to 64 bit back then pretty much mandated an update to a newer system. There won't be anything like that happening again for a long time.

But yeah, if the option to simply run the system with a local account will be removed with no way around it, that might actually be the first thing that'll make me look into OS alternatives in 5-10 years from now.

Well Windows had DRM (i.e. online activation) since Windows XP, this change as dumb as it might be (IF it appear in the final version, there is still a small chance it wont) wont really make Windows any more DRM'ish. So if Gog users didn't mind Windows having DRM for the last 21 years I don't see why it will change with that.

Not to mention that the majority of peoples using Windows 11 probably uses the Home edition where this requirement was there since day one.

Personally I think it's another stupid idea and I hope they will go back on it, but in the grand scheme of thing it doesn't change that much, you can create a dummy account and remove it afterward or there are tricks to bypass it completely even on the home version.

This is not about running Windows, it's about installation (full, not upgrade).

Well, that is disappointing, but not unexpected. Everything digital now seems to mind you for data. I have used pro versions of windows always, mostly as lesser versions tend to be restricted. But this coupled with he last win pro I brought being installed on a chip on the motherboard is really pushing away from using it further. Perhaps I will have to have different machines for different purposes, but we shall see.

It looks like you may be able to get around it by using existing Win 11 Pro installation media (i.e. an image from before this requirement) and then running updates from inside Windows. Of course, this stops working if they also force an online account for updates, which they might end up doing.

Assuming you're actually serious, this is obviously a massive increase in functional DRM:-

What happens if you never activate Windows:-

XP - Will work for 30 days then refuses to boot. The whole OS permanently stops working until you type in an activation key.

Vista - Will work for 30 days then enters Reduced Functionality Mode (you are blocked from playing built-in games, Aero & Bitlocker are disabled, and you are forcibly logged out after every hour). Also blocks System Updates.

W7 - An "Activate Windows" watermark appears on the desktop. Will work for 30 days after which you will get hourly "Activate Now" nag screens (that revert Personalizations) along with a notice that your Windows version is not genuine whenever you launch the Control Panel. Also blocks System Updates.

W8 - An "Activate Windows" watermark appears on the desktop, and you'll lose access to Personalizations. "Activate Now" screen popup nags every 6 hours.

W10 - An "Activate Windows" watermark appears on the desktop, and you'll lose access to Personalizations but otherwise continues to work with mostly full function.

W11 - Is now completely unusable offline for consumers without a Microsoft account to the point where it refuses to even install.

So unlike W10 that could technically work 100% offline in an un-activated matter, with W11 we're back to the dark old days of Games For Windows Live / SecuROM PA where your OS cannot even be installed at all without being tied to an online account. No thanks. The underlying Subscription / SaaS intentions behind this are a little too obvious.

Personally I have 2x PC's, one is dual-booting W7 + Mint, and the other has W10. Even after all this time I still have 0 games that are DX12 exclusive, and there's still no games / software that runs on the W10 rig that the W7 rig cannot. I've also been impressed with how far Linux has come. It's not 100% perfect for all games, but there's an awful lot that does run on it, often with source ports like GZDoom and OpenMW adding native compatibility for games that never originally had it, should it ever come to ditching Windows completely.

Edit: And for those who want to stick with Windows and want their future DRM-Free collection of games guaranteed to work offline continuously should MS even pull the plug, "there are ways" of activating W10 Enterprise LTSC offline such that it could work for years / decades without ever seeing the Internet once. "Consumer" W11 is just trashware by comparison.

This is false, you just make a local account and prep it in, you can do this with the iso maker and toss the files on. Other then that you just task kill the network app during install "taskkill /F /IM oobenetworkconnectionflow.exe" and boom local account created.

I just tried it with success in a VM on the latest dev build. This entire post is just instilling FUD to the community and not welcomed. Yes W11 is invasive but it can be controlled with many 3rd party apps or by running your own DNS, or even custom host files just like every version of windows going back to 7.

Its just extra steps, thankfully this is super easy, its a simple command and you're done.

Sounds like you didn't read the article:-

"In the current version of Windows 11, you could still create a local user account during setup by not connecting your PC to the Internet—something that also worked in the Home version of Windows 10 but was removed in 11. That workaround will no longer be available in either edition going forward, barring a change in Microsoft's plans."

Meanwhile, PC repair stores are just going to love now having to ask a customer for their email + password to install windows onto a new drive for them...

You can end the task "network connection flow" and create a local account.

This was no longer available in Home since the beginning, but as I said there are workarounds, the most basic and easy one (as it doesn't require any "hackish" methods) is simply you install, create a dummy account, once it is installed remove the account you only need the account again if you want to install this windows to another PC. Other methods include running commands during the installation to completely bypass the account creating on Home.

when you say dummy account do you mean a microsoft account? wouldn't that still be drm since its an online account? I'd say the end task method is faster.