Windows 11 will appear with watermark even if it is installed with a valid license. Under what conditions

Microsoft is testing a new Watermark for the Windows 11 desktop, which will appear even in the case of “correctly” installed installations by activating a recognized license key.

Unlike Windows 10, the new version of the Microsoft platform comes with strict hardware requirements, we could even say extravagant. The reason is simple. With Windows 10 already at a very high level of popularity and virtually no competition on the horizon, Microsoft can afford another “arrogance” with the next version of Windows. This time it’s not about forcibly giving up the mouse and keyboard, in favor of a touch experience in the style promoted by Windows 8, but about a change with long-term benefits, in the sense of migrating users to new generations of PCs that include specialized hardware to increase the level of security of Windows.

The problem is that with the exception of state-of-the-art PCs and laptops, the vast majority of hardware in circulation does not include the security technologies promoted by Windows 11, without which the Windows 10-related OS would still be subscribed to a endless series of patches, developed with great effort by Microsoft to fix the latest bugs and software vulnerabilities. In the first phase, Microsoft drew a clear “border” between the two versions of Windows, demarcated precisely by the existence of security technologies that practically justify the existence of Windows 11. However, inevitably, the Windows community has found ways to install the most new Microsoft OS and on devices declared incompatible, the prospect of Windows 11 security becoming a subject of jokes becoming as real as possible.

Without reasonably having the option to block forced Windows 11 installations on incompatible devices, Microsoft appears to be frustrating users by displaying a permanent desktop watermark, very similar to that used for non-activated Windows installations. It remains to be seen whether Microsoft will resort to other means of deterrence, such as restricting access to Windows personalization settings (including Dark Mode and changing the wallpaper image), which may be considered abusive on Windows 11 installations using keys. authentic license.