What Is the PC Health Check App? Windows 11 Eligibility Explained

Wondering whether your current machine can take Windows 11, or why it keeps refusing the upgrade? The fastest honest answer comes from Microsoft's own free tool. The PC Health Check app scans your hardware against the Windows 11 requirements and tells you in plain terms whether you pass, and if not, exactly which component is holding you back. It takes under a minute and removes the guesswork.

Quick Answer

The PC Health Check app is Microsoft's free diagnostic tool that checks Windows 11 eligibility by scanning for TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, a supported processor, at least 4GB of RAM and enough storage. It returns a pass or fail in a few seconds and names the specific failing component, so you know whether a quick BIOS change fixes it or you genuinely need new hardware.

What the app checks

When you run it, the app evaluates the handful of things Windows 11 insists on:

1. A supported processor from Microsoft's approved list.
2. TPM 2.0, a hardware security module used for features like BitLocker and Windows Hello.
3. Secure Boot, a firmware feature that verifies the boot chain before the OS loads.
4. At least 4GB of RAM and sufficient storage.

The whole scan finishes in roughly three to ten seconds, and rather than a vague "not compatible" message, it tells you precisely what failed, for example "TPM 2.0 disabled" or "Secure Boot off". That specificity is the entire value of the tool.

The most common failure, and the fix

Most machines that fail are not actually too old. The usual culprit is that TPM and Secure Boot are switched off in the firmware by default, not absent. Modern boards expose TPM as fTPM on AMD systems and PTT on Intel systems, and these are frequently disabled out of the box.

If the app flags TPM or Secure Boot, the fix is often free: enter your UEFI or BIOS settings, enable fTPM or PTT and turn on Secure Boot, save and reboot. One thing to know is that the app only reads hardware status at launch, so after changing a firmware setting you must restart and then relaunch the app for it to register the change.

When the answer is "buy new"

Sometimes the blocker is the processor. If your CPU is not on Microsoft's supported list, no firmware toggle will change that, and the practical answer is a newer machine. This is where the result actually saves you money: instead of buying a whole PC when a BIOS setting would have done, or wasting hours on a CPU that will never qualify, the app tells you which situation you are in.

If a new compact machine is the verdict, browse the mini PCs at Evetech, where modern units ship with TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot already enabled. For a broader sense of what people are buying when they upgrade, the best-selling PCs at Evetech shows you what configurations SA buyers are currently choosing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the PC Health Check app free?

Yes. It is a free download direct from Microsoft and the supported, authoritative way to check Windows 11 eligibility. You do not need any third-party tool to get a reliable answer.

Does failing TPM mean I need a new PC?

Usually not. TPM is often just disabled in firmware rather than missing. Enable fTPM on AMD or PTT on Intel in your UEFI, turn on Secure Boot, restart, and rerun the app to confirm the fix.

Why does the app still say I fail after I changed a BIOS setting?

Because it reads hardware status only at launch. After enabling TPM or Secure Boot, restart the PC and then open the app again so it re-scans with the new firmware state.

How long does the check take?

A few seconds, typically three to ten, with the result and the specific reason for any failure shown straight away. The whole process from launch to answer is well under a minute.