HomeWinBuzzer NewsMicrosoft Blocks Windows 7, 8.1 Patches on Most Recent AMD, Intel Chips

Microsoft Blocks Windows 7, 8.1 Patches on Most Recent AMD, Intel Chips

The company has clarified that users whose computers have a new (7th or later) generation processor should upgrade their OS to Windows 10 in order to receive Windows Updates.

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Back in August 2016, Microsoft extended support for Skylake processors for and 8.1 until 2020 and 2023 respectively.

However, it seems like that's not the case for Intel's, AMD's and 's latest .

has announced that users who wish to receive Windows Updates on computers that have a 7th or later generation processor, should upgrade to .

In a support document which surfaced Thursday, the company explains that users may see one of two error messages:

  • Unsupported Hardware: Your PC uses a processor that isn't supported on this version of Windows and you won't receive updates.
  • Windows could not search for new updates: An error occurred while checking for new updates for your computer. Error(s) found: Code 80240037 Windows Update encountered an unknown error.

Devices won’t scan and download updates

Microsoft clarifies that these two errors may occur because new processor generations require the latest Windows version for support. The company explains that Windows 10 is the only version of Windows that is supported on the following processor generations:

  • Intel seventh (7th)-generation processors
  • AMD “Bristol Ridge”
  • Qualcomm “8996”.

Essentially, that means that Windows 7 and 8.1 devices won't be able to scan and download updates if they have a 7th Gen processor.

Microsoft: Upgrade to Windows 10

According to Microsoft, users who wish to resolve that issue should upgrade their computers to Windows 10. Devices that have a processor from any of the following generations will only receive Windows Updates if they run the latest version of Microsoft's OS:

  • Intel seventh (7th)-generation “Intel Core” processor or a later generation
  • AMD seventh (7th)-generation (“Bristol Ridge”) processor or a later generation
  • Qualcomm “8996″ processor or a later generation.

Previous controversy

Back in January 2016, Microsoft revealed support changes for Windows 7 and , which were met with significant outcry. Lenovo, for example, criticized Microsoft on the matter, accusing the Redmond giant of “just pushing customers to move to Windows 10.

In response, Microsoft added an extra year of support, before re-extending support for Skylake processors until 2020 for Windows 7 and 2023 for Windows 8.1.

SourceMicrosoft
Kostas Papanikolaou
Kostas Papanikolaou
Kostas is a former sports journalist and an amateur gamer. Combining his love for technology with his writing experience, he enjoys covering news about Microsoft. Being an artistic “soul”, he is also writing poems and short stories.

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