After Microsoft finished announcing windows11, the company released system requirements for software updates. And buried under RAM recommendations and recommendations Gigahertz (GHz) was an acronym of curiosity: TPM.

The Trusted Platform Module (Tpm) is a secure cryptographic processor that protects computers through an integrated cryptographic key. But in more basic terms, it's like a computer security alarm to prevent hackers and malware from accessing your data. And that will be needed for Windows11, which will arrive this week. (For impressions of this software update, check out our review of Windows11.

Unfortunately, some older hardware seems to be excluded from the Windows 11 update. Microsoft has confirmed as much, saying that while the situation "sucks", it's to move forward and ensure a safer Windows experience.

There is software security and hardware security. Software security is, hopefully, an effective means of preventing hackers from entering your system. But because the software is malleable in nature and can modify code, there is always the possibility of sophisticated hackers and exploits being found, giving intruders the ability to access sensitive information.

Hardware security, as its name suggests, is hard-coded. Cryptographic keys are impossible to change unless the hacker somehow knows exactly what those keys are in advance.

"Requesting this modern Har 'TPM2.0 to protect the PCs of the future from both common and sophisticated attacks like ransomware and more sophisticated attacks from the nation-state improves the standard of hardware security by requiring a built-in root-of-trust."

The TPM chip communicates with other security systems in the PC. Some, under fingerprint reader or Windows Hi facial Recognition, give everything and TPM users access. In addition, Tpm is used not only by security systems, but also by programs such as Outlook, Firefox, and Chrome.

There are several ways to check if the current machine has a TPM. The easiest way is to go to the Start menu, search for "Windows Security" and click "Device Security" in the left column. There you will see a separate window indicating whether the device has a TPM installed. It should be said Security processor, with a small green check mark next to the icon. If the security processor icon does not exist, the TPM is not installed.

Scroll through the gallery below to see all the steps.

If you don't see anything, another way to quickly check if a TPM is installed is to type Run in the search start bar and type tpm.Press msc and enter.

You must view Trusted Platform Module (TPM) Management in the Local computer window. If it says "No compatible TPM found", your computer does not have a TPM or has TPM1.2, but it is not enabled in the BIOS.

Unfortunately, even if you can enable TPM1.2 in the BIOS, Windows11 actually requires TPM2.0.

The final way to check is to download the PC Health Check app from Microsoft. After installation, the program will tell you whether your computer is ready for Windows 11 or not.

For desktop users who do not have tpm2.0, one way to add functionality is to purchase a compatible module for the motherboard. This requires searching the motherboard model and checking whether the manufacturer has released a compatible TPM.

It also appears that the price of TPMs has risen since the announcement of Windows11. The Asus TPM, which sold for Amazon14 on Amazon, was sold out at the time of this publication and is priced at more thanま40 in the second-hand market. Some manufacturers have also stopped production of TPMs, but given the recent surge in demand, production may start again.

If you can source a compatible module, just find and paste the TPM pin on the motherboard. Also do not forget to go to the BIOS menu and enable it.

Well, if you're using a more modern CPU built after 2014, it's possible that a TPM already exists. Firmware by TPM including modern CPUs. Intel uses Platform Trust Technology (PTT) and AMD Ryzen chips use fTPM.

The steps to enable this in the BIOS vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. But it will generally require the user to restart their PC and press the Delete key repeatedly until the BIOS menu appears. From there, the user may need to navigate to a more advanced menu to find the TPM selector. From there, you can enable the firmware TPM.

There is an open source script that bypasses the tpm check so that you can force windows 11 to be installed on your computer without a TPM. But it is dangerous, and Microsoft says that forcing windows 11 to be installed will prevent it from receiving updates or future support.