Article

Breathing New Life in a Seemingly Old PC by Replacing Windows 10/11 with Arch Linux

Computer Hardware

8/16/2025

Discontinuation of Upgrade Support by Microsoft

Microsoft’s lifecycle policy for Windows operating systems has significant implications for the security and usability of PCs. As of October 14, 2025, Windows 10 will reach its official end of support, meaning Microsoft will no longer provide security updates, bug fixes, or technical support for any edition of Windows 10.

This policy shift is not just a routine sunset of an old product. It actively affects both Windows 10 users and a substantial portion of Windows 11 users, particularly those who upgraded from unsupported hardware or specific license versions.

Hardware and Boot Requirements

A central issue is Microsoft’s strict hardware requirements for Windows 11, including the need for a modern CPU, the Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0, UEFI (instead of BIOS) and Secure Boot. Many Windows 10 PCs, estimated worldwide 400 million devices, do not meet these standards.

Options to Overcome the Limitations in Support

For these users, the options are limited:

Upgrade the hardware to meet Windows 11 requirements
Extended Security Updates (ESU) for Windows 10 (appr. 30 Euro annually for consumers)
Continue using unsupported systems, risking exposure to security vulnerabilities

If you choose option 1, you would have to replace the CPU and/or motherboard to accommodate the UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) with Secure Boot, plus TPM 2.0.

Windows 11 Upgrade ≠ Ongoing Support

Some users have managed to install Windows 11 on hardware that does not officially meet Microsoft’s requirements. However, Microsoft has made it clear that these unsupported installations will not receive security updates or support. This means that even if Windows 11 appears to be running smoothly today, such systems are excluded from future updates and patches, leaving them vulnerable to new threats as soon as support for Windows 10 ends.

Consequences if Ignoring the Problem

After the support deadline, Windows 10 (and unsupported Windows 11 systems) will continue to function, but without security updates, they will become increasingly susceptible to malware, ransomware, and other cyberattacks.

Any new security flaw discovered after support ends remains open for exploitation. Adversaries can use these to gain unauthorized access, steal (personal) data, leak passwords, or take control of the system. Compromised machines can become part of botnets. Outdated systems may not work properly with new applications or hardware, increasing the risk of crashes and further vulnerabilities.

Versioning of Windows 10 and 11

Windows 10 and 11, from the point of view of activation, license and product key management, are actually quite similar to each other. They both have version numbers such as 21H2, 22H2, 23H2 and 24H2.

The support for 21H2 and 22H2 is no longer available. The support for versions 23H2 and 24H2 will be discontinued in Nov 2025 and Oct 2026, respectively.

Migration from HP Hardware Running Windows to Linux

I can still make use of my HP EliteDesk 705 G4 Microtower, which was launched in 2018. It was designed for Windows 10. The upgrade support, of course, has ceased.

It is a perfect example for the dilemma of probably hundred thousands of PC users around the world using this model in private or business. It has a Ryzen 5 PRO 2400G processor, which is not on Microsoft’s official supported list for Windows 11. I was able to install Windows 11 using workarounds. However, these installations are not officially supported and the security updates for this 22H2 version of Windows have already been terminated.

Environmental Impact

Reviving an outdated PC with a Linux distribution is not only a money issue, but has a substantial environmental impact. Electronic devices contain hazardous materials such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and brominated flame retardants, which can leach into soil and groundwater from landfills, posing risks to human health and the environment. Properly extending the life of electronics through reuse or refurbishment helps reduce e-waste and mitigates the environmental impact associated with the disposal of toxic components.

What are the Minimum Requirements for Linux?

The important message: any PC capable of running Windows 10 generally meets the hardware requirements for most mainstream Linux distributions, especially lightweight ones.

Arch Linux as my Choice of Distribution

The German magazine "Linux Welt" (Apr-May 2025) recommends lightweight Linux distributions for the migration:

Zorin-OS "Core" 17.2 (based on Ubuntu)
Q4-OS 5.7 (debian-based suitable for old hardware) with Trinity or KDE Desktop
Peppermint-OS (debian-based) with XFCE as Desktop
Cachy-OS 250202 (modern Arch Linux) with KDE Plasma as Desktop

I decided for the plain Arch Linux, as I am already familiar with it. It is lightweight and nudges the user to become familiar with Linux. Other distributions such as Ubuntu try to emulate the Windows world, which - of course - is also a good choice when you want to continue working in a familiar environment.

Arch Linux has an installation process in the terminal. It is more demanding than installations with a GUI. In the Linux world the Command Line Interface (CLI) is a very handy and powerful tool. However, Linux commands are not that easy to learn. After a while, it becomes very normal and it boosts the working efficiency.

Arch Linux has a very active user base and support, see https://archlinux.org/

Preparatory Steps

In order to give the right information in the installation and configuration of Arch Linux some research of the current setup is necessary. Arch Wiki is a great source for that: https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Installation_guide

Boot into Windows 10 or 11 and check a couple of things:

Open System Information of the Start menu by typing


msinfo32

Look for "BIOS Mode" - it should show either "UEFI" or "Legacy" (BIOS) -> this determines the bootloader installation method and partition requirement
(Running msinfo32 with administrator privileges ensures you get complete system information)

Disk partitioning scheme:

Open Disk Management (right-click Start button > Disk Management)
Right-click on your main disk (usually Disk 0) and select "Properties"
Go to "Volumes" tab - what does "Partition style" show? (GPT or MBR) -> this affects partition management and bootloader compatibility

Firmware Update

It is advisable to update the UEFI firmware of the PC before installing to ensure compatibility and bug fixes.

Check your readiness:

Do you have a reliable internet connection (preferrably wired) for the installation?
Do you have a USB drive (8GB or larger) available for creating the Arch installation media?

Installation Media

Step 1: Download Arch Linux ISO

Go to https://archlinux.org/download/
Download the latest ISO image (usually ~800MB)
Verify the checksum (if integrity of the file transfer is of importance to you)

Step 2: Create Bootable USB

Download Rufus, on Windows at https://rufus.ie/
Open Rufus (it does not need to be installed)
Flash the ISO in Rufus, by selecting GPT or MBR (see above)

Installation Strategy

The following guideline assumes that you have already made a backup of all your files. There are two phases in the installation that are critical: partitioning and installing the bootloader. Things can go wrong here, so a backup is indispensable!

You may choose to have both Windows and Linux (dual boot) and decide upon booting which one should start. I prefer a fresh install, removing everything, because migrating away from Windows is the whole point of this exercise. These are the steps:

Wipe entire disk and create new partition scheme
Simple partition layout: EFI + root + home (optional)
Use standard Arch installation process without dual-boot complexity

Arch works best with Secure Boot and Fast Boot disabled during installation on many HP models.

Recommended Partition Scheme for my ~477GB Disk

EFI System Partition: 512 MB (FAT32)
Root partition: 50-100 GB (ext4)
Home partition: Remaining space (ext4)
Swap: 8-16 GB (or swap file)

Boot and Initial Setup

Insert the Rufus USB and restart your PC
Enter BIOS/UEFI (usually F10 or F12 on HP systems)
Set USB as first boot device or use the boot menu
Boot Arch Linux (select first option)

Some adjustments for Convenience

In the Command Line Interface (CLI) you can continue your installation efforts. Most Linux systems offer the shortcut Ctrl-Alt-T to enter the Terminal (or bash).

With a European (or German keyboard) you will soon notice that the special characters (plus 'y' an 'z' are interchanged) you type with your familiar keyboard will appear differently on screen:


sudo loadkeys de

To make the keyboard layout change permanent in Arch Linux (so it persists after reboot), you need to configure the system settings rather than just running the command shown above, which only affects the current session.

As you will have to edit several files I recommend to first install a text editor such as nano. The general installation manager in Arch Linux is


sudo pacman -S <...>

where <...> denotes the application name:


sudo pacman -S nano

Now edit the configuration file to make the keyboard settings permanent:


sudo nano /etc/vconsole.conf

and add KEYMAP=de to the file and save it.

In case the font size is too small you may want to increase the font size:


setfont ter-132b

To verify that UEFI is present:


 ls /sys/firmware/efi/efivars

Preparing Downloading of Various Installation Files

Check your Internet connection and DNS:


ping google.com

If your interface doesn't have an IP address, start the DHCP client:


dhcpcd

Without name resolution you can try:


ping 8.8.8.8

When you are ready start


fdisk

On the NVMe drive go through these steps:

List current partitions:
Delete each partition:
(Optional) Create a new GPT partition table
Write changes and exit:

Result: All partitions on /dev/nvme0n1 are deleted, and the disk is ready for new partitioning

Note: be careful not to delete the USB installation medium.

In my case new partitions were created with:


fdisk /dev/nvme0n1

If you want to start completely fresh (careful: this erases all data on the disk):

In fdisk, type: g

This creates a new GPT partition table.

Steps in fdisk to Create Fresh Partitions

For each partition:

Type n to create a new partition.
Accept the default partition number.
Press Enter to accept the default first sector.
For the last sector, specify the size (e.g., +512M for EFI, +100G for root, Enter for the rest).
For the EFI partition, type t then select type 1 (EFI System).
For others, the default type is fine (Linux filesystem).

Repeat for each partition you want.

Swap: Consider using a swap file on SSD/NVMe instead of a partition (unless you require hibernation), which can be set up after OS install.

Type w and press Enter to write the partition table to disk and exit.

Format the Partitions

My PC uses NVMe drives (e.g., /dev/nvme0n1). Double-check device names before formatting. After partitioning, format each partition:

Verify Filesystems

Check that the filesystems are now present.

Mount the Partitions

Mount the partitions for installation:


mount /dev/nvme0n1p2 /mnt
mkdir /mnt/boot
mount /dev/nvme0n1p1 /mnt/boot
mkdir /mnt/home
mount /dev/nvme0n1p3 /mnt/home

EFI System Partition: /dev/nvme0n1p1 is formatted as FAT32 (vfat) and mounted at /mnt/boot. This is standard for UEFI systems and will hold your bootloader file

Root Partition: /dev/nvme0n1p2 is formatted as ext4 and mounted at /mnt. This is where the Arch Linux system will be installed
Home Partition: /dev/nvme0n1p3 is formatted as ext4 and mounted at /mnt/home. This will store your user data separately from the system files

Base Install

To update the Firmware:


pacstrap /mnt base linux linux-firmware

Before rebooting, one needs to perform crucial configuration steps (like setting passwords, locales, installing bootloaders, etc.) inside the target system.

Generate fstab


genfstab -U /mnt >> /mnt/etc/fstab

fstab stands for “file systems table.” It is a configuration file at /etc/fstab that tells the Linux system which disks and partitions to mount, and where, during system boot.

Chroot into New System


arch-chroot /mnt

The command chroot stands for “change root.” It changes the apparent root directory (/) for the current running process and its children. Running arch-chroot /mnt puts you “inside” your newly installed system on /mnt as if it were booted normally.

Install a bootloader (e.g., systemd-boot for UEFI):


bootctl --path=/boot install

Creation of the root Account

Create a root user account with at least 12 characters in the password.

Creation of a user Account

Creation of a new user (not just root) is strongly encouraged for security, because root is the superuser having more power than admin users on Windows. Start working from user after that.


useradd -m -G wheel

Use the command passwd to set the regular user's password after creation:


passwd

and replace


nano visudo

Uncomment: %wheel ALL=(ALL:ALL) ALL.

Set the Timezone by


ln -sf /usr/share/zoneinfo/Europe/Berlin /etc/localtime
hwclock --systohc

Reboot, remove installation media, and boot into your new system.

Other Security Considerations

Do not expose SSH/remote services to the internet until properly secured
Use a firewall such as ufw or firewalld with e.g.:


sudo pacman -S ufw firewalld

Graphical User Interface (Desktop)

I decided to install KDE Plasma as my Linux desktop environment.

Update system (optional, but recommended):


sudo pacman -Syu

Install the KDE Plasma desktop and essential components:


sudo pacman -S plasma plasma-wayland-session kde-applications

Install and enable a display manager (SDDM is recommended for Plasma):


sudo pacman -S sddm
sudo systemctl enable sddm.service

Enable NetworkManager for network management:


sudo pacman -S networkmanager
sudo systemctl enable NetworkManager.service

Reboot your system:


reboot

PowerDevil is the power management service for KDE Plasma.

Check if PowerDevil Is Running:


ps aux | grep powerdevil

Start it with


/usr/lib/org_kde_powerdevil &

Check if UPower (Linux daemon that provides a standardized interface for monitoring and managing power sources) is running:


systemctl status upower

If not, do:


sudo systemctl enable --now upowerr

Conclusion

Embracing Linux has been a transformative experience for me. It began out of necessity and curiosity, and has now become a core part of my personal digital life. As someone who spent many years fully invested in the Windows ecosystem, I once believed that transitioning away from it would be difficult, if not impossible. However, two powerful motivators changed my perspective: the desire to extend the useful life of perfectly good hardware, and the need to break free from expensive, ever-shortening support cycles dictated by major vendors.

Migrating from Windows to Linux has unlocked new dimensions of flexibility and security. Tools that once kept me with Windows, like Office and Outlook, now have open or web-based alternatives. LibreOffice, for example, handles nearly all my productivity needs, and email is just as accessible in the browser. The Linux ecosystem, whether in the form of Arch, Ubuntu, or other distributions, offers an astonishing breadth of software maintained by a vibrant, global community committed to openness, transparency, and rapid improvement.

Perhaps the most rewarding aspect of this journey is knowing that I'm contributing, however modestly, to reducing electronic waste and making more responsible use of our planet’s resources. Every older PC converted to Linux is a small step away from the landfill and a stride toward technological sovereignty.

If, like me, you value longevity, security, independence, and sustainability, there’s never been a better time to discover Linux. With an active community and robust, continually updated software, making the switch is simpler, more rewarding, and more ethical than ever before. I encourage you to give it a try, who knows, it might be the start of a new chapter for your hardware, your workflow, and your peace of mind.

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