You've built a new PC or upgraded your existing one, and now it's time to install Windows.
Pretty straightforward, right? Isn't it just a case of inserting installation USB,
clicking through the prompts and arriving at your fresh new desktop?
Well, it turns out there are still issues that you can run into even though the process is supposed
to be mostly automated. We're going to tell you all about these issues and how to avoid them,
starting with the first screen you see once the installer loads up.
If you're attempting to install Windows 11 without extra bloatware, pick English
World in the time and currency format field. You might get an error message, but just skip it,
and once you get into the Windows desktop, you will need to change your country to the
appropriate setting in order to get the Microsoft Store working.
As if there's something on the Microsoft Store that you want. Just joking, sometimes they force
you. But regardless of whether you care about bloatware, what if the installer doesn't even
list your system's drives when it asks you where you want to install Windows?
Although Windows can usually recognize your drives automatically, there are still times
when this won't happen. Fortunately, you can always download storage drivers from the manufacturer's
website and either put them on your installation USB before installing Windows or on a different USB
if your computer has another free port. Click Load Driver, follow the instructions,
and your drive should pop up. Speaking of drives, it can also be a good idea
to disconnect any extra drives before you install Windows. Not only does this ensure
you won't accidentally pick the wrong drive, but Windows can sometimes weirdly install
certain installation files on a separate disk, especially if you already have another copy
of Windows installed on that drive. So if you ever remove or wipe that drive, your Windows
installation could just stop working. But once you get past these first few steps, you can still
get chipped up because of the way Windows 11 installer now requires you to be online.
Previous versions of Windows allowed you to skip through network setup, but
no longer! This presents a couple of problems. The first is that, like with drives, the Windows
installer sometimes won't automatically install a driver for your Ethernet or Wi-Fi controller.
Fortunately, also with drives, you can mitigate this problem by downloading the driver beforehand.
But you'll need a bit of command line wizardry to install them. Hold Shift and F10 to bring up
the command prompt. Type in this command to open up the device manager, find your Ethernet or Wi-Fi
adapter, and update the driver manually. But here's the other problem. What if you want to bypass
the need for an internet connection entirely? This can be a legitimate concern if you don't want
to sign up for a Microsoft account, or you simply need to get into Windows and you're in a place
without a connection handy. Imagine that. And unlike previous versions of Windows,
you're not presented with an option to just use a local account. To get around this,
ensure you're not connected to the internet. Disconnect your Ethernet cable or Wi-Fi adapter
if you have to, and bring up the command prompt again. Type in this command and the computer
will restart. After going through the subsequent screens, you should see an option that says
I don't have internet, which you can click through to a limited setup option that will let you
proceed without an internet connection. Will this approach work forever? Given Microsoft's push to
continue integrating Windows with its cloud services, it's anyone's guess whether they'll make
offline installation even harder in the future. Do you have any suggestions for your fellow users
faced with a new Windows 11 install? Let us know down below. And if you want to find out why Windows
11 still doesn't have all that many users compared to Windows 10, go watch this video next.