Windows 11 version 24H2 on Home and Pro editions reached the end of its servicing on October 13, according to Microsoft. That makes today’s Patch Tuesday, November 10, the first monthly security cycle in which those PCs are no longer offered an update. If you bought your computer in the last two years and never looked at the version number, it is worth a sixty-second check.
What Microsoft said
Microsoft’s message center notice, as reported by BleepingComputer, said the October 2026 monthly update was the last one for 24H2 Home and Pro. Enterprise and Education editions of 24H2 stay supported until October 12, 2027. Microsoft’s lifecycle page lists version 25H2 on Home and Pro into October 2027 and version 26H2 into October 2028.
The replacement is 26H2, also called the Windows 11 2026 Update. It became generally available on September 29 as an enablement package, a small update rather than a reinstall, because 24H2, 25H2 and 26H2 share the same underlying code.
How to check your version
Press Start, type winver and press Enter, or open Settings, then System, then About, and look at the version line. If it says 24H2, you are on the version that just lost support. If it says 25H2, you are still covered until October 2027, although moving to 26H2 buys you another year.
How to move to 26H2
Open Settings, then Windows Update, and switch on Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available. Then choose Check for updates. BleepingComputer reports that Microsoft is rolling 26H2 out in phases to eligible devices that have that option enabled. Install it, restart, and run winver again to confirm.
If the offer does not show up straight away, try again later in the week, since a phased rollout means not every PC sees it at the same time. Two cautions. Do not use update pausing to put this off. And if you consider an official ISO instead of Windows Update, Windows Central notes that it performs a full in-place upgrade, which takes longer than the small package, so I would only go that route if Windows Update keeps failing.
How urgent is it
Your PC does not stop working, and nothing breaks on the day support ends. The issue is quieter: any security flaw found after October stays open on a 24H2 machine. For a computer you use for email, banking and work accounts, that is a poor trade for a free update that takes a few minutes.
As with any major Windows update, back up what you cannot replace first. Our guide to choosing an external hard drive for backups covers what to look for, and our notes on the October Windows 11 preview update and the Windows 11 search changes in Insider builds show what else is moving in the platform.
Bottom Line
If your version says 24H2, update to 26H2 this week. It is free, small and designed to be low drama. If it says 25H2, you have until October 2027, but there is little reason to wait. Enterprise and Education users have until October 2027 on 24H2 and should follow their administrator’s plan.
Sources: Microsoft’s Windows 11 Home and Pro lifecycle page, BleepingComputer, Microsoft message center item MC1506289, Windows Central and Pureinfotech.
FAQ
Is Windows 11 24H2 still supported?
Not on Home and Pro. Those editions reached end of updates on October 13, 2026. Enterprise and Education editions stay supported until October 12, 2027.
Will I lose my files if I move to 26H2?
It is delivered as a small enablement package rather than a reinstall, so your apps and files should stay in place. Back up important files before any major update anyway.
What if my PC says 25H2?
Version 25H2 on Home and Pro is supported into October 2027. Moving to 26H2 extends that to October 2028 and is a similarly small update.
Featured image: Photo by Windows on Unsplash.
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