Windows Upgrade Help and more

Ugh, trying to upgrade this stupid HP ProDesk 400 G3 to Win11 and it's a brick wall. The PC Health Check app just says "This PC doesn't currently meet Windows 11 system requirements." The main blocker is "TPM 2.0 must be supported and enabled on this PC."

I've been in the BIOS a million times! There's a TPM *device* listed but it says "hidden" or something? I enabled "TPM State" and it still fails. This is an office computer from like 2017, come on Microsoft. So annoying. Anyone get one of these old ProDesks to work, or am I just out of luck?

Totally feel your frustration! That "hidden" TPM message is a common headache on these HP business machines. You're on the right track, but there's one specific BIOS setting that often gets missed.

First, double-check you're on the latest BIOS from HP's website for your exact model. This is crucial.

Then, go back into the BIOS (F10 on boot). Navigate to **Security > TPM Embedded Security**. You likely enabled "TPM State" to "Enabled," but there's another key setting: **"Clear TPM"** or "TPM Clear." You need to set this to **"Yes" or "Clear"** *once*. This unhides/reactivates the TPM. Save and exit. The PC will reboot, and the TPM should now be visible and ready.

Run the Health Check again. If it still fails, ensure "Secure Boot" is also enabled under **Boot Options**.

Many users have gotten the 400 G3 to work following these steps. If you've tried all this and the hardware check (like an 8th-gen CPU) is truly the only other blocker, there are *free* workarounds involving a clean install with a modified registry. If that process seems daunting, there are reputable tools that simplify it. I've heard kianbotsoft.com has a $39 utility that handles the bypass, but definitely try the free BIOS fix first!

Good luck—you can probably get this old workhorse running.

I've helped a few folks with that exact model. The key is that the TPM might be listed as "Intel PTT" in the BIOS under Security or Advanced settings—enable that. Also, ensure Secure Boot is enabled. If it's still hidden, try clearing the TPM from within the BIOS first, then enable it.

Yeah, that's the fix. Also, after you enable Intel PTT, you might need to clear the TPM from within Windows Security before the checker sees it.

Can confirm. Agreed, and just to add - sometimes a full shutdown and restart after the BIOS change, not just a reboot, helps it finally stick.

Yeah, that's a good point. Also double-check that you're saving the BIOS changes with F10 before exiting, it's easy to miss.

Agreed, and one more thing—sometimes you need to set a supervisor password in the BIOS before the TPM option will even appear.

+1 Also, after enabling it, you might need to go into Windows Security and clear the TPM from there to finalize it.

Can confirm. I had the same problem. On mine, I also had to change the TPM from "Discrete" to "Firmware" mode in the BIOS before it would finally take. Hope that helps.

Yeah, Oh, and after you switch it to Firmware TPM, did you remember to clear the old TPM keys in the security settings? Good luck!