s about Windows 11 in the EU
s about Windows 11 in the EU
You can run Windows 11 in the EU without linking to a Microsoft account, though you’ll still need to use OOBE. You can log out after installation if desired. Signing in offers extra features and background processes, but privacy and performance differences are minimal. It’s not significantly different in terms of privacy or bloat compared to other versions. Most apps can be uninstalled easily.
After reviewing the details, it appears Microsoft now requires an account even for the 11 Pro edition. But there are methods to bypass this for the Pro version. One suggested approach is found here: https://www.zdnet.com/article/for-window...to-decide/ If you need a home setup, you'll need to log in with an account, then create a separate local admin account and remove or sign out your Microsoft account.
You can manually flash the ISO to a USB drive and use Rufus to enable local account options or even generate one yourself. By default, the local account password will expire after 42 days, but you can install WMIC through optional features to eliminate this restriction.
Alternatively, you can create the ISO using Rufus and turn off online account access. Or run a PowerShell command during setup. There are still many other solutions to avoid it being edited online—looks like Naijin already mentioned something similar and I didn’t notice it.