Hyper-V is Microsoft’s built-in hypervisor on supported Windows 11 editions. Before enabling it, confirm the PC supports hardware virtualization and that your Windows edition includes Hyper-V.
Check virtualization and edition
Open Task Manager’s CPU performance page and confirm Virtualization is enabled. Check Settings > System > About for the Windows edition. Home editions do not provide the full Hyper-V role.
Enable Hyper-V through Windows Features
Search for Turn Windows features on or off. Select Hyper-V and its required components, confirm, and restart when Windows requests it.
Create a VM after restart
Open Hyper-V Manager, create or choose a virtual switch if networking is needed, then create a virtual machine with appropriate memory, processors, storage, and installation media.
Watch for conflicts with other virtualization software
Modern VirtualBox and VMware versions can coexist in some Hyper-V configurations, but performance/features can differ. Check the current requirements of the virtualization product you use.
Keep BitLocker recovery information available before firmware changes. Do not disable Secure Boot or other security features merely because an old virtualization guide recommends it.
Check Windows features required by your workload
Hyper-V Platform, Management Tools, Virtual Machine Platform, Windows Hypervisor Platform, and Containers are related but not interchangeable. Enable only the components required by the software or workflow you intend to use.
Plan VM storage
Virtual disks and checkpoints can grow substantially. Store them on a volume with enough free space and do not treat checkpoints as a substitute for backups of important guest data.
Kermit Matthews is a freelance writer based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with more than a decade of experience writing technology guides. He has a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Computer Science and has spent much of his professional career in IT management.
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