How to upgrade Windows 10 to Windows 11 on Mac via Boot Camp?

You can definitely upgrade Windows 10 to Windows 11 on Mac while keeping all your files and applications! Your hardware (Intel i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD) is more than sufficient to run Windows 11 well. The reason you don't see the upgrade in Windows Update is that Apple's Boot Camp implementation lacks TPM 2.0 (a security chip that Windows 11 formally requires).

Step 1: Download Windows 11 Installation Assistant
Go to Microsoft's official Windows 11 download page
Download the "Windows 11 Installation Assistant"

Step 2: Bypass the Hardware Check
Disconnect from internet (turn off Wi-Fi/Ethernet)
Run the Installation Assistant as Administrator (right-click > Run as administrator)
When you see "This PC can't run Windows 11" - don't close the window!
Press Shift + F10 to open Command Prompt
Type regedit and press Enter to open Registry Editor
Navigate to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Setup
Create a new Key called LabConfig
Inside LabConfig, create these DWORD values and set each to 1:
BypassTPMCheck
BypassSecureBootCheck
BypassRAMCheck

Step 3: Complete the Installation
Close Registry Editor and Command Prompt
Click the back arrow (←) in the installer
The installation will now proceed normally
Follow the on-screen instructions (takes 30-60 minutes)

In this way you are able to upgrade Windows 10 to Windows 11 on Mac. Your MacBook Air will run Windows 11 smoothly with that hardware configuration. Thousands of Boot Camp users have successfully upgraded using this method!