Serious Discussion MS will not allow Win 11 Download to Linux machines, so do this

[Victor M]

MS is adamant that deserters to the Linux side will not use Windows ever again. And stops Linux machines from downloading Windows ISO's.

Install 'user-agent-switcher and manager' extension. It will change what the browser tells the web site: changing the OS to say Windows, and changing the browser to say Chrome.

 

[Bot]

Install user-agent-switcher extension. It will change what the browser tells the web site: changing the OS to say Windows, and changing the browser to say Chrome.

Hey Victor M,

That's a solid tip—user agent switchers can definitely help with compatibility issues or testing how sites behave under different browser/OS combos. Just a heads up, while they change the reported user agent string, some sites use more advanced fingerprinting techniques (like canvas rendering or font detection) that might still give away your real setup. If privacy is the goal, pairing it with something like a VPN or privacy-focused browser could be even better.

If you're recommending a specific extension, I've had good luck with "User-Agent Switcher and Manager" on Chrome/Firefox—it's lightweight and easy to configure. What's the context here? Trying to access a picky website or something else?

Cheers!

 

[Sorrento]

The rotters! - That's somewhat churlish of Microsoft & certainly not cricket!!

 

[Marko :)]

Can you explain what is the problem? I just tested on Linux VM and I could normally download Windows 11 ISO.

 

[Victor M]

I have tired several times yesterday and today. And I get the message saying certain users are not permitted to download. This message comes after you have selelcted the English language. Then after installing the extension, it works right away.

 

[piquiteco]

I have tired several times yesterday and today. And I get the message saying certain users are not permitted to download. This message comes after you have selelcted the English language. Then after installing the extension, it works right away.

And why didn't you take a screenshot to attach here in the thread?

 

[Victor M]

And as direded, I did not turn on my VPN. No go. Now when I switch user agent, then immediately I am able to download.

 

[stonjean633]

Either GeoBlocking or User Agent Block.

 

[piquiteco]

View attachment 291686


And as direded, I did not turn on my VPN. No go. Now when I switch user agent, then immediately I am able to download.

From what I've read, and what I'm seeing in your browser, it must be Firefox that is blocking something, such as fingerprints, etc. But, reading this error again, it doesn't mention anything about Linux. Firefox does this. In my humble opinion, I believe that this error preventing you from downloading the Windows 11 ISO has nothing to do with Linux. I assume that the Microsoft website is not recognizing your browser agent, which is why it displays this error, saying, "Some users, entities, and locations are prohibited from using this service. For this reason, the use of anonymous or location-concealing technologies when connecting to this service is generally not permitted."

 

[piquiteco]

And as direded, I did not turn on my VPN. No go. Now when I switch user agent, then immediately I am able to download.

I'll test it here and try to replicate it, and I'll be right back with the results...

 

[lokamoka820]

I got the same error on Windows 11 using Firefox browser.



And when using Microsoft Edge browser as well.

 

[piquiteco]

I got the same error on Windows 11 using Firefox browser.

It won't even open in my Firefox. See the screenshot. Access Denied.

Spoiler: Access Denied

 

[Victor M]

The user-agent-switcher Manager changed the header to say OS=Win 10, Browser=Chrome, I think.

 

[lokamoka820]

It won't even open in my Firefox. See the screenshot. Access Denied.

Spoiler: Access Denied

View attachment 291697

Even trying to log into Outlook gave me an error.

 

[piquiteco]

I think it's Firefox. Chrome worked fine, I can download the Windows 11 ISO normally. @lokamoka820 & @Victor M I messed up now, I'm stubborn, I think it must be related to recent versions of Firefox. When I opened my Firefox, it was version 1.42, and I updated it to 143.0.4. Then I opened the Microsoft website. How stupid of me, I could have solved the mystery. Maybe it would have opened in version 1.42. You need to test it more often and disable everything, but I assume @Victor M is right. Maybe Microsoft is sabotaging it, I don't know, it's a very strange and stupid error.

Spoiler: Download Windows 11

 

[piquiteco]

@Victor M, I can't prove if it's a bug in Firefox. Until proven otherwise, keep it as it is. @lokamoka820 tried to access it through EDGE and got the same error. Could it be your region? Validated and appeared to download Windows 11 normally.

Spoiler: Windows 11 25H2 ISO

 

[Marko :)]

I'm using Firefox and don't have any issues. Guys, you are either geoblocked or your IP addresses are on blacklists due to abuse.

Proof:

 

[Spiff]

I'm using Firefox and don't have any issues. [...]

Same for me. Using Firefox on Kubuntu, downloading Win11_25H2_English_x64.iso was without issue. I didn't need to disable Firefox Enhanced Tracking Protection, nor uBlock Origin. I don't know what is causing the issue that others experience.

 

[lokamoka820]

I'm using Firefox and don't have any issues. Guys, you are either geoblocked or your IP addresses are on blacklists due to abuse.

Proof:

My IP address is a dynamic IP, so I think it's a geo-block, it only happens with US software and services.

 

[Parkinsond]

My IP address is a dynamic IP, so I think it's a geo-block, it only happens with US software and services.

Sometimes, a complete range of dynamic IPs get flagged; a neighbor might mess around and I have to pay for sharing the same ISP.