If you encounter errors during the activation or installation process on Windows 11, try these common community-sourced fixes:
If you own a perpetual license or an active subscription for SolidWorks 2016, here are the only legal ways to activate it on a Windows 11 machine: solidworks 2016 activator windows 11
If you need a permanent solution, either buy a cheap student license or migrate to a native 64-bit CAD tool like Alibre or Solid Edge Community Edition. If you encounter errors during the activation or
[ERROR] Unsupported OS version. Windows 11 detected. Compatibility mode required. solidworks 2016 activator windows 11
: Windows 11 itself requires a modern CPU (Intel 8th Gen or AMD Zen 2) and How to Approach Activation