How to improve an old Computer

Sometimes upgrading an old computer is a much better idea than throwing it away. Even if you notice that your computer is falling behind, it is possible that you can make changes and updates until it becomes a PC with a new life.

In this article, we’ll focus on the changes you could make to an old desktop, whether you’re a regular gamer or a hardcore gamer. Let’s go there!

How to improve an old Computer Performance

Above table of contents can be very helpful in finding what you are looking for in the article. We are going to deal with every important point, which is necessary to make your old computer to upgraded.

See Also: Types of Computer System

Also, if you don’t want to spend money upgrading your old PC, the software recommendations section can come in handy.

Quickly Check If your Computer is up to Scratch with Userbenchmark

Let’s start the article by recommending a very simple way to check the performance of your computer, thanks to Userbenchmark. This tool measures how all the components of the PC perform, so you can know:

• Whether the components are performing as expected.
• Its performance is sufficient for desktop, gaming or “Workstation” tasks or not.

Running a Userbenchmark is a piece of cake. All you have to do is download it directly from its official website, and run the program.

Then, it will start doing the tests, where you do not have to touch anything, except when the “SkillBench” appears, which analyzes your precision with the mouse, something that does not interest us, but you have to do it to pass the entire test.

Once the test will be completed, it will take you to a page with all the information about your team. Let’s see how it can help you by analyzing all the parts of computer.

The first thing we get are three scores, which indicate how good our computer is for gaming, desktop or workstation, based on the following criteria:

• Gaming: in the analysis, the FPS obtained in the graphics card tests predominate, specifically the GPU has to do with 64%.
• Desktop: Here you mainly take into account the performance on just 1 processor core, or at most 4.
• Workstation: in this case it takes into account both the performance in multiple cores of the CPU, as well as that of the graphics card.

So, here we are going to be interested in the first point if we dedicate ourselves for playing games, the second if we use the PC normally, and the third if we work with heavy applications.

What we are looking for is to see if there is a very low score in any of these points. It will indicate the need to change the GPU, change the CPU, or changing them both, depending on whether it is low in Gaming, Desktop or Workstation.

Then, we will go to see the percentile in which our equipment is in relation to other PCs with the same components.

We seek to be above the 50th percentile, which means you perform at or above average. If not, there is a problem. Furthermore, there are several conclusions that Userbenchmark can draw for us based on it:

• As expected: The component performs as expected.
• Below potential: Performs well, but could perform better if overclocked.
• Above expectations: performs even better than expected.
• Below expectations: here it does indicate that something is wrong with the computer, and that it performs below expectations.

And what this guide is all about? Well, we are going to give you an advice how to make your old computer better than before.

See Also: Is SSD Good for Gaming

From Hard Drive to SSD (Great Key Improvement)

If in the UserBenchmark tests you don’t see that you have an SSD, then you already have the culprit of most of your PC’s fluidity problems.

In these times, every computer must carry an SSD to store the operating system. But what is it and how is it different from a traditional hard drive?

In case you don’t know it, SSD stands for Solid State Drive, and it is the successor to the mechanical hard disk (HDD) that we used regularly back in few years ago.

You see, HDDs have an operating principle that causes, among other things, that their transfer speeds are slow and that they have a very high latency (delay or waiting time) to obtain data in random positions.

Basically, when a disk block is required, it has to find it by rotating the disk and the head, and no matter how fast the rotation is, it implies a delay.

SSDs are here to save us, since their operation is based on flash memories that have no mechanical parts, and where the search for data in random positions is much faster.

This causes an incredible increase in fluidity of the system, since it depends a lot on this type of thing.

With an SSD, it takes a few seconds for the computer to be 100% ready after you turn it on. With an HDD it could be minutes! Opening programs and using them are fluid almost instantly.

Any old computer has an incredible problem if it doesn’t have an SSD, so it’s absolutely essential that you choose one of these two options:

• Change the HDD of the equipment for a new SSD.
• Buy a new SSD, and leave the old HDD mounted to save data, but install the system on the SSD.

Regardless of what you choose, use SSDs instead of old Hard disk, which uses in storing data back in 2015 or else.

See Also: What does RAM Memory do

Do you have Enough Ram Memory

The second “easy and obvious” you need to see do you have enough Ram memory? If not, you need to update it. But, be careful, because this is something that not everyone needs.

If we make all these updates, it is to improve the performance and fluidity of the PC. Here the question is, do you fill the RAM?

You can check this live if you use the Task Manager and monitor the memory consumption. In any case, according to your capacity you can get an idea.

2GB and 4GB are amounts of RAM that can be filled very easily. If you do normal PC use, then 8GB will sufficient unless you’re in the habit of opening too many programs at once, or keeping too many browser tabs.

For games, then the recommended minimum is 8GB, but many games already need 16GB, especially with a lot of multitasking.

An outdated CPU Of your Computer

If your desktop score on the Userbenchmark test is too low, then it is very likely that you have an outdated processor that is a serious handicap for the performance of the computer.

You could notice it if the execution of programs slows down too much, especially if you already have an SSD installed which discounts the negative impact on the fluidity of mechanical hard drives.

Another very easy way to check it is by accessing the Task Manager and monitoring the CPU usage. If you see that you have 100% CPU usage in Windows 10 constantly, there is a big problem.

If you conclude that the CPU is causing very poor performance, or if you are going to use your PC for gaming and plan to upgrade the graphics card (which is something we will discuss in the next point), then it is very likely that you need to upgrade the processor.

For that, we recommend you check which CPU model you have, something you can find in the UserBenchmark report, and from there see if there are higher models of the same family that you can upgrade to.

For example, let’s say you have an Intel Core i3-3220 processor. To see if it is upgradable, we search for the model on Google to enter the Intel website to see the better options.

See Also: How to Connect a Graphics Card Correctly

We can find the Processor Code Name, in this case Ivy Bridge. Click on the name, and you will get a list of CPUs from the same family.

Also take the opportunity to open the list of Compatible Products on the previous page, and check which chipsets it is compatible with.

We can use the Intel nomenclature to find a better CPU, in this case we locate the Intel Core i7-3370K as the best processor.

We would go from 2 cores and 4 threads to 4 cores and 8 threads, and much more frequently. But be careful, you have to take into account several things:

• In the same family there are processors that do not have the same compatibility with motherboards. Check that the CPU socket is the same and that it supports the chipset of your motherboard.
• Evaluate if it is worth making the change, since CPU might cost you enough amount of money.
• It could also be the case that the cooling of your equipment was insufficient.

Check if you need a better Graphics Card

This point is dedicated exclusively the need to improve the graphics cards of your computer. Upgrading graphic is not compulsory for every PC user (depends on your use of computer).

If you use PC for playing games, then continue reading this point, instead you don’t use your computer for games, and you don’t have problems with multimedia playback, then you can continue to the next point of the article.

And how do I know if my graphics card is insufficient? In different ways. On the one hand, checking the Userbenchmark gaming score.

They are not foolproof tests, but they are very good for reference. Another way is to see if the gaming GPU usage is too high and the FPS/game smoothness is unsatisfactory.

Come on, the key is that the performance in games is unsatisfactory and is not the fault of the processor.

To find out if it’s a CPU issue, lower the graphics of the games to the minimum and check if they continue with the same fluidity.

See Also: Is a 1000w Power Supply Overkill or too much for my PC

Check if you need a better Power Supply

Installing a new graphics card is not an “immediate process”, but you will need to do several checks beforehand.

First, we are going to present to you is to check if the power supply of your old computer. If, it does not have power to spare or it is very degraded, you can have problems when changing the GPU.

To check this, you must check what power supply you have in your PC and assess the following points:

If you have a brand name pre -built computer, then chances are good that PC has a decent quality source, as these PCs are required to meet standards, including all energy efficiency standards.

So, there are two important issues here, which are age and potency. If your PC is close to 10 years old, then it is highly recommended that you change it.  For example, consider three different cases:

• 200W source from a “not so old computer” so less than 10 years old. We could use it with a GT 1030, but the power is insufficient for any other graphics card.
• 600W source from more than 10 years ago. We give the same recommendation, because due to its age it is very likely that it will not be able to safely support a high-end GPU.
• 500W source that, again, is “recent”. There are indications that it could be of quality as it has certificates such as 80 Plus. Then you can probably keep it to mount a mid-range GPU.

In all cases, the manufacturers we look for are companies like Delta Electronics, Lite-On, Chicony, Bestec, FSP, Great Wall, etc.

The truth is that, in the case of an old computer, it is advisable to change the power supply if you are going to mount a graphics card with a certain consumption.

We also remind you that you should check if the computer has enough PCI Express connectors for the graphics card.

We must also inform you that you should NEVER use adapters to connect the graphics card. If the source does not have enough connectors, it will not support a graphics card.

See Also: How to Choose a Laptop Processor

Will the Processor Bottleneck?

Unfortunately, the power supply isn’t the only concern when mounting a new graphics card. We also need to know if the processor will bottleneck or not.

This is quite possible considering that we are dealing with an old computer, and new games are increasingly demanding at the processor level.

Of course, if your old processor was 2 cores and 4 threads or even 4 cores and 4 threads, there is a good chance that a bottleneck will quickly develop.

But it all depends on what games you are going to play, and what graphics card you are going to mount. Of course, with mid-range GPUs you will have less problems with the bottleneck.

On the other hand, a high-end graphics card would be wasted if your old computer did not have a cutting-edge CPU with 6 cores or more and high frequency.

Upgrade your Computer by giving it a Facelift

It may sound silly, but a cosmetic makeover can help if you already get your computer running well, and your only problem is that it looks too old.

Actually, this is a very good idea if you also intend to make major changes to PC components. Changing the box can help you not only for aesthetics, but also:

• If you change the processor, you may have more space to improve heatsink or you may directly get better cooling.
• The case of the graphics card is similar. You could accommodate a better GPU or have better temperatures thanks to less heat built up.
• If you change the power supply, the new box will have it located at the bottom, while a regular old computer will mount it at the top. The difference is that being down your fan takes in fresh air, and being up is taking hot air from inside the case.

So, do not doubt that it may be a reasonable idea to buy a new box to improve the PC.

See Also: My PC won’t Turn ON? Why and How to Fix it

A Word of Warning before Upgrading your old Computer

At this point, we must make a very important warning that affects many old computers. It is about the possibility that they carry non-standard parts.

This can happen with some pre-assembled brand equipment, which basically incorporates components that do not correspond in their connections or operation with those that we can find on the market. This makes it very difficult to improve the equipment:

• The motherboard can have a non-standard format, without being ATX, micro ATX or mini ITX. The same can happen with the shape of the font.
• Also, the power supply connectors on the board might not be the normal ones.
• Then we may have space constraints on the box, which could in turn cause font to change, for the above reasons.

This depends on each pre-assembled computer, although fortunately it is not very common, and as you can see, everything usually depends on the motherboard, which is replaceable.

Other ways to improve an Old Computer using Software

Until now we have focused on methods to improve an old computer based on making changes to the hardware. In many cases, this is something totally unnecessary.

Whether it’s because you don’t want to spend money on upgrading an old PC, or simply because the use you’re going to give the computer is basic and you don’t think it’s necessary.

You are lucky, because there are ways to upgrade that old computer without spending money.

See Also: What is the Main Memory of the Computer

We are going to give you our recommendation, but we still believe that installing an SSD is essential, since it is very cheap and, in fact, it solves many problems.

• Install a Lightweight Linux Distribution

The main method that we are going to recommend is to install a lightweight Linux distribution, instead of using a Windows operating system. This is due to several reasons:

• Lightweight Linux distributions require far less powerful hardware to run well than any Windows operating system.
• Linux, as a desktop alternative, has come a long way in recent years. Its installation is simple, even installing programs has been made a lot easier.
• We are doing more and more things in the cloud, and there are even a lot of people who only need to use web applications, so there are not so many inconveniences to use Linux instead of Windows.

Some of the recommended Linux distributions to upgrade an old computer are Lubuntu, Puppy Linux, Xubuntu or Linux Mint.

Conclusion

If you have an old computer, there are reasonable ways to improve it so that you can extend its life or use it for other purposes without any problem.

In this article, we have given you all the keys to the hardware changes that may be necessary:

1. As a first fundamental point, the recommendation to change the hard drive for an SSD, which will greatly improve the fluidity of the equipment.
2. Check the RAM memory of the PC and analyze if it is enough for your use. Either through some general ideas that we have raised, or by checking it directly in the task manager.
3. See if the CPU is enough, or if we have an obsolete processor that is a handicap for the rest of the team.
4. In the case of playing with the PC and having insufficient FPS performance, see if changing the graphics card is reasonable, as long as there is no CPU bottleneck or insufficient power supply.
5. Even if it has nothing to do with performance, giving the PC a facelift may become in handy.

In addition, in the article we have taught you a simple way to know if the equipment is performing adequately, thanks to Userbenchmark.

See Also: Different Types of Computer Memory

It is a tool that many experts do not like, due to controversies regarding whether one CPU is better than another, but to get an idea of ​​the performance of our team it is great.

Finally, we’ve argued that switching to a lightweight Linux operating system can give a whole new life to your computer, without the need for hardware changes.

Especially for any PC that is too old (pre-2010) and there is no point in upgrading its parts. We hope this article has helped you a lot!