Getting a slow computer working faster and learning about simple computers and their parts
Getting a slow computer working faster and learning about simple computers and their parts
I should have known my computer would sometimes stop working after I bought it for less than $400 back when it arrived. Back then, it wouldn't even start the games that made me buy it at all, so I restarted itself over and over again. It's true those games are big and heavy, but besides feeling a bit sad, I didn't really worry about it because my other stuff worked well enough. The PC could still run some older games and watch movies without problems. But things got worse every day now. Taking one minute or even three minutes just to open Microsoft Edge feels like forever! It keeps restarting if I try clicking anything else while it's loading. Right now, I'm trying to see if there are hidden software bugs inside the computer that I can fix with commands like CMD, driver updates, and deleting files before I start throwing parts away. But I'm really confused because everything looks fine from my view. Why is my PC failing so often on simple tasks? Is it possible some quick tricks or commands could make it run smoother without breaking things down later?
Welcome to the forum! Your computer has an Intel Core i7 4790 processor running at about 3.6 GHz, uses 16 GB of RAM, and features an AMD Radeon RX 580 graphics card. When you post a question or problem, it is good practice to share all your hardware details. Please list them exactly like this: CPU, cooler, motherboard, ram, hard drive type, GPU, power supply unit, case, operating system, monitor, and the age of the power supply apart from its make and model name. You should also mention your BIOS version right now on the motherboard. I don't know much about computers yet. There is a tool called CPU-Z that can tell you almost everything except for the power supply. To check your power supply details, take off the side panels of your case and read the stickered label. For the case itself, look for a barcode sticker with a product number on it to find the make and model, or send me a picture. While you are looking for help upgrading things here, please follow the advice in this thread: "How to Ask for New Build or Upgrade Advice." First of all, respect where respect is due. This guide comes from an old post called "How To Ask For New Build Advice" originally shared on Animal's forum. I made my own version because there are many people nowadays asking for upgrade ideas here and in the CPU forums, and I feel like these communities can give some good suggestions.
That piece of equipment should still work well enough for things like speed. If you can, reset your Windows system completely. Here is how to do that on your own: https://www.windowscentral.com/how-do-cl...windows-10 After setting this up, watch out to pick only the apps and programs that you actually need so your computer doesn't slow down again. On the other hand, I can't say for sure if the problem is in the hardware itself, which would mean just reinstalling Windows won't help. Still, it's smart to try fixing the software first, before you buy a brand new laptop or desktop.
I have three i7-4770K systems (two overclocked and one running stock settings) and they are all very stable. I just clicked the Microsoft Edge icon on my desktop, and the program launched in about a second. Are you using an old-fashioned spinning hard disk or a modern solid state drive? If your computer is still slowly starting up Windows from an old hard disk, buy a SATA SSD and reinstall Windows completely. SATA SSDs (especially ones with DRAM cache) can make old computers run much better than they used to. I expect the computer might even slow down a bit more, but it will not restart abruptly or crash unceremoniously. One thing that slows down my really old systems is every month's Windows Update. It takes up to an hour on a dual core Celeron or Athlon X2 with very little RAM to finish installing updates. During this time, the computer becomes very slow and hard for any new input (from keyboard or mouse). The best thing to do is just let it run its course naturally. Run Windows Update and see if your computer has been fully patched, or if it is still busy trying to load the latest updates. You could also run SFC and DISM from the Command Prompt with Administrator privileges to fix any operating system errors. Run these commands: https://www.howtogeek.com/222532/ho...-s...-commands/. Also, run CHKDSK on drive C:. https://www.howtogeek.com/1033/how-to-us...n-windows/. You can test your RAM for errors by booting from a USB stick that contains MemTest86. With 16GB of RAM, this might take several hours but it should find bad memory if there is any. Sudden restarts are often caused by bad RAM. https://www.memtest86.com/. If you are overclocking the RAM with XMP (Extreme Memory Profile) in your BIOS, try switching off XMP to lower the speed and maybe make it more stable. If you find bad memory, just replace it. Assuming there are no other hardware problems, as others have said, installing a fresh copy of Windows (preferably on a fast SSD) might fix everything. If you need a fast SATA SSD with DRAM, consider buying a Samsung 860 or 870 EVO drive: https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Factor-In...B08PC43D78. If that is too expensive, there are many cheaper SATA SSDs without DRAM cache: https://www.amazon.com/Lexar-NS100-512GB...B07TQSYBPH. If you just want to experiment with a new Windows installation (but not much space for games), you can splash out $14.99 on a 120GB Patriot drive. It is not super fast or huge, but it's enough to check if your existing Windows OS is faulty. https://www.amazon.com/Patriot-Burst-Eli...B08LKMQ9T4 SATA SSDs range from 120GB to at least 4TB, so there are many choices. Windows 10 will fit easily on a 120GB SSD, but a 500GB or 1TB SSD will be much faster.