Important information about a computer is the processor upgradability of the motherboard. Can the processor be upgraded, and, if so, how much faster than the existing processor is the fastest processor that the motherboard can support?

Before purchasing a computer, you should always insist on a written specification that lists the make and model of the motherboard. You should then be able to visit the manufacturer's website, download the user manual, and find out such information as what processors the motherboard supports, the make and model of its chipset, and BIOS, and what types of RAM are supported.

If you cannot obtain a manual in this way, insist on being given this information by the company selling the computer.

If you have read the Motherboard pages, you know that the frequency of the processor is determined by the product of the motherboard's front side bus (FSB) frequency - the frequency of the connections between the motherboard's components - and the clock-multiplier setting.

A Super-Socket 7 motherboard (still being used in many computers, but SS7 is superseded technology) can be set to run a 100MHz system bus frequency and higher. If it has a maximum clock multiplier setting of 5.5, then it can run a 550MHz Socket-7 processor on a bus frequency set at 100MHz. Therefore you should always find out from the user manual what the ranges are for the bus frequency and the clock multiplier settings. This information is unlikely to be provided by the vendor or manufacturer - either in its advertising, or in a system specification.

Pentium 2, 3, and 4 motherboards can only run those Intel processors, which are fitted, with a bit of overlapping, in Slot 1, Socket 370, Socket 423, and Socket 478 respectively. By overlapping, I mean that Pentium 3 processors can be obtained in Slot 1 and Socket 370 versions, and Pentium 4 processors can be found using Socket 423, Socket 478, and Socket LGA775 (the latest one).

Socket 370 (aka FC - PGA) motherboards run most of the pre-Socket 478 Intel Celeron processors - and the Pentium 3 processors.

Note that Socket 370 is as officially dead as Super Socket 7. The new Intel Celeron 1.7GHz processor does not use Socket 370, it runs on Socket 478 motherboards that used to be the sole preserve of the Pentium 4 processor, which has moved on to Socket LGA775.

Socket 7 (running at 66, 75, and 83 MHz bus frequencies), and Super-Socket 7 (SS7) motherboards (100MHz and higher bus frequencies), which is redundant technology, can usually run AMD K6, K6-2, and K6-3 processors, and Cyrix/IBM M1 and M2 processors. AMD Athlon and Duron processors are fitted in Slot A and Socket A (aka Socket 462) motherboards.

You can download the manuals for the latest MSI motherboards free of charge from http://www.msi.com.tw/. The manuals provide illustrated instructions on how to install the processor in its socket. Each type of processor will have its own method of being correctly aligned in its socket. Instructions are also provided in the manual on how to install a heatsink and fan unit over the processor. All of the major motherboard manufacturers provide user manuals for their boards, and copies in the PDF format are also provided from the motherboard manufacturer's website. Those instructions are also provided when you buy a retail, boxed processor.

Processor/CPU coolers: Keeping the processor cool - installing the heatsink and fan cooling unit

The image below shows a standard type of heatsink and fan cooling unit with the lever that is used to fit it to the processor socket.

Showing a heatsink and fan unit that uses a lever to help the installation process

Each type of cooing unit and processor will have its own way of being installed. If you didn't buy a boxed retail processor that comes with installtion instructions, visit the processor manufacturer's website for installtion instructions. You can also find third-party instructions by entering a suitable search term in the Google search box provided at the top of this page (with its Web Radio button enabled).

Here is an illustrated example (a PDF file) of the application of thermal compound between the heatsink and an Intel dual-core processor:

How to apply Arctic Silver 5 Intel Dual Core CPU W/Heatspreader -

http://www.arcticsilver.com/pdf/appinstruct/as5/ins_as5_intel_dual_wcap.pdf

CPU Cooler Charts 2008, Part I -

"Keep cool! That's what CPU coolers are there for. 45% of our candidates fail our test. We uncover weaknesses and expose false promises..." -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/CPU-Coolers-Phenom-Core2,review-30115.html

CPU Cooler Charts 2008, Part II - Junk or Jewel? -

"In the second part of our cooler roundup we review six more products, rating cooling performance, noise and ease of installation..." -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/CPU-Coolers-Phenom-Core2,review-30238.html

CPU Cooler Charts 2008, Part III – Are Box Coolers any Good? -

"In this instalment, we will take a look at coolers that ship with CPUs in the retail box – the so-called box coolers. In the process, we will meet a few familiar faces, namely Intel’s selection of bundled coolers, which represent something of a reference point for each CPU class. The question we will attempt to answer is this – are box coolers sufficient or are you better off opting for an aftermarket cooler upgrade?" -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/Cooler-Charts-Coolers-Box-Intel,review-30301.html

Water cooling systems

Water-cooled systems have been available for some time, but it is expensive compared to using the usual heatsink and fan coolers. Here is an illustrated article on how to install a water-cooling system:

A Beginner's Guide For WaterCooling Your PC -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/...review-2126.html

Comparing Water Coolers: We Follow Your Lead -

"Water cooling in the PC is still pretty far removed from the mainstream, but Swiftech aims to change that with an affordable system for CPUs designed to make water cooling more accessible to the power user who wants to get their feet wet (pun intended) with liquid cooling..." -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/comparing-water-coolers,review-29667.html

And here is an article on hybrid coolers that are mixture of fan and water cooling:

Radical CPU Coolers from CoolIT -

"With its Freezone and Eliminator coolers, CoolIT brings hybrid Peltier/liquid cooling to the masses. How do the two coolers stand up against cooling systems using other methods?" -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/radical-cpu-coolers-from-coolit-uk,review-2338.html

See this Build A PC page on this site for more information on this subject, including applying thermal paste or fitting a thermal pad between the processor and the cooling unit. If the heatsink and fan unit came with a strip of film covering thermal compound, you should not remove the heatsink and fan from the processor after it has been installed and expect the compound to function properly again, because it can only be used once.

If the heatsink and fan unit came with a strip of film covering thermal compound (on the bottom of the heatsink), you should not remove the heatsink and fan from the processor after it has been installed and expect the compound to function properly again, because it can only be used once.

Note well that because of the high operating speeds (frequencies) of modern processors, you cannot afford to buy a cheap heatsink and fan unit to protect an OEM (vendor-supported) processor. You must buy a quality unit that is designed specifically for that make and model of processor. Official retail processor packages come with a cooling unit and thermal paste.

Cooling units are available for Socket LGA775 Intel processors that are fixed over the processor's socket by pressing push pins into their sockets on the motherboard. The push pins have a flat top that makes doing this very easy. The coolers have four feet that clip into holes in the motherboard. On each foot of the cooler there is a slot and an arrow. You insert a flat-head screwdriver into the slot to engage and disengage the lock in order to install or remove the cooling unit. For example, to remove the cooler, insert the screwdriver into the slot and turn it 90° clockwise towards the arrow. Then, one at a time, grip each foot and pull it up. It should click up and come free. When all of the feet are free, lift the cooling unit straight up from the processor. Reverse this process to install the processor.

AMD's Athlon 64 and Athlon 64 FX ranges of 64-bit processors (the retail boxed product) come with a heatsink and fan unit and illustrated instructions on how to fit it. The process is similar to the method used to fit the cooling unit in the image above, except that there is no lever to push the hook over the protrusions on the socket. You hook one side of the unit over a single protrusion, and then pull a springed handle on the other side of the processor's socket over until it locks into position with the top of its handle in a horizontal position.

Thermal paste (compound) or a thermal pad?

To increase the thermal conduction efficiency between the processor's die (in this case, the small black square in the centre of an AMD Athlon XP processor), and the surface of the heatsink, thermal paste (thermal compound) or thermal pads are used. With this particular processor, the thermal compound is applied just to the central die.

Note well that AMD does not recommend the use of thermal pads with its current Athlon 64 and Opteron processors. This Q&A on this site deals with the subject: Which is the best cooling solution between the processor and its heatsink and fan, thermal paste or thermal pads?

With current high-speed processors, it is advisable to use only high-quality thermal paste instead of high-quality thermal pads. In any case, cheap, low-quality products should never be used.

For Pentium 4 and Athlon 64 processors, which have a covered upper surface, spread the paste thinly over the entire surface by squeezing a bit out and then spreading it evenly across the surface with an old credit/store card or similar implement.

When using thermal paste, care should be taken not to apply it too thickly. The paste should only expel the air from the interface between the cooler and the die. Using more paste than say an amount equivalent to two or three grains of rice usually reduces thermal conductivity instead of increasing it. Practical tests of the various pastes have shown that the temperature of the processor's die can be reduced by up to three or four degrees Celsius by using a high-quality thermal paste.

The application of the pre-assembled pads is quite simple - you remove the protective film from the pad, place the pad between the processor and cooling unit, finish fitting the cooler, and then turn the computer on.

A thermal pad can only be used once. It leaves sticky residues that are not easy to remove from the contact surfaces. Thermal paste is easier to remove, therefore, those of you who regularly change the processor are advised to use it instead of a pad.

You can use the Google search box at the top of this page to find sites that provide information on how to apply and remove thermal paste and the sticky residue left by thermal pads.

The search term clean + "thermal compound" + processor lead me to this useful site:

Artctic Silver Incorporated - http://www.arcticsilver.com/arctic_silver_instructions.htm

Arctic Silver is a leading manufacturer of thermal pastes.

The best thermal paste, such as Arctic Silver 5, contains silver. The premium thermal paste made by Antec that you want to use also contains silver. The Artctic Silver website provides instructions on how to apply thermal paste:

http://www.arcticsilver.com/arctic_silver_instructions.htm

AMD's website

Although some of it can be hard to find, you can find a wealth of information about AMD's processors and processors in general on AMD's site. Here is a good example:

AMD Support - http://www.amd.com/gb-uk/0,,3715_5622,00.html

Articles on overclocking a processor (and other components)

Extreme FSB: Taking the E6750 Beyond 4 GHz -

"Intel promises noticeable performance gains from its new FSB1333 bus, currently available on Core 2 series 6x50 processors." -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/...review-2373.html

System Builder Marathon (Overclocking) Day 1 -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/Overclocking,review-2355.html

Overclocking Marathon Day 2 - A Home Brew -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/Overclocking,review-2358.html

Click here! to go to information on overclocking a processor on this site. Use your browser's Back button to return to this point on this page.

The safest way to upgrade RAM: Use the UK and US Crucial Memory Advisors

The memory requirements of the versions of Windows Vista

Most of the versions of Windows Vista require more RAM memory to run optimally on a computer that doesn't use memory-hungry applications than Windows XP. A video-editing application is an example of memory-intensive software. Only Windows Vista Home Basic has a recommended minimum amount of memory of 512MB, which is the same amount recommended for Windows XP. Windows Vista Home Premium, the most popular version, and Windows Vista Ultimate require a recommended minimum of 1GB (1024MB) of memory, which is twice the amount of minimum memory recommended to run Windows XP. For more information on computer memory, read the RAM pages of this site.

Paul Mullen, the highly-respected computer guru of the Helpfile at ComputerShopper.co.uk - "I have recently been buying my memory only from Crucial Technology. I would rather pay the extra cost than waste time trying to track down the obscure program faults that bad memory can cause."

UK - Crucial Memory Advisor - UK

USA - Crucial Memory Advisor - USA

For example, if your computer has an Asus motherboard, open the menu, scroll down to ASUS, and click GO. If, say, you have a Dell computer, scroll down to DELL, and do likewise. You will be taken to the relevant information on Crucial's website.

If you don't know the make and model of the motherboard installed in your computer, here is a good free utility - Belarc Advisor - that creates an analysis of the hardware and software on a personal computer. Look under FREE DOWNLOAD - http://www.belarc.com/. Another utility that also provides detailed information on the memory itself is CPU-Z.

Processors: makes and models, and their available speeds

If you want to find out what MHz/GHz range a particular make and model of processor covers, visit this overclocking database here. -

http://www.overclockers.com/

Obviously some false reports will have been made, so use your intuition to sort out the wheat from the chaff.

The motherboard specifications you need to know about

Click here! to go directly to the information on motherboard specifications on the Motherboards pages of this site.

Motherboard-monitoring and/or controlling software

Information on processor cooling is provided further down this page.

You should also know that the many motherboards that run the latest processors from AMD and Intel have power-down or power-off hardware and software solutions that are designed to prevent the destruction of the processor from overheating should its heatsink and fan unit fail.

If the computer's motherboard manufacturer doesn't provide monitoring software with the motherboard or free from its site, there are shareware alternatives such as Hmonitor from http://www.hmonitor.com/.

Hmonitor provides motherboard and processor temperatures for two processors (for use on a motherboard that can support two processors), the temperatures of three hard disk drives, the processor temperatures for two processors, reports the system voltages, and can report the fan speed, graphics processing unit (GPU) and video RAM temperatures, and the voltages of the system's video card.

February 6 2005. - Motherboard Monitor is no longer supported, but it still works on most systems, and is still available (free) from many download sites. Locate it by entering "motherboard monitor", as is in the Google search box provided at the top of this page.

This site provides links to other sites that provide motherboard monitoring software:

http://www.passmark.com/products/temperature.htm

SpeedFan - freeware - http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php

"SpeedFan is a freeware program that monitors fan speeds, temperatures and voltages in computers with hardware monitoring chips. SpeedFan can even access S.M.A.R.T. info for those hard disks that support this feature and show hard disk temperatures too, if supported. SpeedFan can even change the FSB on some motherboards (but this should be considered a bonus feature). At the lowest level, SpeedFan is hardware monitoring software, but its main feature is that it can control the speed of the fans (depending on the capabilities of your sensor chip and your hardware) according to the temperatures inside your pc, thus reducing noise and power consumption."

Hardware case fan controls

If you want to locate information on PC case fan controls, try entering a search term such as pc case fan controls in the Google search box provided at the top of this page (with its Web radio button enabled).

Intel's Centrino laptop package

The Centrino is not a specific processor made by Intel, as many people think it is, it's a bundle of mobile (notebook PC) chipsets for video, sound, wireless networking that has advanced from using the Pentium M mobile processor (the mobile notebook computer versions of Pentium 4 processors), to using Intel Core 2 Duo mobile processors.

Intel® Centrino® Duo mobile technology -

"With the breakthrough mobile capabilities and energy-efficiency of Intel® Centrino® Duo mobile technology, now available with the 64-bit capable Intel® Core™2 Duo processor, you can do more of the things you love where and when you want to do them.± Plus, you'll experience enhanced wireless connections increasing your freedom to connect around the globe.+" -

http://www.intel.com/personal/our-technology/centrinoduo/index.htm

Click here! to go directly to the information on wireless networking on this site. Use your browser's Back button to return here.

Intel announced the availability of notebooks that feature the 802.11bg chipset that supports the 802.11g wirless network standard in January 2004. It is much faster than the 802.11b wireless standard.

802.11g isn't perfect. Interference in the home can sharply degrade performance. Hence the move to the 802.11n wireless standard, which hasn't been approved as a standard yet, but is supposed to address the interference problems, provide backward compatibility with 802.11g, and become the new, "perfect" standard. Only pre-n equipment was available in 2006 and early 2007. The standard is expected to be ratified some time in 2007.

Click here! to go to information on 802.11n on this site.

The requirements of the BIOS

Note well that you might have to reflash the BIOS with the latest BIOS file in order for a motherboard to recognise and/or run a particular processor.

The motherboard's BIOS will have been programmed to be able to recognise and run all of the processors that its manual says that it can run, but this might not be the case if a faster version of a particular processor becomes available that the BIOS programmers knew nothing about. They would not usually provide support for unknown later versions of the same type of processor, because its hardware requirements could be different, thereby making its installation in the motherboard inadvisable.

For example, if the faster version of a particular make and type of processor becomes available, it could have power or other hardware requirements that exceed the capabilities of the motherboard, and should therefore not be installed.

Therefore, you should always check the motherboard's website for information about a processor if it is not listed as being supported in the motherboard's manual.

Always read the manual

Educate yourself by reading the information made available on sites such as this one and then always read a motherboard's user manual before you purchase a computer fitted with that motherboard - or purchase a motherboard as an upgrade.

Choosing a motherboard/processor combination can be difficult

The following anonymous post that I came across on a forum illustrates just how difficult choosing a motherboard/processor combination can be.

ECS P6S5AT Motherboard & 1.3GHz Celeron SL6C7 CPU

When I went to my local PC parts dealer, I asked him if he had a motherboard to support a 1.3GHz Celeron CPU. He recommended that I purchase the ECS P6S5AT motherboard.

When I started to assemble the computer I noticed in the motherboard's user manual that this board states that it supports FC-PGA Celeron and FC-PGA Pentium 3 CPUs, including the newest Tualatin CPUs. It also states that the motherboard supports 66MHz, 100MHz, and 133MHz Front-Side Bus speeds. It says it does not support P-PGA Celeron CPUs, whatever they are.

Further in the manual some conflicting information is provided. It states that this motherboard currently supports FC-PGA Celeron: 533-800 MHz, FSB: 66 MHz (nothing about a 1.3 MHz Celeron with 100 MHz FSB), and FC-PGA Pentium 3: 500-1130 MHz, FSB: 100 MHz, 133 MHz.

The manual and the ECS website say nothing about the CPU voltage range supported by this motherboard. Will it support the 1.5 volt core voltage of my CPU? Also, the manual says nothing about supporting FC-PGA2, which is what my CPU is. My CPU is a 1.3GHz Celeron, 100 MHz FSB, Spec Number: SL6C7, package type: FC-PGA2, L2 Cache Size: 256K, L2 Cache Speed: 1.30GHz, Bus/Core Ratio: 13.0, Die Size: 0.13 micron, and has a core voltage of 1.5V. Can anyone tell me if this CPU is going to work in the ECS P6S5AT motherboard the vendor sold me? I am afraid to power up the system for fear of burning out the CPU. I'm a little confused and could use some advice. Help!

The ECS P6S5AT motherboard cannot run the Celeron processor in question. A motherboard that supports FC-PGA2 Celeron processors is required even though the motherboard can run FC-PGA Pentium 3 processors running at between 500 - 1130MHz.

Therefore, the vendor - someone who should know better - sold this man the wrong combination.

If you are in doubt about a motherboard/combination, download the user manual from the motherboard's site, and look up what information is available on the processor on either the Intel or AMD site.

More information on Celeron processors can be found on the Intel site.

Visit the Motherboard pages of this site for more information on choosing a motherboard.

Problems with fast processors

If Windows produces a protection error with the terms NTKERN or NDIS mentioned in it, there are three main causes of it. I will start with the most common cause.

Ever since the AMD K6 processors reached a speed of 350MHz, Windows 95 has had problems with fast processors. It also affected Pentium 3 and 4 processors running at 1GHz or faster. A software patch/fix that rectified bad programming in Windows 95 corrected the problem, which did not affect Windows 98 or later versions of Windows.

To apply the software patch you have to install a slower processor or underclock the fast processor (see the Motherboard page for information on setting the processor's speed) to run at a speed that does not cause the problem (under 350MHz for a K6 processor, and under 1GHz for the Pentium processors).

Another processor-speed error occurs with Windows 98 with processors faster than 2.1GHz. The problem is addressed in this MS Knowledge Base article:

312108: Windows Protection Error in NDIS with a CPU That Is Faster Than 2.1 GHz - http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=312108

Alternatively, device-driver conflicts could be the cause of the protection error message. These are usually caused when trying to boot an installation of Windows that was being used with older devices (motherboard, video card, etc.) but has new devices installed.

In this case, it is possible to boot in Safe mode (to enter it, press the F8 key when a Windows 9.x system starts up), and remove all of the system-related devices in the Device Manager. When the system is restarted, Windows will detect new hardware and reinstall the device drivers.

You should always install the latest drivers for the motherboard's chipset, which should be available from the PC/motherboard manufacturer's site.

Finally, bad or improperly installed RAM modules could be the cause of these protection-error messages. Try removing and re-seating the modules. You could also try using different modules, or try using one module instead of two.

This are two excellent free RAM-testing utilities:

Memtest-86 3.0 - http://www.memtest86.com/

Microsoft Windows Memory Diagnostic tool - http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp

Some relevant postings from Compaq's newsgroup - alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq

"Before making ANY major purchase, DO YOUR HOMEWORK! I bet most of the folks here complaining about not being able to upgrade would never have bought COMPAQ if they had done some research into the models that they were considering. I probably would not buy a COMPAQ desktop computer. I would (and have!)built my own. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to build your own PC! There are any number of good books on the subject, so check out(pun intended!) your local library. On the other hand, I bought my Compaq laptop after at least 40 to 50 hours of research online (over about 3 to 4 weeks) knowing exactly what to expect. Sure it is kind of slow by today's standards (an Armada 4120...120Mhz Pentium), but I knew that it would run the applications that I wanted to run. It has Compaq's proprietary hardware, but what laptop doesn't have proprietary components? The point is, that I defined my needs (and budget!), researched refurbished laptops in my price range, and chose the laptop with the most features (more memory, faster processor, etc.) from the models that I had researched. I am very happy with my laptop! So don't buy a bargain basement priced PC, and expect to run high end applications on it. DO YOUR HOMEWORK FIRST!!!!!"

"Compaq sells a "home" line of machine (Presario), and a "business or office" line (Deskpro or Prosignia). The office type machines are usually open architecture, and are easy to upgrade with standard PC components. Also, these machines usually have some open IRQs. They are also better built, and designed for easy access and upgradability. If you want a Compaq that can easily be upgraded, stay away from the Presario line. Go for a Deskpro or Prosignia. Go to http://thenew.hp.com/ for info."

[I have changed the HP/Compaq address above to the new one]

"I recently purchased a 5900Z-500, and in my opinion, Compaq has not
fully "seen the light". While the system can take standard peripherals, there appears to be some roadblocks to an owner taking full control. Compaq loaded my system up with all sorts of junk and advertisements, and a set of weird and confusing utilities that allege to help me troubleshoot and update the software. I'm not sure what I can safely disable or uninstall. Many people are finding that the Compaq pre-installed utilities impact on performance and cause system lockups. Another user in this forum has attempted to wipe clean and reinstall from the ground up (so as to have full control of his system), but evidently Compaq has not simply supplied a set of disks with the needed drivers, but instead requires that he perform a Compaq "QuickRestore" from a CD. Compaq's support forum is not very well attended (I have yet to see any of my four postings to it answered, or even appear in the forum!). If I had it to do over, I'd buy a Dell, wipe it clean (I'm sure it's full of junk software also), and then install only the things that I want on my system. We do this all the time at my place of work - with Micron PCs. So, while the system appears to be a standard, open, PC, I don't think that Compaq expects you to treat it that way."

The Processor's BIOS Settings and Monitoring Activities

If you have read the Motherboard pages on this site, you will know that the settings for the processor front side bus frequency (FSB), clock-multiplier, and voltages, can be set by setting jumpers or DIP Switches that are on the motherboard itself, or by using the BIOS setup program. The BIOS is now the most commonly used method.

The user manual that comes with a brand-name PC or motherboard should have a BIOS section that provides information on the settings that are available. If you don't have such a manual, you should be able to download a copy in the PDF format from the PC or motherboard manufacturer's site for a particular make/model of PC/motherboard.

For your information, the BIOS can also be used to monitor the system, such as monitoring the processor's temperature, fan speed, and its voltages.

Consult a motherboard's user manual for information on its BIOS settings, or use Google for information. For example, you can make use of the Google search box provided at the top of this page (with its Web radio button enabled) to look for information on, say, the Execute Disable Function setting: bios + "execute disable function".

Note that the BIOS settings are not standardised for all motherboards. It is up to the motherboard manufacturers which settings they choose to make available for a particular model of motherboard. For example, if a motherboard manufacturer wants to restrict the ability to overclock the processor and memory, the BIOS settings that allow the overclocking of those components will not be made available. This is a good idea from a support point of view, because people with no knowledge about overclocking often jump in at the deep end and ruin components, which are then sent back to vendors as being dead on arrival.

No need to buy the latest and greatest components

If possible always purchase easily damaged components, or components that are difficult or expensive to return, such as hard disk drives and monitors, from local stores.

When you purchase a new computer, you should certainly make sure that it is as upgradable as possible, that it is good value for money in that it does not contain any 'ancient' components, but you can certainly take your time when purchasing upgrades.

The latest hardware, such a processors and video cards, etc., are usually extremely expensive compared to the price they will be after they have been available for some time, or have been superseded by newer models. By keeping a few paces behind having the latest equipment, you can save yourself a small fortune while still having a machine that can run the latest software perfectly adequately.

Note that if you're waiting for the price of a particular processor to come down before you make a purchase, be aware that there comes a time when processors very suddenly become unavailable. The manufacturer no longer makes them and supplies have run out, but the suppliers are still advertising them because they have to submit their advertisements to computer magazines long in advance.

Therefore, don't rely on advertisements to judge the availability of a processor. You'll eventually be able to obtain one second-hand or from an obscure source, but not without going to a great deal of bother and an increased risk of being taken for a ride by con-artists.

Websites that provide information on processors

If you have any problems with an AMD processors, visit:

AMD Support - http://www.amd.com/gb-uk/0,,3715_5622,00.html

If you want to know the technical details of exactly how a processor works, visit this article. -

How Microprocessors Work -

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/microprocessor.htm

Processor problems, solutions, and a brief history of the PC processor

Click here! to go to a page which deals with the following processor problems, solutions, and the brief history of the PC processor:

1. - Articles on processor problems in the Microsoft Knowledge Base

2. - Will Product Activation in Windows Vista allow me to change my PC's processor without having to reactivate?

3. - I bought a PC with an Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 6.5GHz processor and a 1GB ATI Radeon X1050 Core graphics card, but the Belarc Advisor says otherwise

4. - Can I upgrade the Intel Pentium D dual-core processor of my Dell Dimension E510 with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor?

5. - Can I upgrade my Socket 478 Pentium 4 processor?

6. - My Pentium 4 processor runs very slowly?

7. - Why is my CPU Usage always 100% in the Windows Task Manager and the system so slow?

8. - The type of power supply that supports AMD Athlon and Intel Pentium 4 processors

9. - I upgraded the processor, but the computer won't boot

10. - My AMD Athlon XP processor won't work with a power supply unit (PSU) designed for an Intel Pentium 4

11. - How carefully is it necessary to consider the power demand made on the motherboard by the fan used to cool the processor?

12. - Why can't my AMD Athlon 64 3200+ processor run more than one module of double-sided DDR400 RAM at its full speed?

13. - The overheating alarm on my computer's motherboard goes off and, if left running, the computer crashes

14. - Why does the processor in my notebook (laptop) computer run at half speed?

15. - Why is 100% processor use showing under the Performance tab of Windows Task Manager when I have nothing running?

16. - Which is the best cooling solution between the processor and its heatsink and fan, thermal paste or thermal pads?

Click here! to go to a page which deals with the above-mentioned processor problems, solutions, and the brief history of the PC processor.

This article consists of two pages. Click here! to go to Page 1

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