• Program for determining installed hardware. Programs for determining computer configuration

    Sometimes there is an urgent need to know the characteristics of your computer. For example, in order to update drivers, upgrade some parts of the system unit, or simply show off to peers, and in many cases you just need to find out the markings of a particular system component. There are only two ways to do this: and read the markings or check them using software.

    The first method, although simple, in most cases may not be available due to a violation of the warranty (if the computer is under warranty). Therefore, let's take a closer look at the second method, how to find out the characteristics of your computer using programs, both built-in operating system tools and additional specialized software.

    We look at the characteristics of the computer using the operating system

    1. In order to find out the three main system parameters, just go to the “My Computer” tab in the “Start” menu. To do this, you need to hover the cursor over it and right-click on it; in the list that opens, select “Properties”.

    This can also be done in one more way: from the “Control Panel” tab, select “System”. In the window that opens below, you can view the same parameters.

    2. Find out what equipment is installed on the computer, but without detailed characteristics can be done through Device Manager.

    To launch it, you can simply type the key combination “Win+Pause”. In Windows 7, in the window that opens, you will need to select the “Device Manager” tab. Now we can see what devices are installed on your computer and their names, for example, processor type and frequency, video card, sound card, network adapters, disks, etc. The Device Manager in XP can be launched using the key combination “Win+Pause” “, then at the top you need to click on the “Hardware” tab, and already launch “Device Manager” in it.

    3. This method consists of using the integrated System Information software. To launch it, you need to click on the “All Programs” drop-down list in the “Start” menu, then “Accessories”, open the “Utilities” tab and launch the “System Information” utility there. You can also do this faster by pressing the Win+R key combination. The program launch window will open. In the “Open” line you need to type “msinfo32.exe”. This is the same utility, only launched through the console.

    Using this built-in software, you can obtain basic information about the system and components. But this utility is quite inconvenient due to the complexity of the branches of transitions along the tree. This software can be used in the absence of other software that is easier to understand and read.

    4. You can also view system characteristics through the DirectX Diagnostic Tool. This utility is used mainly for testing both video and audio cards. The utility window displays general information about the system and, more specifically, about the video card.

    5. You can find out the characteristics of your computer from the BIOS. To do this, when booting the computer, you must press the F1, F2, Del or Esc key. It all depends on the version of the BIOS itself. Further, some knowledge of English is required.

    Programs for viewing computer characteristics

    For more detailed system performance diagnostics, you can use special programs. For example, AIDA64, ASTRA32, PC-Wizard programs are excellent software both for diagnostics and for testing all components separately.

    To begin with, let's say that the AIDA64 (formerly Everest) application belongs to the paid category. However, it is possible to take advantage of the free 30-day period provided by the developers so that the user can familiarize himself with the capabilities of the program. This is quite enough for us. In our case, we will use the AIDA64 Extreme Edition to familiarize ourselves with the basic parameters of the computer. There is, of course, a business version of this application, but for our purposes it will suffice Extreme version. This application must be downloaded from the developer’s website () and installed on your computer.

    AIDA is very simple and easy to use. The main application window is divided into two parts: the left side displays a tree of the main subsystems of the computer, and the right side displays detailed information about the subsystem selected on the left side. To view summary information on your computer, just expand the “Computer” section, and then select the “Summary Information” subsection.

    Selecting this subsection will allow you to find out all the characteristics of your computer: the type of computer, information on the installed operating environment, information about the system board, available partitions, network, peripheral devices, etc.

    View data central processor computer can be done by selecting the “CPU” subsection in the root “System Board” section. The right side of the application will display the parameters of all processors installed on the PC. This data will indicate the type of processor installed, its model, clock frequency, supported instructions, cache of different levels. You can also find information about the load on the microprocessor cores. If you need more detailed information about the functions supported by the system microprocessor, then feel free to click the “CPUID” subsection.

    If you move a little further in your selection and select the “Motherboard” section, then the main application window will display detailed information on the motherboard. For a desktop PC, AIDA64 will display the properties of the board with its name, the properties of the system bus with its real and effective frequencies. Data on the properties of the memory bus with its width, frequencies, and bandwidth will also be demonstrated. No less important technical information according to the physical parameters of the board: supported CPU socket, installed connectors for expansion cards, number of connectors for brackets RAM, as well as the type of strips themselves and the type of memory supported. In the same section, the application will show data on the form factor motherboard, about its physical dimensions and the chipset.

    Selecting the “Memory” subsection in the “Motherboard” section will display summary information about the computer’s RAM. Here you can find out information about the operational and virtual memory: about how much has already been spent and how much for at the moment available for use by the system and applications. Also, this section shows the path to the system swap file.

    About properties installed modules RAM can be easily found out by clicking the “SPD” subsection. This action will allow the application to show all memory modules installed on the PC, which are displayed at the top of the main window area. Selecting one of the displayed modules will allow you to obtain data that is shown in the lower part of the main area of ​​the program window. By default, when you go to the “SPD” subsection, this part displays the data of the first module displayed in the list. Here you can find the following data about the properties of the module: its type, the amount of memory it provides, the type of this memory, its speed. Also, the width and voltage of the module, timing characteristics and functions supported by it are displayed here.

    Video card

    In order to view data on the characteristics of the video adapter, you need to go to the root section “Display”. Among its subsections you need to find “Graphics Processor”. Selecting this subsection will allow you to display data about the video adapter installed on the PC in the main area of ​​the program. Among them is information about the type of video chip, its BIOS version, the memory of the graphics card (volume, frequency, type), some characteristics GPU(frequency, technical process).

    The “Monitor” subsection of the same root partition will allow the user to become familiar with the main characteristics of the system monitor. These include model, resolution, aspect ratio, vertical and horizontal scan.

    AIDA64 allows you to get a wide range of information about hard drives computer. To view information about the HDD, click on the “Windows Data Storage” subsection of the root “Data Storage” section. At the top of the main area of ​​the application window, a list of all devices that are associated with data storage will be displayed. The hard drives will be displayed first, and information about the characteristics of the hard drive designated first in the list of devices will be displayed at the bottom of the main area of ​​the window. Among the most useful characteristics: hard drive form factor, spindle rotation speed, read/write speed, etc.

    Sensor data

    It is necessary not only to be able to view data about the system, but also to analyze the current information provided about the system by its sensors. Data on sensors can be found by going to the “Sensors” subsection of the “Computer” section in the general subsystem tree.

    The main sensor information window displays data on the temperature of the microprocessor, as well as its cores. The “CPU” designation shows the temperature of the processor under its cover. Traditionally, this indicator is lower than the temperature indicators of the processor cores, displayed as: “CPU1”, “CPU2”. This is due to the fact that the cover is in direct contact with the heat sink of the heat sink unit. Do not be afraid of the high parameters of the “AUX” indicator, since it means practically nothing. If its values ​​never change, then it is not used by the system. The GPU Diode sensor shows the temperature on the GPU.

    Using the ASTRA32 program you can also find out the characteristics of your computer. Like the previous program, ASTRA32 is paid, but the demo version is enough for us. Its interface is similar to AIDA64, also so simple and clear. Download the program from the official website: www.astra32.com and install. By clicking on the link you will see two versions - one for regular installation, and the other is portable, that is, it does not require installation. I will use the second version of the program.

    I run the program file astra32.exe as administrator.

    In the window that opens, all information about my computer is immediately displayed (the “General Information” tab), namely:

    • what processor is installed, its operating frequency, cache levels;
    • brief information about the motherboard;
    • information about RAM;
    • what disks are installed and their capacity;
    • information about the video card and sound card;
    • information about operating system etc..

    You can stop there, but for those who want to study the components of their computer in detail, you can select the appropriate section in the left column and study the data that is displayed in the right column.

    For example, you need to find out more detailed information about the processor: what Socket it has, how many cores, what power consumption, dimensions, etc. Go to the “Processor” tab and then “CPU”. In the Right window we look detailed information about the processor.

    Finally we come to free programs. PC-Wizard is one of best utilities to determine the characteristics, configuration and test of a computer. It can be downloaded by following the link - http://www.cpuid.com.

    The program interface is similar to the previously discussed utilities. The only difference is that instead of boring lists, icons are displayed in the right column, and there are also tips for almost every action.

    From time to time there is a need to find out what hardware is on the computer (video card, hard drives, processor, etc.) and brief information about the system (how much of what there is, how much memory it takes up). For the sake of such a thing, there is no point in opening the computer case, especially if it is under warranty, fortunately there are a bunch of all kinds of utilities, including large number free ones that will tell you almost everything about your computer. The main thing here is not to get confused by the abundance possible options and find a utility that suits you. If you don't need detailed information about every computer component and all installed programs, then you should pay attention to the free program.

    Immediately after launching the Speccy installation, we are immediately prompted to select the language that the application will use by default; in the large list of several dozen options, there was also a place for Russian localization. Next come the more familiar questions about where to place the icons to launch the program and whether it is necessary to automatically check for updates. Well, in the end, as a dessert they try to offer to install Google browser Chrome (very good, by the way) and do Google search engine system by default, which I advise you to refuse; if necessary, you can set it manually. Then you have to wait until necessary files will be unpacked and the program will be ready for use. Although we were very surprised by the lack of ability to select the directory where Speccy will be located.

    Alternatively, Speccy can be used as a portable program that can be launched from USB flash drives on any computer, just unpack it into a suitable folder.

    Having launched Speccy, we get a nondescript window gray, where in the left column a list of all found devices and hardware is displayed where you can switch between individual items by clicking the mouse, and on the right side there is detailed information about the selected item. The program provides fairly detailed information about the processor, RAM, motherboard, video card, hard drives, optical disks, external periphery and network connections. I almost forgot, you can click on the points where temperature and frequency are indicated, after which a beautiful plate will pop up, with a graph clearly showing how the temperature of a particular device has changed over time.

    There is no point in describing each point in detail, the name speaks for itself, and no one has yet canceled the experiments of poking at all the buttons that can be pressed.

    Users are offered minimum set settings, where the most useful items are the choice of language and in what units the temperature will be displayed.

    If you need to quickly find out what hardware is on your computer and basic information about the system, Speccy will be an excellent choice. The program knows everything even about the newest hardware, so it will not be confused even by a very tricky computer configuration. The best part is that there is nothing superfluous here. Speccy just does its job without asking any unnecessary questions.

    The program works great on 32 and 64 bit operating systems. Interface localization is available in several dozen languages, including Russian.

    Good afternoon.

    I think that many, when working at a computer or laptop, are faced with a harmless and simple question: “how to find out certain characteristics of a computer...”.

    And I must tell you that this question arises quite often, usually in the following cases:

    • - when searching and updating drivers ();
    • - find out if necessary hard temperature disk or processor;
    • - in case of PC crashes and freezes;
    • - if necessary, provide the basic parameters of PC components (for example, when selling or show to your interlocutor);
    • - when installing a particular program, etc.

    By the way, sometimes you need not only to know the characteristics of the PC, but also to correctly determine the model, version, etc. I am sure that no one keeps such parameters in memory (and the documents for the PC hardly list those parameters that can be found directly in the Windows OS itself 7, 8 or using special utilities).

    So, let's get started...

    How to find out the characteristics of your computer in Windows 7, 8

    In general, even without using special. utilities you can get a lot of information about your computer directly in Windows. Let's look at a few ways below...

    Method number 1 - use utility program"system information"

    The method works in both Windows 7 and Windows 8.

    1) Open the “Run” tab (in Windows 7 in the “Start” menu) and enter the command “msinfo32” (without quotes), press Enter.

    By the way, you can launch this utility utility from the menu Start: All programs -> Accessories -> Utilities -> System Information.

    Method No. 2 - through the control panel (system properties)

    1) Go to the panel Windows management and go to the section " System and security“, then open the “System” tab.

    2) A window should open in which you can view basic information about the PC: what OS is installed, what processor, how much RAM, computer name, etc.

    To open this tab, you can use another method: simply right-click on the “ My Computer" icon and select properties from the drop-down menu.

    Method number 3 - through the device manager

    1) Go to: Control Panel/System and Security/Device Manager(see screenshot below).

    2) In the device manager you can see not only all the PC components, but also problems with drivers: in front of those devices where everything is not in order, a yellow or red exclamation mark will light up.

    Method No. 4 - DirectX diagnostic tools

    This option is more aimed at audio video characteristics computer.

    1) Open the “Run” tab and enter the command “dxdiag.exe” (in Windows 7 in the Start menu). Then press Enter.

    2) In the DirectX diagnostic tool window, you can get acquainted with the basic parameters of the video card, processor model, number of paging files, Windows OS version, and other parameters.

    Utilities for viewing computer characteristics

    In general, there are quite a lot of similar utilities: both paid and free. In this short review, I have listed those that are most convenient to work with (in my opinion, they are the best in their segment). In my articles I repeatedly refer to some of (and will continue to refer to)…

    1.Speccy

    One of the best utilities today! First of all, it's free; secondly, it supports a huge amount of equipment (netbooks, laptops, computers of various brands and modifications); thirdly, in Russian.

    And lastly, in it you can find out all the basic information about the characteristics of the computer: information about the processor, OS, RAM, sound devices, processor and HDD temperature, etc.

    By the way, there are several versions of the programs on the manufacturer’s website: including a portable one (which does not require installation).

    Yes, Speccy works in all popular Windows versions: XP, Vista, 7, 8 (32 and 64 bits).

    2.Everest

    One of the most famous programs of its kind. True, her popularity has subsided somewhat now, but still...

    In this utility, you can not only find out the characteristics of your computer, but also a bunch of necessary and unnecessary information. Particularly pleasing is the full support for the Russian language; you don’t see this often in many programs. Some of the most the necessary opportunities programs (there is no particular point in listing them all):

    2) Editing auto-loading programs. Very often, the computer starts to slow down due to the fact that a lot of utilities are added to startup, which most people simply don’t need in everyday work on a PC! There was a separate post about that.

    3) Section with all connected devices. Thanks to it, you can determine the model of the connected device, and then find required driver! By the way, the program sometimes even prompts you with a link where you can download and update the driver. Very convenient, especially since unstable work PC, drivers are often to blame.

    3. HWInfo

    A small but very powerful utility. It can provide no less information than Everest, the only depressing thing is the lack of Russian language.

    By the way, if, for example, you look at temperature sensors, then in addition to the current indicators, the program will show the maximum allowable for your equipment. If the current degrees are close to the maximum, there is reason to think...

    The utility works very quickly, information is collected literally on the fly. There is support for different OS: XP, Vista, 7.

    By the way, it’s convenient to update drivers; the utility below publishes a link to the manufacturer’s website, saving you time.

    By the way, the screenshot on the left shows summary information about the PC, which is displayed immediately after launching the utility.

    4. PC Wizard

    A powerful utility for viewing many parameters and characteristics of your PC. Here you can find program configurations, information about hardware, and even test some devices: for example, a processor. By the way, it’s also worth noting that PC Wizard, if you don’t need it, can be quickly minimized in the taskbar, occasionally blinking notification icons.

    There are also disadvantages... It takes a long time to load when first launched (about a couple of minutes). Plus, sometimes the program slows down, showing the computer's characteristics with a delay. Honestly, it gets annoying to wait 10-20 seconds after you click on any item from the statistics section. The rest is a normal utility. If you look at the characteristics rarely enough, then you can safely use it!

    By the way, some information about the computer can be found in the BIOS: for example, processor model, hard drive, laptop model, etc. parameters.

    Laptop Acer ASPIRE. Computer information in BIOS.

    By the way, what utilities do you use to view PC characteristics?

    And that's all for me today. Good luck everyone!

    For help in solving a tricky problem with the operating system or devices, it is better to immediately refer to the computer configuration. It can give responders a clue to the problem, and you will quickly receive a substantive answer instead of asking for the configuration. And such a request will inevitably follow, unless you have turned to the community of telepaths who can determine your configuration with the effort of thought.

    It's good if you know your configuration by heart. What if not? Then collecting information about the computer configuration requires a couple of minutes and a minimum of effort. Below I will tell you how to do this using Windows OS or third-party programs that can create a report that can be published on the forum.

    System information (msinfo32)

    As trivial as it may sound, information about the computer’s hardware configuration can be collected without installing third party programs. Windows OS includes a utility System Information, which has the ability to export collected data to a text file. You can launch the program from the menu Start - Programs - Standard - Service or from the window Start - Execute(or fields Search in Vista) by entering msinfo32 and pressing OK.

    After a few seconds, the program will collect information about the system and its hardware configuration. To export a report, select from the menu File paragraph Export, and then specify the file name and save folder. The report is ready! Because it contains a variety of information, the file is relatively large in size. For publication on the forum, it is better to archive it.

    In Windows XP and Vista the same result can be achieved from command line by running the command

    msinfo32 /report "<путь к папке>\config.txt"

    The report file will be created in the folder whose path you specify in the above command.

    Third Party Programs

    There is a great variety free programs to determine the hardware configuration, and it is simply impossible to describe them all. I tested several, paying attention to the following points. The program should be free, small in size, have a clear Russian interface, and be able to save a report in the form text file or web page, and, if possible, do not require installation.

    In the end, I settled on two, which won me over with the simplicity of the interface and the minimum of body movements required to create a report.

    Winaudit

    Along with the hardware configuration, the program collects various information about the operating system and installed applications. You can exclude unimportant information from the report by clicking the button Options and checking the boxes as shown in the image below.

    After this you need to press the button again Audit on the report creation toolbar. To save the report, click the button Save, and the program will offer a dozen different formats to choose from. It is better to save the report as a web page (HTML) or text file. When saved as a web page, the program creates three HTML files that can be zipped and attached to a forum post.

    System Information for Windows (SIW)

    The SIW program is about 2.2 MB in size, does not require installation (although only the English version is offered without an installer), has a well-thought-out interface, and the clarity of the information it displays deserves a very high rating. In the multilingual version, the Russian interface language can be set in the window if necessary Tools - Options. We are, however, interested in creating a report; this option is in the menu File, as shown in the figure below.

    As practice shows, the possibilities own computer satisfy users only for the time being - sooner or later they have to resort to an upgrade. Everything is banally simple - new versions of the OS and applications used, as a rule, require more and more resources. The easiest way to update your PC is to purchase a new system unit with modern hardware, which is not difficult if you have the money. However, this is not always reasonable - often to increase productivity it is enough to resort to replacing individual components.

    To choose an upgrade strategy, you need to find out what hardware is installed and understand what the computer lacks to perform better. fast work- processor power, video system capabilities, memory capacity, hard drive read/write speed, etc. But this is only one side of the coin. After purchasing a new system unit or upgrading an old one, you will need to quickly find out whether the “filling” of the system unit corresponds to what was stated at the time of purchase (without opening the unit itself, since there may be a seal on it), evaluate how much the performance has increased, and understand whether the computer is really stable works.

    Any professional assembler (and all overclocking enthusiasts) can easily solve the listed problems, since they have in their arsenal many diverse and highly specialized information and diagnostic tools. For an ordinary user to acquire similar decisions nothing, but it is still necessary to install a simple comprehensive utility to obtain information about the hardware and test the computer. These are the programs we will consider in this article.

    Retrieving Hardware Data

    Theoretically, any information diagnostic utility is capable of recognizing the “stuffing” of a system unit. However, not every program is able to identify new models of processors, video cards and other hardware (it all depends on the completeness of the database and the regularity of its updates), and the amount of information on the identified components can vary - from minimal to exhaustive.

    Among the solutions considered, the program has the most detailed information AIDA64, which knows almost everything about any hardware, including the most latest news. For example, this utility will be able to recognize Intel 510 and 320 solid-state drives and video cards that have recently appeared on the market AMD Radeon HD 6790 and NVIDIA GeForce GT 520M, five new mobile video cards of the Quadro M series from NVIDIA, etc.

    Using AIDA64, you can easily find out everything about the processor, motherboard, video card, network adapter, drives (including the latest SSDs) and input devices, multimedia, as well as ports, external connected devices and power management. The program is able to determine the type of flash memory, controller model (reading SMART information of controllers manufactured by Indilinx, Intel, JMicron, Samsung and SandForce is supported) and data transfer speed. Moreover, the utility recognizes USB controllers 3.0 and devices compatible with this new standard.

    The volume of data provided by AIDA64 is impressive - access to it is provided from a tree-like menu of sections that combine the main modules of the program. Yes, through the section Computer it is easy to obtain aggregate information about hardware components, the system and BIOS, as well as data on processor overclocking, power supply features, the state of system hardware monitoring sensors, etc. (Fig. 1).

    Rice. 1. Summary information about the computer (AIDA64)

    Other “hardware” sections provide more detailed information - so in the section System board there is detailed information about the central processor, motherboard, memory, BIOS, etc. In the section Display it is easy to obtain information related to the graphical interface of the system (in particular, information about the video adapter and monitor - Fig. 2), and in the section Multimedia learn about multimedia capabilities systems (multimedia devices and installed audio and video codecs).

    Rice. 2. Video card information (AIDA64)

    In the section Data storage provides information about hard drives and optical drives, as well as the logical and physical structure hard drives, values ​​and statuses of SMART parameters. You can find information about network adapters in the section Net, and about buses, ports, keyboard, mouse, etc. - in the section Devices. In addition, from the menu Service panel opens AIDA64 CPUID(Fig. 3), which displays data about the processor, motherboard, memory and chipset in a compact form.

    Rice. 3. AIDA64 CPUID panel

    Program SiSoftware Sandra is also very informative and allows you to get comprehensive information about almost all hardware components computer system. In particular, the utility displays summary data about the computer as a whole (Fig. 4) - that is basic information about the processor, motherboard, chipset, memory modules, video system, etc. (tab Devices, pictogram System Information).

    Rice. 4. Summary information about the computer (SiSoftware Sandra)

    Along with summary information, in the tab Devices The utility also provides more detailed information about the motherboard and processor, display and video adapter (Fig. 5), memory, buses and devices installed in them, disks, ports, mice, keyboard, sound card, etc. As for the readings of various types of monitoring sensors, then to obtain them you will need to launch not the information module, but the diagnostic module Environment Monitor(tab Tools). This module provides display of text and graphic information about processor temperature, fan speed, voltage, etc.

    Rice. 5. Video system information (SiSoftware Sandra)

    Utility PC Wizard provides access to information about the main hardware modules installed in the computer: motherboard, processor, video card, memory, I/O ports, drives, printers, multimedia devices, printers, etc. All this data is available on the tab Iron. By activating the icon on it General information about the system, you can determine in one click what exactly is available in system unit(Fig. 6) - what motherboard, what processor, etc. Other tab icons Iron will help you obtain more detailed information about components (Fig. 7); The amount of data provided is quite sufficient for the average user. In addition, through the menu Tools → Overclocking information you can find out whether any of the system components (processor, bus or memory) have been overclocked, and if so, to what limits, and also take readings from some sensors.

    Rice. 6. General information about the computer (PC Wizard)

    Rice. 7. Graphics subsystem data (PC Wizard)

    Utility HWiNFO32 It will also allow you to learn a lot of interesting things about the hardware of your computer. Immediately after starting it starts diagnostic studies and after a few seconds it displays a window System Summary with compact display of data about the processor, motherboard, memory, chipset, disks, etc. (Fig. 8). This window can also be called up while working with the utility by clicking on the button Summary. In addition, HWiNFO32 displays detailed information about the processor, motherboard (Fig. 9), memory, video adapter, etc. in the corresponding tabs - Central Processors, Motherboard, Memory, Video Adapter etc. Data on the processor, memory modules, motherboard, buses and disks is quite detailed, information on other devices is more modest. If necessary, it is easy to obtain readings from the touch sensors installed on the motherboard (temperature, voltage, etc.) by clicking on the button Sensors.

    Rice. 8. Summary information about the computer (HWiNFO32)

    Rice. 9. Video card information (HWiNFO32)

    Program Fresh Diagnosis allows you to find out information about any iron components, although not always detailed. For example, on the tab Hardware System you can find out about the motherboard, processor, cache memory, buses, BIOS, CMOS memory, etc. Section Device contains information about the video card (Fig. 10), peripheral devices (keyboard, printer, monitor, optical drives, etc.) and ports. In the section Multimedia combines data on various multimedia devices, DirectX, audio and video codecs.

    Rice. 10. Video card data (Fresh Diagnosis)

    Performance Evaluation

    Before upgrading, you need to evaluate the performance of the computer and its individual components in order to understand which hardware needs to be replaced immediately, and which components can wait until better times (after all, in a crisis, not everyone decides to completely upgrade). This is quite simple to do by conducting a couple of specific benchmark tests in the environment of a suitable diagnostic utility. After buying a new computer or upgrading an old one, it also doesn't hurt to test it to make sure that the computer has become more productive. Of course, you can feel the result of modernization during regular work in applications, but for the sake of completeness, it is better to ensure that performance improvements are achieved using tools specifically designed for this purpose.

    When conducting tests, to obtain a more objective assessment, it is better to close all applications, not use the mouse and keyboard, run the same test (in the same version of the utility) several times and focus on the average result. In addition, it is worth keeping in mind that the same synthetic tests in different utilities are implemented in a far from identical way, so the programs show different results. And you shouldn’t take the results obtained literally, since they do not reflect real performance, but only indicate the level of performance when performing strictly specific tasks. Nevertheless, conducting such testing makes it possible to understand how outdated the hardware components installed in your computer are in comparison with reference samples, as well as to evaluate the level of performance before and after the upgrade, which is what interests us in this article.

    The programs of greatest interest from a testing point of view are AIDA64 and SiSoftware Sandra, some of whose benchmarks are used even by professionals in various hardware testing techniques. The capabilities of the other utilities discussed in the article are limited in this regard, although they also provide some test functionality.

    In the program AIDA64 a wide range of benchmark tests is presented. Yes, in the section Test united 13 synthetic tests, the first four of which evaluate memory performance - read/write/copy speed (Fig. 11), and also measure latency (testing the average time the processor reads data from RAM). The remaining tests in this section evaluate processor performance in integer and floating point operations when creating archives ZIP format, when performing encryption using the AES cryptoalgorithm, etc. (tests CPU Queen, CPU PhotoWorxx, CPU ZLib, CPU AES, CPU Hash, FPU VP8, FPU Julia, FPU Mandel, FPU SinJulia). All tests compare performance with other systems, including the latest ones.

    Rice. 11. CPU performance evaluation (CPU Queen test; AIDA64)

    Via the menu Service Three more benchmark tests are available: Disk test, Cache and memory test And Monitor diagnostics. The disk test measures the performance of hard drives, solid-state drives, optical drives, and more. The cache and memory test measures the bandwidth and latency of the processor cache and memory (Figure 12). In the test Monitor diagnostics The display quality of LCD and CRT monitors is checked.

    Rice. 12. Cache & Memory Benchmark; AIDA64

    In terms of testing for a wide range of users, more interesting program SiSoftware Sandra, with which you can not only evaluate the performance of your PC in comparison with other reference computer configurations, but also test your computer to see if it needs an upgrade. Modules designed for testing the most important computer subsystems are combined on the tab Benchmarks. A whole group of synthetic tests is designed to test the processor - arithmetic and multimedia tests, multi-core efficiency tests, power efficiency tests, cryptographic performance and GPGPU cryptography. Multiple tests are responsible for testing physical drives- including a test file systems, as well as testing modules for physical disks, removable/flash drives, CD-ROM/DVD and Blu-ray optical drives. Tests are provided to test memory: test bandwidth memory, memory latency test and cache and memory test. In addition, there are tests to evaluate visualization speed and video memory performance, an audio/video encoding/decoding test, a network bandwidth test, an Internet connection speed test, etc. When testing a number of components (processor, RAM, etc.), results are displayed in comparison with reference models that are more or less similar in characteristics. At the same time, it is possible to independently select standards for comparison, including the most modern ones (Fig. 13), which is very convenient and allows you to quickly understand how outdated the hardware components installed in the computer are and which models are best to replace them with.

    Rice. 13. CPU performance evaluation
    (arithmetic test; SiSoftware Sandra)

    Two interesting test modules are presented on the tab Tools- these are modules Performance Index And Analysis and recommendations. Using the test Performance Index The overall performance of the computer is assessed during arithmetic and multimedia tests of the processor, determination of memory bandwidth, as well as testing of physical disks and a video card (Fig. 14). Reference models of components for comparison are selected by the program or the user. Module Analysis and recommendations provides a detailed analysis of the PC for possible upgrades. At the end of this analysis, the program produces a list of recommendations about which hardware components are best replaced in order to improve performance (Fig. 15), and draws attention to possible problems(for example, the difficulty of adding memory due to all slots being occupied, the processor temperature is too high (and suggests checking the cooling), etc.).

    Rice. 14. Assessing overall computer performance (SiSoftware Sandra)

    Rice. 15. Computer analysis for upgrade (SiSoftware Sandra)

    Utility PC Wizard also includes certain functionality for testing hardware (tab Test). With its help, you can clearly evaluate the overall performance of your computer (icon Global Performance) in comparison with other configurations and based on the test results, understand which of the subsystems in terms of performance significantly fall short of the selected (from a preset list) reference sample - that is, they need to be updated, and which are quite on par (Fig. 16).

    Rice. 16. Assessing overall computer performance (PC Wizard)

    PC Wizard also has a number of synthetic tests that allow you to evaluate the performance of the processor, L1/L2/L3 caches and memory in general (evaluating bandwidth, timing), as well as the video subsystem, hard drive, optical drive, etc. In particular, for The processor is equipped with basic tests Dhrystone ALU, Whetstone FPU and Whetstone SSE2, which allow us to evaluate its performance in integer and floating point operations. Test results are displayed in text and graphical form; in a number of tests, it is possible to compare the results obtained with the test results of the selected reference subsystem (Fig. 17).

    Rice. 17. CPU testing (PC Wizard)

    Utility HWiNFO32 is able to evaluate the performance of the processor (CPU, FPU, MMX), memory and hard drive during express testing (button Benchmark). Test results are presented in two versions - in numerical form and in the form of a comparative chart. The diagram contains many reference components, including modern ones, so it is easy to understand how the processor (or other component) installed in the computer is inferior in performance to modern models (Fig. 18).

    Rice. 18. CPU performance evaluation (HWiNFO32)

    Program Fresh Diagnosis has tools for determining the performance of individual system components. These are seven synthetic test modules in the section Benchmarks. With their help, you can evaluate the performance of the processor (Whetstone, Dhrystone and multimedia tests), memory, video system, hard drives, optical drives and network adapter. Test results are presented in comparison with basic systems and are presented in the form of visual histograms. True, in our opinion, there is not much benefit from them, since outdated reference systems are selected for comparison (Fig. 19).

    Rice. 19. CPU testing (Fresh Diagnosis)

    Checking your computer for stability

    Unfortunately, it is not a fact that the updated computer will be stable in operation. Why? There are many reasons - for example, the power supply may not cope well with the increased load due to the replacement of the processor or video adapter with newer models.

    If such a picture occurs, then the situation should be dealt with as soon as possible - that is, before the appearance of obvious signs instability in the form blue screen“death”, etc. This means that you need to find out the temperature of the processor, motherboard and other important hardware and understand whether any component is overheating under load, and also evaluate how the computer generally behaves under stressful conditions. This can be done by conducting stress testing.

    Most stability tests place an intensive computational load on the various blocks central processor, system memory, graphics processor and system logic set - that is, they force the computer to work under stressful conditions. Unfortunately, none of these tests by itself guarantees 100% system stability, but if the test reveals a failure in the system or was not completed, then this is a clear signal that you need to pay attention to the hardware.

    Provided in AIDA64 system stability test (available through the menu Service) is intended for stress testing of the processor (testing cores separately is allowed), memory, local disks etc. (Fig. 20). The test results are displayed on two graphs: the upper one shows the temperature of the selected components, the lower one shows the processor load level (CPU Usage) and the CPU Throttling mode. Mode CPU Throttling is activated only if the processor overheats, and it should be understood that activating this mode during testing is an alarm signal calling for attention to the operation of the cooling system. During testing, system heating is controlled by continuously monitoring the temperature.

    Rice. 20. CPU stress testing (AIDA64)

    In addition to temperature, the graphs of which are displayed on the first tab during stress testing, on other tabs the program presents other useful information - about fan speed, voltage, etc. It should be borne in mind that the system stability test in AIDA64 can last indefinitely, so it is stopped manually, making sure that everything works fine (after 30 minutes), or when suspicious results are detected (for example, severe overheating one of the components).

    Using stability test SiSoftware Sandra(tab Tools), stress testing can also be performed (Fig. 21). It will allow you to navigate the stability of the system and identify its weak points by analyzing the operation of the processor, memory, physical disks and optical drives, energy efficiency, etc. Testing lasts for a specified period of time or without taking it into account - in this case the number of times it is run is indicated selected test modules. During testing, the utility monitors the system state and stops the process if errors occur or in case of overheating (critical temperatures are set by default or manually).

    Rice. 21. Stability test (SiSoftware Sandra)

    Utility features PC Wizard in terms of testing the system for stability (test System Test Stability from the menu Tools) are limited to CPU and motherboard testing. During testing, the processor is maximally loaded and operates under such conditions for a long time, during which the temperatures of the processor and motherboard are measured at certain intervals, and the results are displayed on a graph (Fig. 22).

    Rice. 22. Testing the processor for stability (PC Wizard)

    Brief overview of utilities

    AIDA64 (Extreme Edition) 1.60

    Developer: FinalWire Ltd

    Distribution size: 11.7 MB

    Price:$39.95

    AIDA64 program - updated version well-known information diagnostic solution EVEREST, designed for diagnosing hardware and software computer resources and various computer testing. The utility can be launched from a hard drive, CD/DVD/BD disks, as well as from flash drives. The program is presented in two editions: AIDA64 Extreme Edition and AIDA64 Business Edition; the AIDA64 Extreme Edition is designed for home users. The utility is regularly updated and supports the vast majority of modern models.

    SiSoftware Sandra 2011 (Lite)

    Developer: SiSoftware

    Distribution size: 53.3 MB

    Price: free (for personal and educational use)

    SiSoftware Sandra Lite is the best of the free information diagnostic programs. It provides detailed information about the computer and any of its hardware and software components, and also allows you to test the PC for performance, the need for an upgrade, etc. The utility can be used to analyze, diagnose and test a PDA or smartphone. The program is released in several editions, for home use The free edition of SiSoftware Sandra Lite has enough capabilities. The utility is updated quite regularly and supports the vast majority of modern models.

    PC Wizard 2010.1.961

    Developer: CPUID

    Distribution size: 5.02 MB

    Price: for free

    PC Wizard is an information diagnostic utility used to diagnose hardware and software components and conduct various testing. In the basic version, the program runs from the hard drive, it can be downloaded from portable devices- for example from a flash drive (special version of Portable PC Wizard). The utility is not updated as often as we would like ( latest update from August 2010), although it supports many modern models(of course, we are not talking about new products).

    HWiNFO32 3.71

    Developer: Martin Malik

    Distribution size: 2.26 MB

    Price: for free

    HWiNFO32 is an information diagnostic utility that allows you to obtain detailed information about PC hardware and test the performance of the processor, memory and hard drives. The program is updated monthly - as a result, all new products that appear on the market are included in its database in a timely manner. There is a special portable edition of the utility that can be launched from a removable USB drive or other portable device.

    Fresh Diagnosis 8.52

    Developer: FreshDevices.com

    Distribution size: 2.08 MB

    Distribution method: freeware (http://www.freshdiagnose.com/download.html)

    Price: free (registration required; tests cannot be used in the unregistered version)

    Fresh Diagnose is an information diagnostic utility designed to obtain information about all hardware and software components of a PC, as well as testing it. The program is regularly updated and supports many modern models, but its shortcomings include a poorly thought-out interface and poor-quality Russian-language localization (therefore, it is wiser to use it with an English-language interface).

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