Let's run Win10 on really really old hardware

Page 67 of 105 FirstFirst ... 1757656667686977 ... LastLast

  1. Posts : 3,505
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit 21H1 (May 2021 build 19043.1083)
       #661

    If you have a spare disk, replace the laptop's disk and try a clean Windows 10 v1909 installation (format), do not upgrade from older build. It might work, you never know. in that case backup all your data from original disk and then format and clean install v1909. Once all drivers (including graphics) have been installed it will be faster than your old installation. Been there, done that.
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 1,935
    Windows 7 Home Premium x64
       #662

    spapakons said:
    PS: We sell such refurbished laptops and we even install Windows 10 64-bit on them. Of course we first maximize the RAM to 4GB to be as fast as possible. In some cases we replace the original mechanical 2.5" SATA hard disk with a 2.5" SATA SSD to achieve the maximum possible performance that laptop can provide. It is really fast and you can use it for office work, social networks, YouTube and Netflix at reasonable resolutions (480p or 720p). You can even play some casual games (not very graphics demanding). If you have one such laptop, don't discard it! Maximize RAM, replace the disk with an SSD and you will be amazed! If there is no HDMI output, you can use a VGA-to-HDMI adapter to connect at your TV or projector.
    installing SATA based SSDs is only possible with either late 2006 or 2007 laptops that already had or used to have a SATA based HDD

    this will not be possible for a few users (like bobjoe who has an old 2006 laptop - maybe early 2006 model) that have even older machines that uses the older PATA/IDE/EIDE interface and so no SATA based devices could be used there

    good news is there are some SSD drives available in the older PATA/IDE (not SATA) form being sold

    and ditch the v1909 version and upgrade to the v2004/20H1 release coming around end of May (possibly TH May 28)
    2004/20H1 seems to run faster than 1909, even on my old 2007 Dell laptop
      My Computers


  3. Posts : 3,505
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit 21H1 (May 2021 build 19043.1083)
       #663

    Of course, to install a standard 2.5" SATA SSD the laptop should accept 2.5" SATA disks. If it is older, there are some very rare 2.5" IDE SSDs but cost too much that you rather buy a new laptop instead. Another option is a M.2 to 2.5" IDE adapter that converts a standard M.2 SSD to a 2.5" IDE disk, but this is not cheap as well and you will also have to buy the SSD. In such old laptops with 2.5" IDE disk is not worth any upgrade, just replace it with a newer refurbished model that accepts 2.5" SATA SSDs and DDR2 or faster RAM.
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 423
    Windows 10
       #664

    1909 is good. I have it running on a netbook with 2gb ram and atom processor (with an ssd and transparency turned off so it’s nippy). Also on a 10 year old HP pavilion. That does have an i5 processor and 8gb ram though. No issues.

    Not sure who the original query was from but the combination of max ram possible, an ssd, turn off transparency settings and uninstall one drive. One drive really slows it up - running away.

    If no ssd possible then you can get some good hard drives that are reasonable speed. If it runs on an atom processor it should run on most. Wouldn’t do it with less than 2gb ram though.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 2,177
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit v22H2
       #665

    Hazel123 said:
    1909 is good. I have it running on a netbook with 2gb ram and atom processor (with an ssd and transparency turned off so it’s nippy). Also on a 10 year old HP pavilion. That does have an i5 processor and 8gb ram though. No issues.
    Not sure who the original query was from but the combination of max ram possible, an ssd, turn off transparency settings and uninstall one drive. One drive really slows it up - running away.
    If no ssd possible then you can get some good hard drives that are reasonable speed. If it runs on an atom processor it should run on most. Wouldn’t do it with less than 2gb ram though.
    I spent countless hours searching for drivers for my 2004 laptop but found none. The few drivers that worked were only the basic ones from Microsoft. If I looked at the Device Manager there were numerous yellow ?s and red Xs for non working or malfunctioning hardware.

    The discrete graphics chip was from Nvidia but there was no driver available except the basic one with Windows. The display was 1280x800 but could only show 1024x768 plus there was no hardware acceleration.

    The laptop had 2GB RAM but this was really not enough. With minimal RAM and no hardware graphics acceleration the laptop was really slow. Tweaking the settings helped but just barely.

    My laptop has both wired and wireless networking but they were of no use without working drivers.

    Like I have said before the most important thing to consider are drivers for your computer that will work with Windows 10. The dividing line seems to be computers build around 2006. Most computer build before that will probably not work with Windows 10. Most computer build after that will probably work with Windows 10. Also having 2 or more core CPUs and at least 2 GB RAM (preferably 4 GB RAM) will also help insure your computer will work satisfactorily with Windows 10.
      My Computers


  6. Posts : 3,505
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit 21H1 (May 2021 build 19043.1083)
       #666

    MisterEd said:
    I spent countless hours searching for drivers for my 2004 laptop but found none. The few drivers that worked were only the basic ones from Microsoft. If I looked at the Device Manager there were numerous yellow ?s and red Xs for non working or malfunctioning hardware.The discrete graphics chip was from Nvidia but there was no driver available except the basic one with Windows. The display was 1280x800 but could only show 1024x768 plus there was no hardware acceleration. The laptop had 2GB RAM but this was really not enough. With minimal RAM and no hardware graphics acceleration the laptop was really slow. Tweaking the settings helped but just barely.My laptop has both wired and wireless networking but they were of no use without working drivers.Like I have said before the most important thing to consider are drivers for your computer that will work with Windows 10. The dividing line seems to be computers build around 2006. Most computer build before that will probably not work with Windows 10. Most computer build after that will probably work with Windows 10. Also having 2 or more core CPUs and at least 2 GB RAM (preferably 4 GB RAM) will also help insure your computer will work satisfactorily with Windows 10.
    As I have said in previous posts, for old machines that no Windows 10 drivers are available, try Windows 8 or 7 or Vista drivers. You can use a utility such as Aida64 or Speccy to see exactly what hardware you have and then find drivers. Or you can use a utility such as Snappy Driver Installer to automatically find and install all the missing drivers for you. I personally avoid automatic utilities like Snappy because I want to have more control over the version of driver and the type (official or Microsoft) is installed for each device. Also avoid updating all the drivers (blue color in Snappy), install only the missing drivers (green color) because in some laptops updating the chipset drivers can cause BSOD if there are not 100% compatible with your model.
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 9
    Windows 10 x64 1511 (Threshold 2 10586.36)
       #667

    Just a heads up to anyone else with old laptops with the QM57 chipset like Dell Latitude e6410 and e6510.

    I was given three of each unit today, 8GB RAM with Linux on them and the latest A17 BIOS. Strangest thing...each unit could boot WinPE 8, Linux, and pass memory diags no problem but attempting to boot WinPE 10 or Windows 10 install media would result Bug Check 0xA IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL if booted UEFI or a black hange screen if booted BIOS mode.

    As soon as I swapped out the PC3L sodimms for old PC3 sodimms then WinPE 10 and Windows 10 install media booted no problem. It didn't matter if the dimms were PC3-8500, PC3-12800, single rank, or dual rank...They just had to be the old 1.5V PC3 dimms in order for Windows 10 to work. Happy upgrading old hardware all!
      My Computer


  8. Posts : 13,896
    Win10 Version 22H2 Pro and Home, Win11 Pro and Home
       #668

    spapakons said:
    I had installed Windows 8 32-bit in an Acer Aspire One netbook with similar hardware. The only issue was that the modern Metro start screen would not work at the native 1024x600 screen resolution. I could only use it in desktop mode with only desktop applications. That was until I used a Registry hack that enabled 1024x768 resolution squeezed at 1024x600 to fit the screen. I then could access the Metro start screen and any modern Windows app. I believe running Windows 10 is even better on these netbooks. If the disk is a 2.5" SATA you can replace it with an SSD and be much faster.
    I had to restore 4 of the Latitude E6410 that came off a company network [given to a church] except they were disconnected without logging off the network, Windows 7 and couldn't remove the password. Fortunately they still had the Win7 COA and I had a Dell disc I used to reinstall Win7 then was able to Upgrade to Win10, 3 are still running with latest Version 1909, don't know where the 4th is now [some personnel changes in the church]. Two have 4GB and 1 has 8GB, specs as shown on Crucial US | DRAM, Solid State Drive (SSD) & Memory Upgrades. I have to figure out what a lady did with a new Router and one of the Notebooks tomorrow [she's a disaster].
      My Computers


  9. Posts : 3,505
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit 21H1 (May 2021 build 19043.1083)
       #669

    I can relate... be patient.
      My Computer


  10. Posts : 8
    Win7-x64
       #670

    Please view this page and you wiil find something interesting about this topic
    Running Win10 by Intel s478 CPU Now And Maybe Older CPU In The Future | My Digital Life Forums
      My Computer


 

  Related Discussions
Our Sites
Site Links
About Us
Windows 10 Forums is an independent web site and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation. "Windows 10" and related materials are trademarks of Microsoft Corp.

© Designer Media Ltd
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 12:25.
Find Us




Windows 10 Forums