Upgrading to dual core processor w/ Windows Vista?

[GoodShepherd]

Hello, a few months ago I knew nothing about computers, until I downloaded a game and was forced to teach myself in order to get it to run as smoothly as possible.

I upgraded the RAM and purchased a new graphics card, and now I am looking to upgrade from a single core processor to dual core. I have quite a few questions about this.

Is it even possible to upgrade my computer's processor to dual core, or do/should I just buy a new computer?

Does my computer support dual core?

How much will this increase gaming preformance?

+ Anything else I should know, like recommendations, what won't work, anything that might give me trouble while/after installing the new processor...



Here is my computer:

Windows Vista Home Premium
Model: T3642

Manufacturer: eMachines

PROCESSOR: AMD Athlon 64 Processor 4000+ 2.60GHz
RAM: 2.5 GB
GRAPHICS CARD: Nvidia GeForce 9500 GT

32 bit operating system


Here is the game I am looking to run as smoothly as possible: Left 4 Dead 2 System Requirements - PC Game Left 4 Dead 2 System Specs

As you can see it is recommended that your computer has a dual core processor.



Thank you deeply for any help, I apologize if anything is unclear, I am not as familiar with computers as I'd like to be- hopefully I don't sound like too much of a fool.

Cheers

[RacerX]

well, technically you should be able to, going off this info:
as the dual core version uses the same board.

eMachines T3642 - Full Review - Reviews by PC Magazine


does your board look like this:
WinFast MCP61SM2MA-RS2H Mainboard

If so, you could probably do an Athlon 64 x2 6000+ 3.00Ghz

performance wise, they say about 30% maybe more.
some places say this cpu will give you up to 80% "improvement" but they don't say compared to what or for what apps.

cost, about $65-$120, depending on if you have a cooler for it already. still probably cheaper to get the OEM cpu, and add a nice cooler to it. compuvest has them for cheap, OEM.


can't say for sure if the BIOS would need an update or not.

do a bit further digging going off the above.

it's that, or start saving now for something new. depending on how long ago you did the ram and video, i would have considered just looking into upgrading then.

this should give you a decent little upgrade though, and give you time to start a new computer fund.

Oh, one more thing, backup all your stuff before doing it.
you never know when something could go wrong, plus its always a good idea to have stuff backed up anyway.

[GoodShepherd]

Wow, thanks for all that. An Athlon 64 x2 6000+ 3.00Ghz is better than what is recommended for the one particular game I have my eye on, and for the price you gave me I can easily afford it. I still have quite a bit of research to do.

And yes, I very recently upgraded the RAM and video card. I also appreciate you telling me about being sure to back up all my stuff. You've likely saved me a lot of trouble.

I was wondering though, after I install the new processor, would any part of this process result in me basically losing all of my stuff (installed programs, pictures, ect)? Of course I would have it all backed up and could re-install everything, but I'd just like to know what to expect.

Thanks again

[JLK03F150]

I think Win XP used to have an occasional problem upgrading from an AMD single to dual core, but the problem was Windows didn't see the 2nd core. There were never any data loss issues. With Vista, the upgrade should be pretty much Plug & Play.

Here's a couple slower CPUs if you're in the USA.
Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

[GoodShepherd]

Thanks for the reassurance JLK. That's good to know.

And thanks for the link, but unfortunately I'm in Canada.

[RacerX]

I was wondering though, after I install the new processor, would any part of this process result in me basically losing all of my stuff (installed programs, pictures, ect)? Of course I would have it all backed up and could re-install everything, but I'd just like to know what to expect.

Thanks again

welcome.

it shouldn't be a problem, since you aren't messing with the hard drive, but it is always good to back things up, especially before changing hardware, in case somehow you don't ground yourself and zap the board or some component.

basically once you swap out CPU's, Vista will recognize it it and adjust the cpu driver from uniprocessor to multiprocessor automatically. You can either check the device manager, or open task manager, which should show 2 CPU's instead of 1, to confirm it recognizes it properly.

since you recently did ram and video, it may tell you that hardware has changed and it needs to reactivate itself (re-register licence key), so no biggie, let it do that.

for a more detailed approach, you could do the following:

Go into the BIOS and write things down, or better yet, just take a camera and take snapshots of each screen, then do a shutdown and reset the CMOS.
Swap out CPU's, then boot up and go back into the BIOS and adjust any settings that may need changing, such as com ports, boot order, etc.

though not necessary, when swapping a CPU i like to reset the BIOS so it is fresh and at default with the ram and CPU.

even if you don't want to reset it, i'd still recommend snapshotting all the screens in there, just in case the CPU install does go bad somehow and you end up having to reset the CMOS for the old CPU.



the probability is, you could just turn it off, swap the CPU, boot into Vista, let it see the new CPU, maybe reactivate the key if needed and be running 100% without problems, but i like to cover my bases "just in case".

[JLK03F150]

Sadly newegg.ca doesn't have any AM2 socket CPUs in stock, only AM2+ (not sure if your board supports these though) and AM3.

[GoodShepherd]

welcome.

it shouldn't be a problem, since you aren't messing with the hard drive, but it is always good to back things up, especially before changing hardware, in case somehow you don't ground yourself and zap the board or some component.

Again, good to know.

basically once you swap out CPU's, Vista will recognize it it and adjust the cpu driver from uniprocessor to multiprocessor automatically. You can either check the device manager, or open task manager, which should show 2 CPU's instead of 1, to confirm it recognizes it properly.

This is simple enough, I understand everything here.

since you recently did ram and video, it may tell you that hardware has changed and it needs to reactivate itself (re-register licence key), so no biggie, let it do that.

Simple enough.

Go into the BIOS and write things down, or better yet, just take a camera and take snapshots of each screen, then do a shutdown and reset the CMOS.
Swap out CPU's, then boot up and go back into the BIOS and adjust any settings that may need changing, such as com ports, boot order, etc.

To view the BIOS screen, I pause during start up, correct? Anyways, getting that information shouldn't be a huge problem. Why do I need to reset the CMOS, though? What dose this do?

though not necessary, when swapping a CPU i like to reset the BIOS so it is fresh and at default with the ram and CPU.

What are the advantages of this?

the probability is, you could just turn it off, swap the CPU, boot into Vista, let it see the new CPU, maybe reactivate the key if needed and be running 100% without problems, but i like to cover my bases "just in case".

Sounds good. You've been a great help, and thanks in advance if you decide to answer my new questions.

Cheers

[RacerX]

When it first boots up, it should tell you what key to press. either delete, F1, or another key, not sure off hand for an emachine.

as for why i like to reset the CMOS, in simple terms, occasionally people have run into a problem where they put in a new CPU, that uses a different multiplier or fsb speed, and what can happen is that the board tries to run it at the current setting for the old CPU, which could possibly cause the CPU to run out of spec and cause booting issues.

usually the BIOS can figure it out, but nonetheless, just an added step.

you can probably just "go for it" and if it acts up, do the reset and it would read the default multiplier and run it accordingly. i'm just throwing in the troubleshooting stuff just in case, but i think you'll be fine.

[GoodShepherd]

Ah, that explains it. I'm more confident now about this, should be a little easier for when I go to the retailer.

Thanks a lot!