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Workstations / Desktops / Servers

Discussion in 'Technical Board' started by Nettdata, Dec 1, 2009.

  1. Rush-O-Matic

    Rush-O-Matic
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    I'm not sure where to ask this question . . .

    I know with an application, I can go to the "help" and "about" tabs to read the Serial Number for the product. But, if I can't get the application to launch, but I can read all the installed files - say from a hard drive plugged into a USB enclosure - is there a place within those files that I could read the help, about file without launching the application?

    I have a Vista Computer, and the help files I want to read are all old .hlp files, which apparently can't be read without conversion or something.

    I know this may be application specific, so for bonus explanation, read more below:
    - I got my mom a new computer. She is familiar with WordPerfect, and wants to insall that on her new machine.
    - I have an installation CD for WP Office 12, and I have an old drive that it was installed on before, but I don't have the serial number written down anywhere.
    - Yes, I know just installing OpenOffice would be easier and cheap; but, she's 75. Change is not something she (or I) handle well.
     
  2. Binary

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    The serial number isn't stored in the help files. The "About" screen is reading the serial number either out of a file stored somewhere (uncommon) or out of a key in the registry (very likely).

    Even if you did find the key, there's no guarantee that it's not stored in some kind of basic encryption/obfuscation inside the registry.

    Honestly, I'd call Corel, tell them the situation (I don't know what happened but tell them that your computer died), and see if they'll either help you with it, or issue you a new serial number. Microsoft used to issue a one time serial number replacement if you gave them your name, address and phone number (not so they can check anything, just to discourage you calling back again or leaking the number on the internet).
     
  3. scootah

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    Server admin question -

    I have a few hundred servers where I need to change the netmask from /24 to /21 to support a change. I'm just looking for an easy way to do this.

    I've used something like this in the past -

    FOR /L %I IN (2,1,254) DO netsh interface ip add address "Local Area Connection" 192.168.0.%I 255.255.248.0

    With additional passes to catch Local Area Connection 1/2/3/4/etc

    But the problem that I have is that some of our machines have multiple IP Addresses bound – IE Srv-G-03 has 192.168.0.130 and 192.168.0.131 bound to Local Area Connection 1 and 2 respectively. So if I run the above lines for those interfaces, I'll end up with the same IP Address bound to multiple interfaces which isn't an ideal situation....

    Any ideas for a better way?
     
  4. Kratos

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    Any you guys do any overclocking? I have a i5 2500k OC'd at 4.4 just from changing the multiplier. At max load my max temp is 52C. What would be a safe level? What should be my bios settings? I'm still fairly new to OCing.

     

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  5. Binary

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    Simply changing your multiplier doesn't usually do a whole lot to your temps. The CPU is crunching numbers faster, but there's no extra voltage.

    Heat problems usually arise when you have to increase the voltage in order to stabilize the overclock.

    52 degrees C is just fine, though. I think Intel throttles at 90+ degrees C - and Intel is going to force the chip to throttle before it gets damaged, so you have a lot of headroom there.
     
  6. MrPrime

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    I am not sure how much OC will do for you on that Processor.

    The i series CPUs self overclock to what ever they can handle heat wise. I've seen my processor (same as you) break the 4.4 mark without tweaking anything. But as the processor heats up (running stock cooler atm) it will slow down so that it doesn't fry.
     
  7. Binary

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    Uh.

    CPUs don't overclock by themselves. You may have a motherboard that has a feature of self-overclocking, but it has nothing to do with the CPU. Also, the CPU doesn't "slow down as it heats up." It'll start to throttle at a certain unsafe temperature, but it's not a feature you should take advantage of. If your CPU is throttling, you're shortening its life.

    Also, the i5-2500k might be the best processor on the market to overclock right now. It handles huge amounts of overclock without generating a lot of heat.
     
  8. silway

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    So I'd like to ask for help upgrading my desktop but it's been awhile since I got it and I've lost track of the specs. So I guess an initial question is how do I get the list of specs currently on my computer in a form useful for people here to evaluate it? Is there a hardware identifying utility?

    Thanks!
     
  9. joule_thief

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  10. silway

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    Perfect, thank you.

    Ok, so, I am considering either upgrading or replacing my desktop and I was hoping for some advice on whether I should focus on a couple components or just get a new rig. The computer works fine for most things but I discovered I couldn't play Deus Ex: Human Revolution without choppiness and realized I needed to upgrade to play various games and the like.

    Current specs:
    OS - Windows 7 Ultimate (x64) Service Pack 1 (build 7601)
    CPU - 2.40 gigahertz Intel Core2 Quad Q6600, 64-bit ready, Not hyper-threaded
    Board: ASUSTeK Computer INC. P5N-E SLI 1.XX
    Bus Clock: 266 megahertz
    BIOS: Phoenix Technologies, LTD ASUS P5N-E SLI ACPI BIOS Revision 0703 08/09/2007
    Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GTS (I believe 512MB)
    RAM: 4 GB (2 2GB sticks), I don't know the type, was bought about four years ago. Four possible slots for RAM on the motherboard

    I don't know the kind, but I have 1.5 TB of storage on two drives and my monitor is essentially brand new.

    I am wondering if I should look at getting a new graphics card or two? Upgrade or get more RAM? Or just get a new system from the get go? Any advice would be awesome.

    Budget is kind of variable. I'm looking for the most value per dollar in terms of increasing performance, but I'm not going to spend a thousand bucks on, say, that crazy new graphics card that just came out.
     
  11. rei

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    The Q6600 is old but is certainly still workable and wont likely be a bottleneck except at very high resolutions in the most recent of games

    Your RAM is DDR2 - do not bother upgrading it as it's dead tech.

    You SHOULD be able to run almost e verything on high in most games with a GPU upgrade - You'll want a mid-high end card (no point in spending $400 on a Geforce 680 or a Radeon 7950 or something - the CPU will become a bottleneck) but putting in a $250 Radeon 7850 or similar should keep that system performing very well in games. On that note what resolution is your monitor? It's likely one of 1920x1080, 1900x1200, or 1680x1050

    I had a 'newer' version of the Q6600 - slightly faster Q9300, and the guy I sold it to is having no problems running Deus Ex: THR on high with a three year old high end graphics card (Radeon 4890)

    Here's the cheapest 7850 on Newegg - <a class="postlink" href="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814129230" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814129230</a> - it performs around the same as the older 6950 (what I have now) and I run every game out there on the highest settings (that said I have twice your RAM and more current but by no means great processor). Remember you can transfer this to a new build later should you need to

    <a class="postlink" href="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102967" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814102967</a> this card is not as good, but its a hundred bucks less, and will be less demanding on your power supply (there's nothing in your post mentioning your PSU setup) - its not an OMG KILLER POWERFUL GPU, but it'll do most things on high.

    As the processor is getting on in the years, you can consider overclocking it - a lot of people have had great results with the Q6600, hitting 3.5+ ghz without much stress. My old Q9300 would do 3.2 without a voltage bump, and it was a notoriously difficult overclocker from that era (it was the first gen of their smaller die tech for the C2Q series)
    You'd need a better cooler though, most have had great results with the Cooler Master Hyper 212 line - I use it on my current one and got a 1.1 ghz overclock and sit at 42 C under load.
    <a class="postlink" href="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835103065</a>
    The one downside is you'll need to pull out your motherboiard or have backplate access to install it, it screws to the mobo rather than pushpins in
     
  12. silway

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    Thank you so much! I have some questions/info if you don't mind.

    Regarding RAM: I'm not sure I understand what you mean by being a dead tech. As in I can't find more DDR2 RAM to add? Is it worth getting whatever the current kind of RAM, either to add to the current RAM or replace it? Or is my motherboard incapable of it?

    Graphics Cards: Do you think the extra $100 is buying a lot of extra value between those two cards? I don't mind investing in futureproofing a little if it's worth it.

    My power supply is max output of 500W.

    Regarding Overclocking: I recall trying to do it years ago and just not managing to get it to work. How do I figure out a way to do it?

    My monitor is a ViewSonic VX2450 SERIES 24". 1920 x 1080 looks like the max in the settings.

    Thanks again!
     
  13. rei

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    500W SHOULD be fine- jusdt in case there should be a little sticker label on the side of it that tells the amperage on the 12V rail (it'll be a big table with all the numbers) can you give me the 12V rail's amperage?

    DDR2 is dead tech as its manufacturing has tapered off a bit as no modern motherboards use it. Buying more of it is a bit overpriced, coupled with the fact that if you upgrade your motherboard in the future it'll be a DDR3 board. DDR3 will not work with your motherboard / processor.


    Yes I do think $100 is worth the gap from a mid-high end to a uniltaterally upper tier video card - especially with the 1080p monitor you have. I just want to verify your PSU can handle a better graphics card before you pull the trigger.

    The Tech Report has a pretty good overclocking guide, that was actually written more or less for your archetecture (Intel Core 2)
    <a class="postlink" href="http://techreport.com/articles.x/13815" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://techreport.com/articles.x/13815</a>
     
  14. rei

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    If you do need a new PSU, the 430W earthwatts should honestly be fine for a single GPU system and its on sale now for $39 with promo code EMCNEJN33
    <a class="postlink" href="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371034" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6817371034</a>
     
  15. $100T2

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    I figure this is the best place to put this question.

    I want to build my own tower. I have the following requirements:

    Large HD space, as much as possible.
    At least 2 monitors, but preferably 3.
    DVD burner.

    Obviously, faster is better and all that, but those 3 are what I really care about. This is more because I like to multi-task and 3 screens (or, honestly with my LLI, 6 or more would be even better...) makes work/projects/whatever easier. I do not use my computer for videogames or porn, so it's not like I need some sort of ridiculous shit.

    Can you guys point me in the right direction?
     
  16. Binary

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    Budget?

    What apps do you normally run?
     
  17. $100T2

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    Budget is ~$1k for the whole tower. I do not run anything ridiculous, just stuff to write some html and all that. Teaching myself C# and SAS and Java now.

    Ideally, I would like to run touchscreen monitors as well.
     
  18. Binary

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    The multi-monitor thing complicates it a little, since you want a video card that will handle that much resolution, CPU/memory to support that much multitasking, and need a power supply to power these pieces.

    <a class="postlink" href="http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=22306265" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/Publi ... r=22306265</a>

    That might get you started? Slightly over budget. 3 TB of storage, plus a SSD for your OS/application drive. You could eliminate the SSD for budget reasons but they sure are nice...
     
  19. rei

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    Hard drives are cheap and you can accomodate more than one of them, find a Western Digital black in the size you want and buy 1-6 of them depending on your budget and storage needs.

    I'd recommend sticking to two monitors to avoid a driver or adaptor headache, and because monitors are expensive.
     
  20. $100T2

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    I currently run two monitors, my regular laptop, plus a secondary monitor. I'm thinking dual 27" monitors would probably be good enough.

    What exactly is an SSD, and why is it worth having?

    Now, here's where you are all going to hate me:

    Can I have some sort of central storage that is accessible from all our computers/smartphones? So, either make this tower I'm building the main storage, or maybe make a shared drive?