Microsoft this week announced that the Windows 10 release date is July 29th. Here’s a look at how to test your system to see if it can run the upgrade. Update: Windows 10 has been out long enough now that most modern PCs are going to be fine running the new OS. In fact, most if not all PCs for consumers will come with it preinstalled. Windows 7 and 8.1 Reach End of Long-Term SupportThis article is meant for older computers that were running Windows 7 or 8.1 — both of which are no longer supported by Microsoft. Microsoft this week announced that the Windows 10 release date is July 29th, and it also pushed out the Windows 10 upgrade app to all Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users. This utility allows you to reserve your Windows 10 upgrade. But first, you might want to check if your computer can run the new version. While some people are annoyed by the upgrade utility, it does have more value than just reminding you about Windows 10 and reserving your free copy of Windows 10. The minimum system requirements (listed below) are essentially the same as Windows 8.1, of course, the minimums are just that, and you’ll want more horsepower under the hood.
Can My Computer Run Windows 10?To get a definitive answer if your current computer can handle Windows 10, you need to run the Get Windows 10 app. You know, that annoying icon that just started showing up a few weeks ago. Click the Windows flag icon you see on the system tray. If you don’t see the Get Windows 10 app icon, read our article: How to Make the Windows 10 Upgrade Icon Show Up. By the way, if you want to remove the GWX icon after you’ve reserved your copy, or are just annoyed by it, it can be deleted. When it launches, click the hamburger menu in the upper-left corner. That gives you more options to learn more about the upgrade, and it also will scan your computer and let you know if it can run Windows 10 and what is or isn’t compatible. Click the Check your PC link below Getting the upgrade to start the scan. After you’ve run the utility, you will see a new message Your PC is ready. In the example below, everything on my main computer is ready for the upgrade. But if there is an issue with one of your components or software apps, that will be listed, and you can look into it further. If you have other questions or concerns about the upgrade, check out our article: Your Windows 10 Questions Answered. Are you ready for the Windows 10 upgrade? Leave a comment below and let us know, or for a more in-depth conversation about it, check out the Windows 10 Forums.
System information tools are software programs that gather all the important, but hard to come by, details about the hardware in your computer system. This sort of data is very helpful to someone helping you with a problem with your computer. Miguel Co / LifewireThere are other great uses for these tools, too, like providing data on the type of RAM you have so you buy the right upgrade or replacement, creating a list of hardware when selling a computer, keeping tabs on the temperature of your important components, and lots more.
Piriform, creators of the popular CCleaner, Defraggler, and Recuva programs, also produce Speccy, our favorite free system information tool. The program's layout is nicely designed to provide all the information you need without being overly cluttered. A summary page gives you brief, but very helpful information on things like the operating system, memory, graphics, and storage devices. A more detailed look at each category is organized in their respective sections. Our favorite feature is the ability to send system specs from the program to a public web page to easily share with others. Exporting to a file, as well as printing, are additional options, making saving a list of all your hardware details really easy. This tool should work fine for all versions of Windows.
Another tool that shows detail on a huge variety of components is PC Wizard. It's easy to save a report detailing any or all parts of the program, and you can even copy out single lines of data to the clipboard. Out of all the system information tools we've used, this one is certainly the most informative. It includes not only the basic and advanced information on internal and external hardware, but also useful operating system details. PC Wizard can be installed on all versions of Windows, which includes Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP.
ASTRA32 is another free system information tool that shows amazing detail on numerous devices and other parts of the system. There are several categories to separate the information it gathers on hardware, like that of a motherboard, storage, and monitor information. A system summary section is perfect for seeing an overview of all the hardware and operating system details. Also, a dedicated section for live monitoring is included to show the temperature and current usage of various hardware components. ASTRA32 works as a demo program, but it doesn't really mean much because it still provides lots of useful information. It can be used on Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, XP, 2000, and Windows Server 2008 and 2003.
HWiNFO shows nearly the same details as these other free system information tools, like for the CPU, motherboard, monitor, audio, network, and other components. A sensor status window is included to monitor the current and average speed/rate of the memory, hard drive, and CPU. HWiNFO can also run a benchmark against these areas. Report files can be created for some or all of the system components, and you can also set up automatic reporting that sounds an alarm when a sensor exceeds a particular threshold. Unfortunately, we found that this program doesn't include as much information as some of the other applications from this list. Although, the data it does display is still very helpful. It runs on Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, and older ones. There's an installer, portable edition, and a download for DOS.
Belarc Advisor isn't as detailed as some of these other free system information tools. However, basic information on the operating system, processor, motherboard, memory, drives, bus adapters, display, group policies, and users are shown. In addition to the above, a unique feature is the ability to list all the security updates Windows is missing. You can also view software licenses, installed hotfixes, program usage frequency, and version numbers for select Microsoft products. Results of a scan open in a web browser and can be viewed on a single web page. The program is quick to download and doesn't try to install additional programs during setup, which is always nice. Both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP are supported.
Free PC Audit includes all the features you'd expect to find in any system information utility, including the ability for a report to be saved as a simple text file. For example, you can see information on all the hardware, like the motherboard, memory, and printers. In addition, it displays the Windows product key and ID, a list of installed software, and all the currently running processes, among many other things. Free PC Audit is completely portable, making it perfect for a flash drive. We tested it in Windows 10, 8, and 7, but it should also work fine in Windows 11 and older versions.
MiTeC System Information X is a free system information software program that's licensed for both private and commercial use. The tool is portable, easy to use, and can create a summary report. Among many other categories, you'll find all the standard details like audio, network, and motherboard, information. More specific information can also be shown, such as drivers and processes. The tabbed interface makes MiTeC System Information X really easy to navigate through if you're viewing more than one report at once. This program is said to be compatible with Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, XP, and 2000, as well as with Windows Server 2019 through 2008.
EVEREST Home Edition is a portable free system information tool that scans very quickly and organizes everything it finds into several categories, including one for a summary page. All the standard hardware details are included, like that of the motherboard, network, storage devices, and display, with the ability to create an HTML report of everything. You can create favorites to have instant access to any hardware component from the menu bar. Unfortunately, this program is no longer being developed. This means if it's still not being developed in the future, the new hardware devices that are released will likely not be recognized by the program. Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP users can install this program.
SIV is another free system information tool for Windows that runs as a portable program (i.e., no need to install). In addition to USB, hard drive, adapter, and basic OS details, SIV also includes a live sensor to show CPU and memory utilization. The interface is a bit hard to look at—the details are too difficult to read. However, if you have the patience to look closely enough, you'll find all the information you'd expect. It's designed for Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, XP, and 2000, plus older versions like Windows 98 and 95. It also works with Windows Server 2022 and some older versions.
ESET SysInspector is dead simple to use because of its search utility and well-organized interface. Results can be filtered to show information based on a risk level between one and nine. You can find basic information like available memory, system uptime, and the local time. More advanced details include things like environment variables, installed software, hotfixes, and an event log. This program can also view a list of running processes and current network connections, active and disabled drivers, and a list of important registry entries and system files. We like this tool because it is the only program in this list that is centered around providing detail regarding the security of the computer. However, it doesn't show exhaustive details like the higher rated system information tools in this list. It should work in 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, XP, and 2000. Server operating systems are also supported, including Windows Home Server.
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