So, I've got this old PC that I'm hoping to keep running for a bit longer. Processor: i5 2500K Motherboard: ASUS P8H61-M LX2 RAM: 16GB DDR3 Graphics Card: GeForce GTX 750
Is it actually doable to upgrade the graphics card on this setup? I was tossing around the idea of grabbing a GTX 1660 Super or maybe an RTX 2060, though I have this nagging feeling that the latter might just be too much for this specific configuration to handle?
So, since I'm planning on keeping my old HDD just for extra storage, I think I'll go ahead and pick up an M.2 SSD instead. Do you guys have any specific recommendations for a 128GB drive? Personally, I don't think I'll need anything larger than that just to run Windows.
wearymason4 said:From what I recall about that Dell Inspiron, there's an empty 2280 M.2 slot meant for an M.2 SATA SSD, but they don't mention anything about supporting an M.2 NVMe SSD...
If I'm reading these slot markings correctly, my M slot should actually be NVMe, but let me post a photo so you can see for yourselves. And from what I've gathered, it looks like it can fit 40, 60, or even 80mm drives. https://postimg.cc/DJnzQzV1
Hey everyone. So, I've got this older Dell Inspiron i3 6100U 8GB DDR4 RAM GTX 950M 1TB HDD I know this laptop is pretty much on its last legs, but I was wondering if swapping in an NVMe M.2 128GB SSD and installing Windows on that would actually make a noticeable difference? My plan is to just leave the old HDD in there to handle all my programs and general storage.
When I talk about improvements, I specifically mean fixing the issue where my HDD constantly hits 100% usage while I'm playing Insurgency: Sandstorm, which causes these massive frame drops. The game actually runs quite well at 60fps, but then the frames just tank out of nowhere because of the drive.
IP Address Hey everyone. I’ve been using my phone's mobile hotspot to get my PS4 online, but I was wondering if there is any way to manually set a static IP address on my phone because I keep getting stuck with NAT Type 3, and I'm really hoping to bump that up to a NAT Type 2. Thanks.
wearymason4 said:It won't be an issue if it's just a few feet away. If there was a lightning strike, the surge likely hit the device through the electrical wiring or the phone lines if they're running above ground. For a PC, you really could have just gone with a LAN card, which would've been way cheaper than a PCI Wi-Fi card. I’d honestly never use those internal PCI Wi-Fi cards; if you grab a USB Wi-Fi adapter with a long cable, you can actually move the adapter higher up to get better range, plus you don't deal with any signal loss like you would with coaxial cables.
The connection goes through the phone line into the router and then straight into the PC. I mean, I could have used a wired setup, but installing a Wi-Fi card just seemed like the easier path at the time. It’s definitely not too late for me to run some cables through the conduits and just swap in a LAN card if I need to.
Jack Cook7 said:That’s probably true, though most Wi-Fi cards in a PC usually come with an external antenna.
Look, after more than 35 years working in networking, I’ve become incredibly conservative about how things are done. I’d much rather spend a full month doing the job right—running cables properly so I can have total peace of mind for the next twenty years—than deal with constant headaches because something isn't up to code. If you take one user with five different devices and multiply that by a hundred, the math becomes pretty obvious. You need Cat5e cable, proper conduit, grounding, surge protection, and lightning protection.
The problem is that sales teams always push for the cheapest possible fix. It gets to a point where the tech guys can do nothing but quit and walk away.
It's why sales ends up basically selling thin air with 4G and 5G; they're just creating even bigger problems down the road.
I agree with you that running a cable is the better way to go, but I’m not sure if it's actually smart to run internet cables through the same conduits used for electrical wiring??
wearymason4 said:I see some users out there acting like Wi-Fi is some kind of magic bullet that can actually replace a hardwired LAN connection, or they just flat-out refuse to deal with the sight of a single cable running across their floor. 😢 I’m convinced the WiFi on the PC is the primary culprit here because those wireless adapters have antennas that are basically boxed in from every angle, which naturally leads to much weaker signal strength compared to other standalone WiFi devices. I actually suggested they try plugging the PC directly into the router with a LAN cable to see if that stabilizes things... but honestly, it looks like nobody is taking that advice.
The real problem is that I just can't do it. Like I mentioned in my previous reply, the thing had a direct encounter with a lightning strike. I'm going to swap in a new card that supports both connection methods.
Nicholas King said:Why on earth would anyone bother connecting a PC wirelessly to a router that’s sitting just a single meter away?
Because my PC actually took a direct hit from lightning, so the onboard networking on the motherboard is totally fried; I'm running everything through a PCI card instead, which worked perfectly fine for a little while before all these issues started cropping up.
Jack Cook7 said:Just disconnect the PC, the Smart TV, and any laptops running on Wi-Fi; honestly, the Wi-Fi isn't doing you any favors here.
I’m still not entirely sure if it’s just the PC dropping the connection. If it's strictly an isolated issue with the PC, then we're likely looking at a faulty network card. However, if everything else is losing connection too, then the culprit is definitely in your router or WAP settings—maybe something like having too few IP addresses assigned via DHCP, which causes a conflict with the PC.
If it’s only the PC acting up, then all my other devices are working perfectly fine.
wearymason4 said:If everything is within a meter of each other, you really should have just wired up your Smart TV, PC, PlayStation, or maybe even a laptop; it would be way better because they wouldn't interfere with one another, and they certainly wouldn't be getting in the way of your other WiFi devices. The thing is, your router might not even be able to "hear" the WiFi adapter in your PC if that PC is tucked away under a desk, sandwiched between a wall and the computer case itself.😢
But look, the real headache is that the computer actually recognizes the network and successfully connects to it, so for a little while, everything looks fine—but then after a bit, the connection stays active but the actual internet access just drops out, and then it eventually comes back, and it just keeps looping like that forever.
wearymason4 said:You haven't mentioned what kind of Wi-Fi adapter you're using, what router it's connecting to, how far away it is, or if there are walls in the way. Plus, are there other devices nearby using the Wi-Fi, like a Smart TV? What OS are you running on your Windows 10 PC? ...and why are you even messing with the IP settings when everything should just work on automatic? Why on earth would you turn it on instead of disabling "power save" for the Wi-Fi adapter? It’s not like it's a laptop where you're worried about draining the battery overnight.
Router: Ubee EVW32C Wi-Fi card: TP-Link TL-WN881ND PCI Express There aren't any walls; everything is basically sitting right next to it. My Smart TV, PlayStation 4, laptop, and a few phones all work perfectly fine without a single hiccup. Nothing changes even when I unplug them from the router. The computer is running Windows 10. And I already turned that power saving feature off because, again, this isn't a laptop.
Hey everyone! So, I’m running into an issue on my PC—just to be clear, it’s only happening on this specific machine
Basically, my Wi-Fi keeps cutting in and out all by itself. There are even times when I boot up the computer and the Wi-Fi doesn't even turn on at all, forcing me to go through the whole restart process just to get back online. Most of the time, the status just says "Not connected, secured."
I've already tried resetting the IP, updating the card drivers, and I even went into the settings to make sure Windows isn't turning off the card to save power, but nothing seems to have worked.
Megan Thomas5 said:The BIOS keeps resetting whenever there’s no power running to it. It’s possible your CMOS battery finally kicked the bucket, which would explain why everything reverts to default settings every single time you unplug. Batteries can be weird like that. Just keep it plugged in and let it go into sleep mode instead of shutting down completely.
I’m honestly at a loss for words here because, out of nowhere, it’s working perfectly fine on battery power now! I haven't actually changed anything else besides switching the BIOS setting over to Legacy, which was the only thing that finally allowed me to get it up and running.
I’ve been thinking a lot about what actually constitutes a "reward" in this life, especially when you're grinding away at a job that feels like it's sucking the soul right out of you. We spend all this time chasing these massive milestones—the big promotion, the corner office, the huge year-end bonus—but honestly, those things feel hollow once they actually arrive. I was reading some stuff online the other day, and it really hit me how much we overlook the small, quiet victories. It’s not always about the grand gesture; sometimes the real reward is just finally finishing a project on time without losing your mind, or having that one perfect cup of coffee in the morning before the chaos starts. I know Dennis Patel7 mentioned something similar a while back about finding value in the process rather than just the end goal, and I think he's absolutely right. If we only allow ourselves to feel successful when we hit those giant peaks, we're going to spend ninety percent of our lives feeling like failures. We have to learn to celebrate the little wins along the way, otherwise, what are we even doing? Dennis Patel7 says: Maybe try running a battery calibration; honestly, that might just solve the whole thing for you.👍
How does one even go about doing that? Honestly, I’ve never even heard of that being a possibility before.
It’s been about three years now. I'm leaning towards thinking the battery is the culprit, though it feels a bit weird because it was holding a decent charge—around two hours—and then just suddenly went completely dead on me. On top of that, my 🤔 has also been reset.
Update: I switched the BIOS settings over to legacy mode and it actually worked! The only thing left is that it still won't power up without the charger plugged in—if I unplug it while it's running, the whole thing just dies on me.
Well, I’ve run into another snag. When I plug it in, the screen shows it's charging, but then after just two seconds, it jumps straight to saying it's fully charged. If I try to power it up without the charger, absolutely nothing happens—it won't even turn on. Even if the battery were totally dead, I wouldn't see that low battery warning on the screen anymore; it’s just completely unresponsive.
I'm going to go ahead and try a few different things to see if I can troubleshoot this, and I'll let you guys know how it goes.