Core I7 question

alanwest09872

Golden Member
Aug 12, 2007
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How do I make sure that i am getting the benefit of all cores on my proccessor. I have already changed it to 8 under msconfig.

Are there any pieces of software I can download to increase my performance of my pc.
I already have the following installed

1. AVG
2. Spybot
3. Auslogics Reg defrag
4. Auslogics Duplicate file finder
5. Auslogics Disk Defrag
6. Auslogics Reg Cleaner.
7. Revo uninstall. (it cleans the reg of files when you delete a program)

Thats all I can think of at the moment so does anyone else know any trusted programs I can download to increase the performance. I would really appreciate the help.

ps. I know OC would increase the performance I left that out because I have already done it. I also dont wanna purchase any new hardware. My pc is already pretty good.

RECAP
1. How to check that all cores are present and working to full capacity under windows
a. Already turned them on under msconfig
2. What TRUSTED software can I get that will increase the performance of my pc even if its just a small amount.
a. Look at list Thats the software I already have installed and that is ran at least 3 times a week if not more. (I am over retentive lol about the performance of my pc lol)



EDIT: Not sure if this is a good idea but could we have someone create a forum post about the different kinds of software that increase performance what they do and different types then put a sticky on it. Most of the time people come here to get answers they want there pc's to run at 100 percent capability and I dont think I have ever seen anyone post what kinda good software/freeware can be download to increase performance. I would do it myself but I would mess it up horibliy lol and my spelling and grammer stink

EDIT: lol sorry for adding more just really want help. Maybe add software the people should also never download based on the amount of spyware or viruses piggybacking inside it. Also software that is knows for causing issues with different windows operating systems. Ok I promise no more editing this post My appologies to everyone.
 
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aigomorla

CPU, Cases&Cooling Mod PC Gaming Mod Elite Member
Super Moderator
Sep 28, 2005
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u'll get performance faster by overclocking, then software tweeking.
 

Hyperlite

Diamond Member
May 25, 2004
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I don't really understand...Short of hard drive management, there isn't any software that will quantifiably increase the performance of you system...Do you have some reason to think it isn't running correctly? And i don't mean to be an ass, but this is a bit of an odd question for someone with such a disgustingly fast rig to ask...
 
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n7

Elite Member
Jan 4, 2004
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Are there any pieces of software I can download to increase my performance of my pc.
I already have the following installed

1. AVG
2. Spybot
3. Auslogics Reg defrag
4. Auslogics Duplicate file finder
5. Auslogics Disk Defrag
6. Auslogics Reg Cleaner.
7. Revo uninstall. (it cleans the reg of files when you delete a program)


The best way to keep a system running well is to not install crap you don't need, like the stuff above.


AVG is a bloated POS.
Seriously, there are far better more effective virus protection appz out there if you aren't capable of keeping your system clean simply by being careful.

SuperAntispyware/MalwareBytes are generally more effective than Spybot these days; i would absolutely not be running any of these realtime though; just manually run them occasionally if you are worried.

No idea why you need Auslogics stuff...don't install unneeded crap, & you won't need to clean stuff up.

Windows has defrag built in...


I'm very much a believer in keeping as few things installed as possible.
I really don't find extra "optimizing/tuneup" appz to be very useful, as frankly, you shouldn't be crapping up the system in the first place.

I'd start with getting rid of AVG & installing MSE (Microsoft Security Essentials), setting Spybot/SuperAntispyware to manual startup, & just letting Vista/7's defrag do it's thing (or change the scheduled times if you like).
 

nyker96

Diamond Member
Apr 19, 2005
5,630
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the only software that can increase your windows 7 performance is ccleaner. it cleans up registry and makes windows run better. only one I know of. virus spyware scanner is for catching virus and spywares.
 

cmdrdredd

Lifer
Dec 12, 2001
27,052
357
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If you want to make sure the system is using all cores download and run Prime95 and make sure it loads up 8 threads.
 

Idontcare

Elite Member
Oct 10, 1999
21,118
58
91
The best way to keep a system running well is to not install crap you don't need, like the stuff above.

To build on n7's advice...there are two things you can do to your rig once the OS and apps are installed (defrag is not an app in this sense of the term, I mean the apps you actually use the computer for) and that is (1) install crap that consumes cpu cycles and slows things down, or (2) install hardware that reduces the pre-existing bottlenecks that were adding idle cycles in your cpu's processing (data starvation).

n7 addressed number 1. Number 2 is addressed by adding more ram, faster ram, replacing spindle-drives with SSD, etc.

No software, which by definition requires cpu cycles to be consumed in order to process the software's instructions, can "speed-up" your processor's ability to have more cpu cycles.

You can have software that needlessly wastes cpu cycles, AVG as mentioned already, and thus by eliminating some software on your system you will actually free up previously consumed CPU cycles and thus your rig then has one less bottleneck preventing it from processing your other apps of relevance all the faster.

The only software that I have used to actually speed up the performance of certain applications on my rig is a software-based ramdisk that could access the installed memory that was higher than my 4GB limit in my 32bit WinXP OS. By having 8GB of ram installed, the ramdisk was then able to eliminate some of the disk congestion for small file random writes that a specific application I use was experiencing and this enabled that one application to see an improvement in performance.

But that is one of those rare exceptions to the rule...the rule still stands and that rule is the less crap you install the more cpu cycles your system will have available for processing your app of interest.

The single biggest performance boost I have done for my rig lately is to uninstall Diskeeper defrag...after being a religious diskeeper customer for nearly a decade I finally got tired of the background service routinely being the source of my system lag and so I uninstalled it.

And guess what? Despite having zillions of file fragments my system is still more responsive without the defrager installed than it ever was with the defrager installed.
 

jvroig

Platinum Member
Nov 4, 2009
2,394
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OP, if you are worried that viruses and malware are slowing down your PC, then ok, maybe those software will speed-up your PC - but only because it was infected. Otherwise, all they will do is slow down your PC more.

I remember an XP install in a spare laptop. On a very spartan install, it boots fast and the desktop is usable in almost no time. Few days later, I decided I do want to connect it to the internet too, so I installed AVG, ZoneAlarm, and SpywareBlaster first.

Boot time and the time to finish loading the desktop became much slower.

And of course, more things now run in the background (those apps) so that laptop really just slowed down a bit more.

Not saying you can live without those stuff. Maybe you can, maybe you can't. That's not the point. The point is those things don't make your PC faster, so if you are installing them for the purpose of making your PC faster, that's not gonna happen. But if you are installing them for protection, then right, more power to you.

Regards.
 

elconejito

Senior member
Dec 19, 2007
607
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www.harvsworld.com
Just my $0.02...

-Dump all the software you have on that list.
-Install Microsft Security Essentials.
-Setup built-in defrag to run on a schedule.
-I am 99.999% sure you don't have to set msconfig to use all the cores because it does so automatically and I vaguely recall that manually setting it may have adverse effects (only 10% sure on that)

If you're worried about catching malware, obviously keep windows up to date. That is THE single biggest thing you can do. Without an unpatched exploit, malware usually needs some interaction from the user to infect your system. If you decide to click on that Anti-Virus 2009 button, there's no saving you anyway.

Next, run firefox with AdBlock and NoScript for your internet surfing. AdBlock is pretty unobtrusive, Noscript can be a real PITA but between those two you've blocked probably 99% of vectors into your machine. Enable ads or javascript sparingly and only on sites you trust.

Optionally, you can run SuperAntiSpyware or MalwareBytes (as has been mentioned) periodically to check for infections. Don't leave them running in real-time (also mentioned) because it will eat up CPU cycles "watching" you surf the net. Spybot was the leader for a long time, but they have been surpassed IMO by these two.

You can occasionally run Windows disk cleanup to free up space, or some program like CCleaner every so often.

As has been mentioned, Windows will run the quickest it will ever run after a clean install. Each and every piece of software you add from then on will only decrease performance. There is no way around that.

Many of those programs that claim to increase performance, just add extra CPU cycles while they "watch" your system. Usually it's just snake-oil. Like those programs that "clean up RAM", all they do is take stuff in RAM and dump it to the hard drive so you have more RAM available for the app your currently running... but anytime you load anything else up, guess what... it has to drag those files off the hard disk back into RAM, leading to a net speedup of zero. But it makes you feel good for a minute thinking "Oh, look how much free RAM I have now".

Long story short, don't have anything running in the background that isn't necessary.
 

alanwest09872

Golden Member
Aug 12, 2007
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Wow lol ok. Thanks for all your advice. I really appreciate it. I have to ask a few questions though just to clarify please forgive if there nub questions

1. The reg defrag program that I have only takes 5 min to defrag a hardrive comparied to how long it takes to defrag with windows.

2. Dont you need to defrag the regestry from what I read if its defrag then the pc will boot up quicker

3. If when you delete programs some files are left in the reg wouldnt it be better to get rid of them.

4. For bottlenecking I only run these programs about 1 a week. At 3 a.m. Wouldnt that get rid of all the bottlenecking since I'm not using the software during normal times. I know the programs are taking up Hardrive space but its only like 100mb and I have plenty to go around.

5. What is ccleaner

6. I have 3 other people using my pc. I know my roomate downloads stuff all the time. Wouldnt it be better to have an antivirus and spyware removal



Quate I don't really understand...Short of hard drive management, there isn't any software that will quantifiably increase the performance of you system...Do you have some reason to think it isn't running correctly? And i don't mean to be an ass, but this is a bit of an odd question for someone with such a disgustingly fast rig to ask...

I always get best of the best. I have a q6600 running my server with 4g of ram and 2t of free drive space. I know its overkill and stupid but I like having overkill its better to have extra of something then not enough.


Ok if I am wrong on any of my questions there please clarify. I want my pc to run as well as possible

Also Thanks for the suggestion on how to check to see if my Cores are all working. The one about Prime95. I will try that sometime today.

And If I dont need to turn on all my cores under msconfig is there any downside to me turning it on. Like would it be better for me to keep it at automatic or will I get the same performance if I leave it on 8.

Ok sorry again for all the questions. I just wanna make sure I have this right lol.
 

leexgx

Member
Nov 4, 2004
57
1
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(if you can see 8 threads in taskmanager they are working.. as long as you Not used msconfig yet)

if they are going to be using your PC make sure your account is passworded and you give them limited/standard accounts so they cant install stuff with out you been there (if its Vista or win7 make sure Full UAC is turned on, on win7 its moved one notch down move it back to the top)

the above will prevent them from installing stuff that could mess with the system (anti-virus cant help you if they are wiling to run something they do not know what it is)

you have an i7 and 12gb of ram i find it hard that your going to be able to slow that system down, i find that AVG is the worst on your list but you have an I7 (Turn off AVG daily scans its pointless all it do is wear the HDD out), the Auslogics software is OK as long as they are not running,
your Hard disk is your speed limiter in your system if you got an SSD as an boot drive (128gb or 256gb as you like to spend money) you system would be even faster

any software that says it speed your pc up is not likely going to help if tis running all the time
 
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elconejito

Senior member
Dec 19, 2007
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www.harvsworld.com
Wow lol ok. Thanks for all your advice. I really appreciate it. I have to ask a few questions though just to clarify please forgive if there nub questions

1. The reg defrag program that I have only takes 5 min to defrag a hardrive comparied to how long it takes to defrag with windows.
If you run it regularly, it doesn't take long. There is an argument to be made that some of the aftermarket ones do a "better" job of organizing the files for faster access... meh. I've found that keeping the drive less than 20-30% full has a bigger effect.

2. Dont you need to defrag the regestry from what I read if its defrag then the pc will boot up quicker
If you don't install and uninstall a ton of programs, this isn't really an issue. Ultimately, the registry is only but so big, so unless you've MASSIVELY cluttered up the registry somehow it won't make that big of a difference.

3. If when you delete programs some files are left in the reg wouldnt it be better to get rid of them.
See above.

4. For bottlenecking I only run these programs about 1 a week. At 3 a.m. Wouldnt that get rid of all the bottlenecking since I'm not using the software during normal times. I know the programs are taking up Hardrive space but its only like 100mb and I have plenty to go around.
If you run them manually (or on a schedule) then yeah it's fine. You have to be careful to not enable the real-time monitoring

5. What is ccleaner
a little program that cleans up temp files, and the like. It's very similar to the built-in Windows disk cleanup. I just throw that out there as an alternative (not necessarily better or worse).

6. I have 3 other people using my pc. I know my roomate downloads stuff all the time. Wouldnt it be better to have an antivirus and spyware removal
Like I said above... if someone clicks on that "AntiVirus 2009" button it doesn't matter what type of security you have on there, you are screwed. Period.

The best anti-virus is your behavior. If you don't trust your roomate to have good behaviour and common sense while on your computer, don't give him/her access. Yeah it's better than nothing, but if your roomie is a compulsive clicker it won't help one bit.

Look at it this way, if you scan every week on sunday night and your roommate infects your computer on monday. You've spent the whole week giving some hacker in the Ukraine all of your passwords before you "hopefully" catch it the next sunday. And the real nasty ones (like AV2009) disable your malware checkers.

And If I dont need to turn on all my cores under msconfig is there any downside to me turning it on. Like would it be better for me to keep it at automatic or will I get the same performance if I leave it on 8.

Ok sorry again for all the questions. I just wanna make sure I have this right lol.
I don't think it's "bad" per se... There's just no need for it. I vaguely recall setting this had some adverse effects in some application, but I don't recall offhand. It might just be my imagination, in which case... just ignore that.
 

ehume

Golden Member
Nov 6, 2009
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If you want to see what your cores and threads are doing, download Tmonitor from cpuid. Standard, Tmonitor gives you a view of your four cores. Add -t to your shortcut and it will show you all eight threads.
 

alanwest09872

Golden Member
Aug 12, 2007
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your Hard disk is your speed limiter in your system if you got an SSD as an boot drive (128gb or 256gb as you like to spend money) you system would be even faster

I have an ssd boot drive its the intel-m 80g one. I paid over 600 bucks for it and now it sells for 300 lol love technology
 

jvroig

Platinum Member
Nov 4, 2009
2,394
1
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I have an ssd boot drive its the intel-m 80g one. I paid over 600 bucks for it and now it sells for 300 lol love technology

I've experienced that so many times before that I've sworn off buying new tech when they're still all shiny and fresh off the fabs, so to speak. :D Last I experienced that was when 1GB USB flashdrives just came out, and I bought one for what was almost $100.00. I think it only took a year before those things became so mainstream that you could buy a 2GB flashdrive for less than that :eek: Like you said, love technology

Anyway, looking at your sig (just noticed it now) you have a blazingly fast system. Top-class processor, top-class memory, you even have an SSD boot-drive, and raptors. I mean, wow. How much is that in total, like $3000? Unless you are harboring tons of malware, you've got one of the meanest machines I've seen. A quick look at windows task manager would show you 8 CPUs (at least that's how it is in XP, I'm not sure what your OS is as I'm typing this, but I doubt they would change it), just as this Intel Atom in my netbook looks like 2 CPU's as far as the Fedora system monitor is concerned (those things always show HT = 2 real cores). You don't really need to do any more config tweaking to utilize all four cores / eight threads.

The worst thing you could do really is to add more stuff to it that you don't need. What OS are you using again? I haven't tested it myself, but if you are using Windows 7, I believe they've hardened it a lot and doesnt it come with it's own anti-malware suite already?

Regards.
 

alanwest09872

Golden Member
Aug 12, 2007
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I am using windows 7 64bit. I can encode and burn a movie in less then 7 minutes its sick.

After what everyone has told me I get the point software isnt the key and having to much can really hurt a system thanks a ton guys.