Windows Operating System Hardware Standard

I made a YouTube video after I done a Asus PC upgrade so I decide to make a separate video to understand more about the Windows OS Hardware Standard.

What is Windows OS Hardware Standard?

Windows Operating System Hardware Standard is the term I come up with since 2014 when Windows XP retired and using the recommended/average hardware specifications when running Windows OS.

Why I come up with the term 'Windows OS Hardware Standard"?

The standards is based on PC which are long term investments and becoming future-proof. Future-Proof is refer as hardware PC or Servers has long term sustainability which usually lasts 10 years. More then 10 years if the PC taken care of and the condition. Also run on new Operating System such as Windows 7, 8 or 10 by upgrading the motherboard to the recommended specifications or usually maximum CPU and RAM performance on the motherboard. Also when I refurbish PC I make sure the hardware is worth upgrading or just dispose to recycle.

Understanding and the story of the OS Standard

Beginning:

I am going into details to this may be a long read on how this came up:

I done this PC Technician work for over 15 years however I learn about PC when me and my brother was curious about how PC works - RAMs and CPU. We were curious about how fast the PC goes.

My brother does other things since decades ago and now back to me.

Before I was 1st IT Certified in 2009 (CompTIA A+) this was during the era of Windows XP. I was getting good motherboard but I want to push my memory to the motherboard limits to see how fast my PC goes. When it goes above 2GB then the speed does not go fast anymore as it reach the top speed. Suddenly I discovered the 4GB RAM limit because at the time it was running on 32 bit Windows which read 3.25GB. Upgraded BIOS on some motherboard with read 3.5GB. It does not matter how much memory you put, even you put 6GB of RAM, it will show 3.25 because of the 32bit limit.

I did not think of the CPU at the time because it was hard and expensive to buy.

During XP days before I was CompTIA Certified, I had friends getting normal PC and they get slow and bad performance, most people do not know how or some are lazy to housekeep their PC (Usual defrag, virus scan, Windows update) and they want to resort to buy a new PC or laptop.

When look at their PC they usually have Pentium 3 or 4 at the time, my best solution is to put more memory and upgrade to maximum that way it is more faster which always long term.

Windows 7 Hardware Standard:

In 2014 when Windows XP Retired because of the 'End of Lifecycle' (7th April 2014) this is where the Standard Came in because I had a lot to people came to me for advice bcause when Windows OS become 'End of Lifecycle' basically means Microsoft will not support the OS and you have to upgrade to the latest Windows. At the time there were Windows Vista, 7 and 8, however I prefer Windows 7 at the time because Windows Vista is no good and Windows 8 has flaws at the time because 8.1 has improved it.

During the upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7 I have to access each PC is it worth upgrading or tell them to buy a new PC.

How I decide the Windows 7 Hardware Standard?

I access each PC if the memory is DDR2 or higher. No point of having DDR1 memory as this is too old to run Windows 7.

Also the CPU is upgradable to Pentium D (Dual Core version of Pentium 4), but I prefer Core Duo or higher as it is better to have 2 Core PCs.

If they are below the Hardware requirement then they have to buy a new PC and if they are upgradable, then I suggest them to upgrade their PCs.

At the time I was against 64 bit as the software has a lot of flaws at the time because of hardware drives.

In 2015, 64-bit has improved on Windows 7 OS so I recommend 64 bit from then on as it will be no point on having 32-bit have 4GB limit and 64-bit has 128GB RAM limit (way plenty) and start recommend Quad Core CPUs instead of Dual Cores and Memory can go up to 8GB RAM Maximum.

Windows 7 End of Lifecycle and Windows 10:

Now in January 2020, 6 years later Windows 7 has reach the End of Lifecycle. I had few people asking me for advice since 2014 when migrating from Windows XP to 7, this time from Windows 7 to 10 (do not bother with Windows 8).

This time another assessment:

I have to make sure if the memory is DDR3 or higher. DDR2 memory is OK but too old and recommended memory is 8GB of RAM or more.

Also the CPU is upgradable to Core 2 Quad as 4 Cores are the way forward and preferable for Windows 10 as it has new build every 6 months. If it is either i3 or i5, then make it i7.

It is pointless having 32 bit Windows as 64 bit is the Standard now. Solid State Drive is a bonus as it is faster then a Hard Drive and now become the norm.