Dell Dimension U7021 Owner's Manual

Contents

Dell Dimension U7021 Owner's Manual Manual pdf 35 page image

Optimizing Performance 35Optimizing PerformanceHyper-ThreadingHyper-Threading is an Intel® technology that can enhance overall computer performance byallowing one physical processor to function as two logical processors, capable of performing certaintasks simultaneously. It is recommended that you use the Microsoft® Windows® XP Service Pack 1(SP1) or later operating system because Windows XP is optimized to take advantage ofHyper-Threading technology. While many programs can benefit from Hyper-Threading, someprograms have not been optimized for Hyper-Threading and may require an update from thesoftware manufacturer. Contact the software manufacturer for updates and information aboutusing Hyper-Threading with your software.To determine if your computer is using Hyper-Threading technology:1 Click the Start button, right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.2 Click Hardware and click Device Manager.3 In the Device Manager window, click the plus (+) sign next to Processors. If Hyper-Threadingis enabled, the processor is listed twice.You can enable or disable Hyper-Threading through system setup. For more information onaccessing system setup, see page 119. For more information on Hyper-Threading, search theKnowledge Base on the Dell Support website at support.dell.com.OverclockingDell locks the processor multiplier options in system setup to prevent processor overclocking. Thefirst and most important reason for preventing overclocking is that Dell’s performance labsvigorously test and fine-tune Dell computers at the system level in an attempt to attain the bestpossible overall performance. Any performance modification that is not implemented in the labscould cause performance degradation. When you receive your computer in the configuration thatyou ordered, it is already primed for high performance.The second reason is that an overclocked processor, in general, creates excessive heat and electricalfields that can cause heat fatigue failures within the processor, thus possibly shortening its expectedlife span. Even slight overclocking can cause a computer to become unstable and lock up.There are several after-market "performance-modification" products available through varioussources, but Dell discourages and does not support the use of those products on its computers.