Knowing what specification of computers I am dealing with is always the first step that computer technicians take to troubleshoot computer problems. But how can they get those information? There are 3 ways to dig those info:
BIOS Setup:
You can easily find some info of the computers at the boot up by pressing F2/Del button (depends on what kind of BIOS). Some BIOSs give detail info, some are limited. You cannot get a full detail of your computers by using BIOS control panel anyways.
Using OS’s properties/preferences:
All operation systems have their own ways to display system information. If you are using Windows, right click on My Computer –> Properties. If you are using MAC, click on System Preferences.
However, using OS’s tools sometimes make you confused because there are so much unorganized, irrelevant and duplicated information. So this method is only for getting the general view if your computers. To get a full detail report, most of professional techs use the third approach.
Using third-party applications (for Windows only)
There are 3 common software that computer techs use to get a full view of computer systems: CPU-Z, Sandra, and SIW.
A great tool to gather your system information based on 4 main devices: CPU, motherboard, memory, and system (Windows and DirectX). It’s FREE and NO-INSTALLATION required! You can download CPU-Z HERE.
SiSoftware Sandra (the System ANalyser, Diagnostic and Reporting Assistant) is an information & diagnostic utility. It should provide most of the information (including undocumented) you need to know about your hardware, software and other devices whether hardware or software. You can download and try Sandra Lite (free version) here.
SIW is an advanced System Information for Windows tool that gathers detailed information about your system properties and settings and displays it in an extremely comprehensible manner. SIW can create a report file (CSV, HTML, TXT or XML), and is able to run in batch mode. Download SIW HERE.
Hope you like this post.
