Upgrading Desktop PC

[gargoil666uk]

Currently my main home PC dual boots with Mint Cinnamon 18.1 Serena (my preferred OS) and WinXP Home.
However, I built this machine back in 2006, so it's way overdue for a major hardware upgrade and I am prepared to ditch WinXP completely.

Using https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/ I've managed to identify the following possible configuration within my limited budget (circa 350 GBP):
- Asus H110M-K Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard
- Intel Core i5-6400 2.7GHz Quad-Core Processor
- 16GB DDR4-2133 Memory
- Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
The above should keep me future-proofed for a few years to come. I don't do gaming or other high-end tasks but still I want a reasonably fast machine for browsing, email, etc.

My concern relates to reports of some Intel processors not being compatible with Linux.
I've looked at https://community.linuxmint.com/index.php/hardware but the Intel Core i5-6400 isn't listed (as far as I can see).

Can anybody advise how to check compatibility, or will Ubuntu compatibility checker be a reliable indicator for Mint?

[CebuCat]

I built mine last year using an Intel Core i5-4690 CPU which similarly isn't listed in the Linux compatibility database; however it works fine for me.

[djk44883]

I'm not familiar with processor incompatibilities, but haven't kept up with it.

For comparison my htpc (home theater pc) is running what is otherwise outdate hardware: and Intel i5-2405S - a second generation while your's is a sixth, with only 8Gb Ram. It has 2 TV tuner cards for recording ota broadcast tv. So while it can be recording 2 HD tv shows I'm watching one I've already recorded or streaming a show via the internet and it never hesitates. I'm still with LM 17.3

[JoeBingo]

Look at the refurbished computer market if on a limited budget.
Last computer I built from enclosure up was in 2003 and that box lasted 10 years before I felt the need for something faster / newer.
Considered building from scratch again but the best deal I found was on refurbished Dell business desktops.
The only thing I had to upgrade was the HD > SSD and add some RAM (just because). I already had a video card laying around, I tossed in too.
Put an enclosure on the replaced HD and made it into a portable external HD.
The resulting desktop is plenty fast and I saved a bunch.
Still nothing like building something myself ... but I can live with it

[djk44883]

Look at the refurbished computer market if on a limited budget.

I entirely agree! Virtually everything I have came used from ebay. For "everyday use", components from even a few years ago -out of production- are more than capable of keeping up with browsing the web and playing video for example. Electronics don't actually wear out from being used in comparison to mechanical parts. That's not to say they don't break down eventually for a variety of reasons (including misuse).

Now if you're looking for a serious gaming system, video rending or specialized system... older parts are still functional - check the system requirements for whatever you primarily plan to use.

[Mattyboy]

For your consideration

https://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Compone ... ctId=65318

https://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Compone ... ctId=64944

https://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Compone ... ctId=66822
You don't need 16GB ram.

Great company too. Very helpful and fast. No I don't work for them You'll have no issues running Linux and this will keep you going for a long time.

[MintBean]

For just a little bit more (£16 delta on Amazon) you can get the core i5 7500. Recommended as a top CPU pick on Tom's hardware.

For hard drive, I would steer clear of both Seagate (reputation, reliability) and 7200rpm drives (heat, power, noise).

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/best-cpus ... 33354.html

[Mattyboy]

For hard drive, I would steer clear of both Seagate (reputation, reliability) and 7200rpm drives (heat, power, noise).[/url]

Yeah a WD blue is recommended on a budget build. Never had any issues with those.

[gargoil666uk]

I would steer clear of both Seagate (reputation, reliability) and 7200rpm drives (heat, power, noise)

Interesting. I have a Seagate Medalist 4GB IDE that's been running for at least 6 months each year for the past 18 years and it's only started having bad sectors during the past year or so, although it's still in use on an old Pentium II macine that I use to monitor my network 24/7.

I noticed the WD Blue, looks a good candidate, otherwise Samsung.

As an alternative to 7200rpm, what speed would youn recommend - higher or lower?

[MintBean]

5400 rpm.

[djk44883]

For hard drive, I would steer clear of both Seagate (reputation, reliability) and 7200rpm drives (heat, power, noise).

To put a blanket on "these hard drives are bad" is a bit extreme isn't it. Depends on each's experience, you 'll find as many saying each one is better than the other for various reasons. I've had a couple seagate momentous notebook drives running for years trouble free. I used to favor maxtor desktop drives, before and after seagate... some last forever, occasionally one quits. It's a tightly competitive market, everything, in general, is made as inexpensively as possible and to have a limited life so corporations can continue sales.

I've never looked at the power/heat specs but I've noticed performance difference between 54k and 72krpm drives. If you have a large enough power supply and adequate cooling consider the faster rpm.

[exploder]

Hitachi, now HGST hard drives are in all my machines now. Business class hard drives have always given me years of use. As I understand Hitachi's hard drive business was picked up by Western Digital. In any case I have learned that you get what you pay for as far as hard drives go. My second choice are the Western Digital Green drives. I have one in my son's computer that's probably 5 years old with massive use and it's still going strong.

[MintBean]

To put a blanket on "these hard drives are bad" is a bit extreme isn't it.

Not personal experience, read a recent statistical analysis by a company that provides mass storage. Seagate came out badly based on a sample of thousands of discs over several years.

In the same analysis HGST performed extremely well; well enough to justify the enterprise class price tags.

If you think all drives are equal, by all means have at it and go for the cheapest available.