Desktop PC - cheap

Neil_Jones

The virtualisation may need to be enabled in the BIOS, it is usually off by default, as in most domestic situations there is no need for it.

SSD wise they're all pretty much standard, any 2.5" one will do, get the biggest you can afford.

Windows 10 you can download from Microsoft and make a new CD or bootable USB.

getmore4less

I am running on a E4500 2.2GHz(Old dell inspiron 530) your processor should be fine.
For the small amount of money worth a try and if it machine still has issues you can use the SSD in a new machine.
SSD & SATA cable if you don't have one and wan to keep the HDD in the machine,
mounting, I just velcro mine into the case it was just laying on a shelf for a while.
8GB+ thumb drive to hold the install
If windows 10 has activated it should just reactivate on the new install.
I got one of these for my spare machine my main machine already had a 250GB samsung 840 evo 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07YD579WM
There are loads of option within a few £ of each other.
Probably worth the extra for something a bit bigger

TheRightOne

roytom2 said:

WoW, thanks! I’d assumed the processor was terrible as VMWare refused point blank to install as it claimed the processor was unsupported. The ZooStorm came with a (CD?) setup disc (MSI the manufacturer of the mainboard) which I must have used in the past. Presumably when it upgraded to Win10 any drivers got lost? I’ll also look in the bios settings as suggested. The whole thing became unstable a week ago when Win10 kept crashing with Exception Errors of all sorts - I traced this to Western Digital backup software (MyCloudMirror) and it stopped happening once the WD software was removed. 

You’re right about the Hard Disc as the system spends ages trashing around on it for no apparent reason.

Any suggestions for a type of SSD drive? Are they, apart from size, all the same?

I cannot remember the path for upgrade to Windows 10 as it was all done over the web from Windows 7, I think. Therefore I have no install disc etc. Can I download it?
Thanks again.

You may need to run an older version of VMware.
You don't need any Drivers with Windows 10.
A new install of Windows 10 will recognise that you had a previous installation installed, so will auto-activate.
Any 2.5" SATA SSD will fit, though of course some will perform better than others. It comes down to what you can afford.
To create the Windows 10 installation media, you will need a USB Flash (thumb) drive of at least 8 GB in capacity. Empty, as all will be erased during the creation process;

Creating the Windows 10 USB flash drive

1. Visit the Microsoft Media Creation Tool website: https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/windows10
2. Click Download Tool Now.
3. Save the Application.
4. Plug your USB Flash Drive into the PC where you saved the application.
5. Run the Application.
6. Accept the EULA
7. Select Create installation media for another PC and click Next.
8. Choose the correct settings for your version of Windows 10

• Language (Country)
• Windows 10
• 64-bit (x64)

Click Next.Select USB Flash Drive and click Next.Select the Flash Drive and click Next.

Allow the application to complete. You will be prompted when it is finished and has successfully created the bootable drive.

I don't agree with the purchase of a relatively poor high capacity SSD for £100. Way too much for such a device.

Your needs are simple and you already have a 1 TB HDD with, so that can be utilised for storage at some point. Keeping the SSD for the day to day running. No more thrashing about.

TheRightOne

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0781VSXBP/ref=twister_B081CX9V85 is a point of reference.
But any of these will do the job: https://www.mymemory.co.uk/memory/data-storage/ssd-drives.html?connection_type=3718&dir=asc&order=price
From £20 for 120 GB or from £27.49 for 240 GB.

Take how much you have used on your current HDD as a point of reference. If you have only used 200 GB in nine years, you don't need to buy a 1 TB SSD.

MinuteNoodles

roytom2 said:

WoW, thanks! I’d assumed the processor was terrible as VMWare refused point blank to install as it claimed the processor was unsupported.

You’re right about the Hard Disc as the system spends ages trashing around on it for no apparent reason.

Any suggestions for a type of SSD drive? Are they, apart from size, all the same?

I cannot remember the path for upgrade to Windows 10 as it was all done over the web from Windows 7, I think. Therefore I have no install disc etc. Can I download it?
Thanks again.

Anything with an Intel Core 2 Duo circa 2006 or newer CPU is fast enough unless you're into things like video editing or gaming.

For SSDs just make sure it's a SATA. I prefer to buy Crucial branded one as Crucial is the retail arm of Micron who are a memory chip manufacturer but any from the likes of Sandisk, Western Digital et al are fine. 120GB SSD drives are often sub-£30.

As for Windows 10 you can download an installation ISO from Microsoft which you can create an installation DVD from if you've a DVD writer. If you already installed and activated Windows 10 in the past you don't need to put in a key, just select the right version of Win10 to install and it'll automagically reactivate when you go online. If you haven't then use the Windows 7 CD key - they're still accepting them unofficially for a free upgrade as MS wants everyone on Win10.

TheRightOne

MinuteNoodles said:

roytom2 said:

WoW, thanks! I’d assumed the processor was terrible as VMWare refused point blank to install as it claimed the processor was unsupported.

You’re right about the Hard Disc as the system spends ages trashing around on it for no apparent reason.

Any suggestions for a type of SSD drive? Are they, apart from size, all the same?

I cannot remember the path for upgrade to Windows 10 as it was all done over the web from Windows 7, I think. Therefore I have no install disc etc. Can I download it?
Thanks again.

Anything with an Intel Core 2 Duo circa 2006 or newer CPU is fast enough unless you're into things like video editing or gaming.

For SSDs just make sure it's a SATA. I prefer to buy Crucial branded one as Crucial is the retail arm of Micron who are a memory chip manufacturer but any from the likes of Sandisk, Western Digital et al are fine. 120GB SSD drives are often sub-£30.

As for Windows 10 you can download an installation ISO from Microsoft which you can create an installation DVD from if you've a DVD writer. If you already installed and activated Windows 10 in the past you don't need to put in a key, just select the right version of Win10 to install and it'll automagically reactivate when you go online. If you haven't then use the Windows 7 CD key - they're still accepting them unofficially for a free upgrade as MS wants everyone on Win10.

M.2 form can also be SATA and Windows 10 64-bit won't fit on a standard DVD. Be careful.

roytom2

Thanks for all the advice, it’s greatly appreciated. My old ZooStorm PC did in fact have virtualisation turned on by default but it still has problems, big ones with some new-ish software. It certainly won’t run the latest version of VMWare nor WD SmartWare, the latter causing exception errors & crashes.
Most of the eBay Dell cheap offerings are, as I was warned here, well old. Lots are 2012 and one I’ve seen was 2008. So now my search is focused elsewhere.
ebuyer currently have this for sale

REFURBISHED HP Elite 8200 Core i5 4GB 120GB SSD SFF Desktop PC

QuickFind: 749209 Mfr part code: CB-PC-HP-8200-SFF-I5-4-120SSD-W10PRO

• Intel Core i5-2400 3.3GHz
• 4GB RAM + 120GB SSD
• Windows 10 Pro
• 1 Year Warranty

It’s on for £179 ish - any good or too old again?
regards

J_B

A while back I bought (for a friend) this

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HP-6300-Super-CHEAP-Windows-10-Desktop-PC-Intel-Core-i5-Quad-Core-8GB-240GB-SSD/324051994371

It seemed OK

TheRightOne

roytom2 said:

Thanks for all the advice, it’s greatly appreciated. My old ZooStorm PC did in fact have virtualisation turned on by default but it still has problems, big ones with some new-ish software. It certainly won’t run the latest version of VMWare nor WD SmartWare, the latter causing exception errors & crashes.
Most of the eBay Dell cheap offerings are, as I was warned here, well old. Lots are 2012 and one I’ve seen was 2008. So now my search is focused elsewhere.
ebuyer currently have this for sale

REFURBISHED HP Elite 8200 Core i5 4GB 120GB SSD SFF Desktop PC

QuickFind: 749209 Mfr part code: CB-PC-HP-8200-SFF-I5-4-120SSD-W10PRO

• Intel Core i5-2400 3.3GHz
• 4GB RAM + 120GB SSD
• Windows 10 Pro
• 1 Year Warranty

It’s on for £179 ish - any good or too old again?
regards

Is this AFTER you added the SSD or did you do nothing and expect things to change?
It may or may not run the latest version of VMWare as I told you, but the Backup software crashing has nothing to do with the CPU. It is buggy software. If you are still using the same HDD, it is ten years old.
I find it very unlikely that the CPU is the issue. Change to an SSD and clean install a 64-bit OS. You risk nothing by doing so, as the SSD can be placed into any new PC that you purchase.
If for some reason you are still unhappy after clean installation to a solid state drive, you can pop the drive into something like this, for £75 ; http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Dell-7010-i5-3470-2GB-RAM-250GB-HDD-1-/143622523406 which will certainly support the latest version of VMWare Workstation.

https://uk.webuy.com/product-detail/?id=SMEM9QAH&sku=SMEM9QAH

or

https://uk.webuy.com/product-detail/?id=SMEM9QAI if you are happy to discard the 2GB module

£28 for 16 GB

Think outside the box...