New Member here trying to upgrade an older desktop...

[Brutaldiver]

First off, Hello to all & I hope this is the Forum to come to for the help I need...
I tried searching for my answer but due to my relative ignorance on the subject I couldn't make heads or tails of the info I was finding... So, if it has already been asked and answered: Sorry... I know some of the forums out on the www are a bit anal about asking something that has already been asked...

Here goes:
We had been having a lot of trouble with our older Compaq desktop. Problems like the system locking up or freezing while trying to browse the web. I figured it was the PC's age and maybe it was hot from running all day. We had a service come to the house to fix it and long story short the first trip didn't do the job & the 2nd visit finished with a new hard rive (upgrading from 30G to 160G) and advice to upgrade/add some RAM (we had 128mb- I think that was what it was), not to mention a total of around $350 in service charges at that point...
So, I went out and bought 2 X 256mb sticks/boards. The local Staples/Office Depot didn't have anything larger for PC100/133 RAM requirements. Not to mention the relatively high price compared to online purchases for similar items.

Now, I'd love to upgrade the RAM to something like 1G or better (if it is possible) as well as upgrading the CPU. I found out the hard way our older Intel Pentium III Processor 866mhz with 256 integrated Full Speed L2 Cache was not capable of running movies we made on our Sony HDD Camcorder. I was told this was due to the older Pentium Processor being too slow to smoothly run movies made by it. Now, I'm looking to upgrade the processor, if possible, so our family can watch some of the many movies we have created on vacations, etc..

The tech service guy that swapped out our motherboard advised I needed to find a processor that (and I am probably getting the words wrong here, so bear with me- I am fairly ignorant in the world of PC TechnoSpeak, etc!) could utilize the same size/speed(?) fan, one that the cooling fan would mount to, one that would fit in the same space/plug, etc...
What I need is some help in trying to figure out howto access the needed info on how much RAM I can plug into this system's 2 slots & what kind of processor I can upgrade to.

I tried going to a couple of sites (provided here by other members) that are supposed to look at your system and tell you exactly what you have, what is compatible etc, but, my anti virus software kept on stopping it advising it was a Trojan Horse Program.
I know, this is a lot of info for you all to read but I would be greatly appreciative for any help or guidance you can offer me...
Thanks for your time,
BryantK
PS If attaching a pic of a particular hardware piece will help in this, let me know & I can snap a few to post here.

[Brutaldiver]

Ok, so now I realize this forum only allows one edit per posting... I'll have to make sure I have all my edits lined up next time, hah....
For now I'll just have to reply to my own thread with the pertinent info... Well, what info I have been able to figure out.

Further info after running a scan (that my anti virus fortunately let me run) from Crucial.com is as follows:

HP - Compaq HP-Compaq 06C0 Motherboard Desktop/PC .
Maximum Memory Capacity: 512MB
Currently Installed Memory: 512MB
Available Memory Slots: 0
Number of Banks: 2
Dual Channel Support: No
CPU Manufacturer: GenuineIntel
CPU Family: Intel Pentium III processor Model 8, Stepping 6
CPU Speed: 863 MHz The name of this model may not exactly match the model description of your system, our system scanner could not identify a specific model name when evaluating your computer. However, it was able to identify the motherboard your system utilizes.
Your system does not support dual channel.
Your system does not support ECC. Because ECC and non-ECC modules should not be mixed within a system, install the same type of modules that are already in your system.

I am running this desktop with Windows XP SP2.
So far I understand that I have apparently maxxed out my RAM capabilities. Will these limits possibly change with the addition of a different CPU or is this limit set by the motherboard? I'd still love to upgrade to a faster CPU....

[The New Normal]

Can you use the info. on this page: How to find my model number to get the product number?

That way you can get to a page like this one which should say what's supported etc. Pressing Control+Alt+S seems to be the easiest way.

[Brutaldiver]

Sigh, how to say this without seeming ungrateful...
Those are some ideas that were quite apparent to me to begin with.
I didn't want to make a long posting any longer by including the fact that I already talked with HP/Compaq and they were unable to provide me with any info on the motherboard (which they needed to find out the socket#), the serial number etc. Their reasoning was because of the age (7 years old) of the system. The other reason being that the Ser # sticker for the tower was removed by one of our boys some time ago. Little did I know they won't do squat without a Ser #....
The Ctrl/Alt/S manner you suggested was also attempted and did not do anything. I tried doing that before I even called HP/Compaq.
While I don't work in IT I'm not completely ignorant when it comes to computers. Knowing how to work at one is vastly different than building/rebuilding one. I tried asking this here only after everything I ever learned to do failed to yield useful info.

Thanks for the thought though.

As an aside though, I finally heard back from our IT guy @ my old P.D. & it seems he was able to figure it out within a few minutes.... Seems I need a #370 socket & the max CPU it will handle should be 1.1Ghz Intel P3. Nice to know an LEO IT guy can figure it out faster than those that created it...
I have since ordered a new CPU for it and if it works, etc I'll update the posting/thread...
Thanks again.

[The New Normal]

Well that was helpful of Compaq, lol.

I don't work in IT either, I just like sharing what 'knowledge' I do have.

Another way to find the specs of your computer is CPUZ. You can download it HERE, (d.l. in top left hand corner). The mainboard tab will tell you info. about your motherboard but I doubt it will tell you the product number of the whole system, which is what you really need.

Thanks for the update. Good luck with it.

[Brutaldiver]

No, thank you for the help... We'll see what happens when I install the new CPU.
Now I want to try upgrading the mother board so I can get some real CPU power coursing through this thing.
That's the problem with upgrading things like this....
You fix/upgrade one thing and before you know it you want to go and change everything into basically a whole new system...! hah!
No I feel like going and buying all new hardware and using one of my old tower cases/shells to build an entirely new system.... On the surface it looks less expensive than buying one already built...
I know, I know.... I already figure I'm missing something that will come back to byte (!) me in the rear.... ;)