a question about upgrading

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coleisme

coleisme

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Jun 16, 2014
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hi, i am going to upgrade my cpu from a i5 to an i7 besides taking the old one out and putting the new one in is there anything else i need to know? like do i have to delete anything off my computer?
 
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Chickenator
I think all of us forgot: You'll have to put on thermal paste between the cooler and the CPU. This is very important, if you didn't know. If you ignore it, the temps will rise very high (which is bad).

There will be some thermal paste when you remove the cooler, which is probably dried out. You should use isopropyl/isopropanol rubbing alcohol 70-90% on paper towels to remove it. Some advice against paper towels, but if you use rubbing alcohol on them it's completely fine.

To apply the paste itself, i would recommend the "pea method" which i used myself without any struggle the first time i built a computer. Follow this guide and you should be good:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/thermal-paste-heat-sink-heat-spreader,3600-5.html...
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Chris Bradshaw

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Jan 24, 2014
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You won't need to delete anything, the windows install will be fine. Have you checked the motherboard compatibility? you can't but a 4th gen i7 in a 3rd gen motherboard. Could you post your current spec and your new i7 model?
 
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Icaraeus

Icaraeus

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Oct 9, 2013
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It depends on what you intend to upgrade to. If you're buying a newer Intel i7 you'd likely need a new motherboard as well which would require a new Windows license. If you're only upgrading the CPU itself to the same generation the i5 was you won't need a motherboard change. What are you using your PC for? You may not need an i7.
 
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Chickenator

Chickenator

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Dec 22, 2013
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You'll have to change your motherboard because the CPU's may use different "sockets". As Icaraeus said about the CPU Generations. For example: if you have a i5 2500, which uses the LGA 1155 socket, and were to get an i5 4670k that uses the LGA 1150 socket, you would have to change simply because it would not fit.

More info: If this is supposed to be for gaming only, i would recommend that you buy a better i5 instead of an i7. The only real difference between, let's say an i5 4670 and an i7 4770 is "hyper threading" which is only used in a very few number of titles like battlefield 4 and possibly battlefield 3.
 
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Chickenator

Chickenator

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Dec 22, 2013
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I think all of us forgot: You'll have to put on thermal paste between the cooler and the CPU. This is very important, if you didn't know. If you ignore it, the temps will rise very high (which is bad).

There will be some thermal paste when you remove the cooler, which is probably dried out. You should use isopropyl/isopropanol rubbing alcohol 70-90% on paper towels to remove it. Some advice against paper towels, but if you use rubbing alcohol on them it's completely fine.

To apply the paste itself, i would recommend the "pea method" which i used myself without any struggle the first time i built a computer. Follow this guide and you should be good:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/thermal-paste-heat-sink-heat-spreader,3600-5.html

If you're wondering about all the different thermal pastes: Well, there are A LOT of them. I always go for something that does not conduct electricity, so that your components are safe if you manage to spill some or apply too much. Personally i prefer "Noctua NT-H1" (very easy to apply, not hard nor very liquid-like), and the "Artic cooling MX-4" or "Artic silver 5". Any of the three are very good.
 
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