XPS 8900 Windows 11

[Ensigntek]

I have a Dell XPS 8900 with

Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700 CPU @ 3.40GHz, 3408 Mhz, 2 Core(s), 3 Logical Processor(s)

This is incompatible with Windows 11.

What processor upgrade can I make that will be compatible with Windows 11?   From what I can tell this is a Skylake processor.

Thank you.

[n_scott_pearson]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there are no processors that are compatible with your motherboard that are on the supported processor list for Windows 11. For more information,

• You can see the list of processors compatible with your motherboard's chipset here.
• You can see the list of processors supported by Windows 11 here.

 Now, this doesn't necessarily mean that you cannot install and run Windows 11 on your PC. Take a look at the discussion of Windows 11 installation on unsupported PCs here.

Hope this helps,

...S

[adam29]

I have the same computer with

Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz 4.01 GHz
RAM 24,0 GB
238 GB SSD SanDisk X300 M.2 2280 256GB,
Radeon RX 560 Series (4 GB)

So I understand a processor update is not possible but would a better graphics card be useful (GeForce RTX 3060 VENTUS 2X 12GB).

The PC has become slow on photo editing (Topaz and photoshop) with the larger files.

Thanks

[n_scott_pearson]

24GB RAM. Configured how? Regardless, this memory configuration will run slower because the processor can only run in Single-Channel mode. You need to have both memory channels outfitted with matching configurations (DIMM sizes, ranking, speed, etc.) so that Dual-Channel mode can be utilized. A system with matching 8GB+8GB will actually outperform a system with 8GB+16GB or 8GB+(8GB+8GB). Yes, the extra memory helps the O/S manage things slightly better, but you are leaving performance on the floor when running in Single-Channel configurations. Watch this (so-so) video for an introduction to the issues:  DONT do these Mistakes! | Dual Channel RAM | Misconceptions, and how to Configure it correctly!.

Intel is in the process of releasing the third Core Ultra generation. The Core series went to 14 generations. This means that your processor is 11 generations - and 11 years - out of date. That's a long way. You need to be thinking about a full system upgrade at some point. A ramification of this is that spending money upgrading parts on the system now means this money won't be available when you want to upgrade the whole system. This is what's called Throwing Good Money After Bad. Bottom line, you need to think carefully about whether you want to spend money correcting the memory issue or improving the graphics. Maybe you let is limp along until you can go for that shiny new system.

Next, lets talk about a graphics card upgrade. While it's true that this card can be carried forward into a future replacement system, you need to think about it from the standpoint of needs. Do you actually need better graphics performance? The answer may be yes if you are a gamer and want to use (or be able to even install) more-modern games, or if you are using newer apps (photo editing, video production, etc.) that can take advantage of the card's faster speed. If this isn't the case, however, it may not be worth it to upgrade just yet.

Now, what else can you do that will make a significant difference in performance without spending a lot of money. There is one: backup up your data files to offline storage (like a USB Flash Disk) and then reinstall Windows from scratch. As a system ages and get used more and more, Windows will get all gunked up and slow down more and more. This can include junk in the file system, registry, driver store, etc. and etc. Running cleanup tools can help, but eventually you need to start fresh. Do a from-scratch install of Windows, blowing away all of the partitions on the SSD and letting Windows select how to repartition it. This from-scratch install could even upgrade you to Windows 11 (your Windows 10 license key can be used to install Windows 11 if you do this relatively soon; you can use RUFUS to enable Windows 11 to install on your machine). The downside of this reinstall, whether Windows10 or Windows 11, is that you will need to reinstall all your apps from scratch as well. Still, it is worth the pain.

Hope this helps,

...S