Question CPU gone bad? Memory issue? How to test?

[HaadwareHoser]

I acquired an older system whose job was going to be running some of my older software. The system is a Toshiba L355D 7827. The CPU is an AMD Turion 64 X2 RM-72, 2.1ghz.

The problem is that it runs WAY too slow. The Windows Experience Index rates the CPU calculation index at a "1.8". An older, slower, 1.9ghz similar Toshiba I have hits 4.5 in that test. So something is way off. For the record, it's very stable, just slower than molasses uphill in the winter. It's not heat related that I can see: it runs like this from initial cold boot. The CPU fan does appear to be working (air is blowing through).

I tried s few things. The first was a new, bare bones Win 7 build to make sure it wasn't a driver issue, etc. No change at all.

I tried swapping memory. In checking the CPU specs, I see that it will run with DDR2-800. The memory that's in there came from another Toshiba and might only be rated 667MHZ. I'm searching to check that out and scour my memory pile... but my thought is that memory that's too slow will cause errors and/or crash, not slow the CPU to 1/3 its rated speed. Thoughts on that? Could slow memory cause a CPU to slow like this? I'm guessing "no", but it's just a guess.

Is there a way to check the CPU speed directly, external memory excluded? I'm guessing that there are better tools to check the CPU operation vs. the MS Windows Experience program.

FWIW, I don't mind buying faster memory if I need to, but I'd prefer not to until I'm comfortable with the CPU not being defective.

Thanks

 

[Eximo]

CPUs don't operate without memory, so you can't really test them in any particular way that doesn't involve using the system memory.

Since you only gave a vague description of the other system, hard to say how it should compare.

Do you actually need old hardware? Or do you just need an old OS? Virtual machines solve a lot or problems in that regard.

 

[Peksha]

I once had one) try some standard tests like cpu-z or something similar, as well as monitoring utilities like hwinfo and observe the characteristics.

 

[HaadwareHoser]

CPUs don't operate without memory, so you can't really test them in any particular way that doesn't involve using the system memory.

Since you only gave a vague description of the other system, hard to say how it should compare.

Do you actually need old hardware? Or do you just need an old OS? Virtual machines solve a lot or problems in that regard.

The slow system is a Toshiba L355D / 7827. AMD Turion 64 X2 RM-72, 2.1ghz. It is unusably slow. Crawling slow. Pull your hair out slow.

The comparison system is older than that, a Toshiba L355D / 7815. AMD Athlon 64 X2 QL-60 1.9ghz. It's comfortably fast. I wouldn't game on it, but for other work it's a solid machine

I need the RS-232 port these machines have for some of what they do. I know there are some alternatives, but I'd really prefer to get the 7827 working - if possible. It fits the bill and ideally would be a slight speed upgrade over the 7815 as well as newer(hopefully will last somewhat longer).

I once had one) try some standard tests like cpu-z or something similar, as well as monitoring utilities like hwinfo and observe the characteristics.

I'll give that a shot. At least it might let me verify if both cores are operating. But again, my intuition is that I'd see bigger problems than I do if it had internal problems. It seems to work, just at a crawl speed.

 

[Eximo]

I've always had good luck with brainbox USB to Serial adapters. Hooked up to all kinds of old hardware with that, XP running in a VM. Basically you just need to make sure that what you get has an actual serial chip in it rather than a virtualized one.

 

[Misgar]

The system is a Toshiba L355D 7827.

This laptop appears to hail from 2008 and I can understand your reluctance to lose a machine with a proper 16550 UART, which used to be the prerequisite for field engineers wanting 99% compatibility with console inputs.

I'd hazard a guess the laptop is still running Windows on a spinning hard disk. Assuming it's a SATA drive and not 40-pin IDE/PATA, the best thing you can do is to buy a brand new SATA SSD and clone your old hard disk to the new drive. Remove the hard disk after cloning, fit the new SSD and hey presto, instant speed increase. It makes a big difference to old systems.

You may be able to clone the hard dish in situ (still inside laptop) to a SATA SSD, mounted temporarily in an external USB enclosure, but this doesn't always work. Sometimes a USB clone doesn't work.

If you still have Windows 7 on the hard disk, I suggest removing the hard disk from the laptop, connect it together with the new SSD to a desktop PC running Windows 10/11 and clone it there. I use Macrium Reflect, but other cloning software is available.

Is there a way to check the CPU speed directly,

When I want to check the speed at which a CPU is working, I open Windows Task Manager and click the Performance tab. It provides a rough and ready reading. For more granular information, I use HWMonitor, CPU-Z or Aida64.

I'm not sure if the modern versions of these test programs are Windows 7 or XP compatible. Aida was marketed under the name Everest many years ago, so might be more suitable for a legacy OS.

CPU speeds change all the time, depending on what programs are running.