Is DDR2 compatable with Windows 10?

[Sawyer Blais]

We will be upgrading my parents PC to Windows 10 comes out no matter what. It has a Pentium E2200 with 2.5GB of DDR2 and it still runs really well. Will the hardware be compatible or is it too old?

 

[utgotye]

If it will run Windows 8.1, it will run Windows 10. Check it with the Upgrade Assistant.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/upgrade-assistant-download-online-faq

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/preview-faq-system-requirements-pc

 

[ThatVietGuy]

It'll be fine - http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/preview-faq-system-requirements-pc

 

[Eximo]

Hmm an interesting question.

Windows won't care what ram you have as long as it is enough. 2.5GB is fairly low by today's standards.

What you really have to worry about are instruction sets. I'll poke around.

 

[COLGeek]

It will likely run Win 10 just fine, but that hardware is going to show its age. Your memory (2.5GB) is pretty minimal by today's standards where 4GB is pretty much the minimum recommended.

Still I would not propose buying more DDR2 memory. It is obsolete and expensive compared to newer memory standards.

You may see some driver support issues with older hardware, as well. No way to assess that without knowing what you have now in more detail.

Good luck!

 

[Eximo]

It'll be fine - http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/preview-faq-system-requirements-pc

If I listened to that I would be running Windows 8.1 on my mother's old optiplex. It can't even though it meets all the requirements on paper.

The compatibility assistant is great, but you have to run it like for like. You can't run the 64bit assistant on a 32bit machine, and you can't run it from XP...

 

[Eximo]

Yikes the more I read the less confident I am without having that particular CPU around to try it myself. Can you also provide the exact motherboard model?

So you need these things specifically:

No-execute page protection (NX)
SSE2 support
PAE support (greater then 32bit physical addresses)

E2200 has all of these, so it is looking good so far.

However, there is one other thing that I don't think can be verified before you try an installation, and it only applies to the 64bit version:

CMPXCHG16b is another set that your CPU has, but the motherboard must also support it. Some Core 2 boards do not (usually Intel boards oddly)

As an example my old Pentium D H/T at 3.2 Ghz can't run 8.1 with 4GB of DDR2, just not a supported CPU. It can run 8 though.

 

[johnnyb105]

Windows 10 needs 1gb of ram per 32 bit os 2 gb ram per 64 bit os I ran a old emachines with it 3 gigs of ddr2 ram it ran sweet on a old e8400 intel cpu hope this helps.

 

[Sawyer Blais]

If it will run Windows 8.1, it will run Windows 10. Check it with the Upgrade Assistant.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/upgrade-assistant-download-online-faq

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/preview-faq-system-requirements-pc

 

[Sawyer Blais]

Yikes the more I read the less confident I am without having that particular CPU around to try it myself. Can you also provide the exact motherboard model?

So you need these things specifically:

No-execute page protection (NX)
SSE2 support
PAE support (greater then 32bit physical addresses)

E2200 has all of these, so it is looking good so far.

However, there is one other thing that I don't think can be verified before you try an installation, and it only applies to the 64bit version:

CMPXCHG16b is another set that your CPU has, but the motherboard must also support it. Some Core 2 boards do not (usually Intel boards oddly)

As an example my old Pentium D H/T at 3.2 Ghz can't run 8.1 with 4GB of DDR2, just not a supported CPU. It can run 8 though.

So are you saying I could run Windows 10 64bit on this CPU?

 

[Sawyer Blais]

If it will run Windows 8.1, it will run Windows 10. Check it with the Upgrade Assistant.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/upgrade-assistant-download-online-faq

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/preview-faq-system-requirements-pc

I forgot to mention its running XP right now