[SOLVED] PC desktop for CAD system that can handle 3-d rendering

[amacbabe]

I would like to build a new PC desktop- First time doing so.
Hoping for some advice to see if I off base- System will be used for CAD only with 3-d colored renderings- No gaming will be used for the sytem.
This is what I was thinking- hoping for some feedback-
Not sure if I am missing anything or some of the parts may not work together
thanks
- Intel Core i9-9900K Coffee Lake 8-Core, 16-Thread, 3.6 GHz (5.0 GHz Turbo) LGA 1151 (300 Series) 95W BX80684I99900K Desktop Processor Intel UHD Graphics 630

- GPU- Quaddro P2000 5GB Graphics

- ASUS Prime Z390-A/H10 Motherboard Bundled Intel Optane Memory H10 with Solid State Storage (32GB + 512GB) LGA1151 (Intel 8th and 9th Gen) ATX DDR4 DP HDMI M.2 USB 3.1 Gen2 Gigabit LAN

- CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3600 (PC4 28800) Intel XMP 2.0 Desktop Memory Model CMK32GX4M2D3600C18

-Fractal Design Meshify C Black ATX High-Airflow Compact Dark Tint Tempered Glass Window Mid Tower Computer Case

- Seagate IronWolf Pro ST4000NE001 4TB 7200 RPM 128MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive

- SAMSUNG 860 EVO Series 2.5" 500GB SATA III V-NAND 3-bit MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-76E500B/AM

-Fractal Design Celsius+ S24 Dynamic X2 PWM Black 240mm Silent Performance Slim Radiator AIO CPU Liquid/Water Cooler

- Microsoft Windows 10 Home - Full Retail Version (USB Flash Drive)

- GIGABYTE G32QC 32" 165Hz 1440P Curved Gaming Monitor, 2560 x 1440 VA 1500R Display, 1ms (MPRT) Response Time, 94% DCI-P3, VESA Display HDR400, FreeSync Premium Pro, G-Sync Compatible Ready, 1x Display Port 1.2, 2x HDMI 2.0, 2x USB 3.0

 

[amacbabe]

Thanks- this may be a dumb question, but what is typically saved on the large hard drive- My CAD software is downloaded and I think is saved on the SSD drive. Should I be saving these programs on the larger drive?

 

[Darkbreeze]

Things that can't be "reinstalled" if something goes wrong, like projects or specific files that are USED in your CAD software. The CAD software itself can be installed again, or upgraded, or whatever, if something were to go wrong with the main drive or with the Windows installation itself. The project you were working on, or the file that your company sent you that you spent 14 hours modifying, cannot be. Once gone, it's gone. So we don't like to put those projects at risk of being irreparably lost forever by keeping them saved on the drive where malware, a virus, a bad update, a drive failure or any other scenario might result in the whole thing just being............gone.

So, save your projects to that secondary drive so that they will still be there if something happens and you should lose access to the main drive, or have to reinstall, or the data becomes corrupted. Whatever horrible issue you care to imagine, if that happens, have at least a copy of it on that secondary drive.

I advise usually having a copy on the main drive, the SSD, to WORK with, because it will be MUCH faster to work with the file if it is on the SSD. Especially in programs where files can be very large and must be auto saved, manually saved periodically, cached, etc., but you also want to back that file or project up after EVERY occasion that you work with it, to that secondary drive so that if something were to happen you could simply reinstall your CAD software and either just open or import that project back into your CAD application and continue on. This doesn't just apply to the CAD software either, but ANYTHING important.

And further, you should REALLY make backups NOW of anything important so that no matter what happens, you don't lose any files or folders that would change your life if you lost them. Save them to another location, NOT the same drive that Windows is on. It's actually even a good idea to get another drive, or burn the files to an optical DVD or CD or BD disk. Upload them to a cloud storage solution. SOMETHING. Anything to ensure that you don't lose what can't be ever regained if you have a catastrophic failure. Anything could happen. Hard drive could (And will, sooner or later) completely fail, and unlike the movies, when they do, the data is RARELY recoverable. Even if you are willing to spend a thousand dollars for a recovery service, it often results in only partial or no recovery of that data. There is only ONE way to ensure data recovery, and that is to have a backup of that data from the start.

I've seen people with multiple drives that had everything on the OS drive AND backed up to another drive on the system, STILL lose everything because those were the ONLY copies of their important information. A lightning strike, or other power surge, a fire in the home or office, a virus that wipes all attached storage, many scenarios that make it clear that you should always have at least two "local" copies of the most important "I can't replace this" type files and folders, meaning work projects, pictures, music, movies, personal documents, application or game installers and product key information, etc. AND a third copy that is on some other media like optical disks, an external NOT-connected all the time device, NAS storage, or even a storage device that you keep someplace else OR better yet, with you, in case the house burns down, or there is a tornado or hurricane, or thieves break in and make off with your whole system.

There are flash drives now that are very large, all the way up to 2 terrabytes, that you can backup your whole backup drive on or at least the most important bits, and keep in your glovebox or trunk or at the office (IF the office is away from home) or your parents or siblings home (Or a friend), or whatever. You get the idea. Can't stress how important it is to have a fail-safe. I've lost everything before. YEARS worth of work and files that could not be replaced. It will literally make you ill, for a long time, when that happens. In some cases it could even cause you to lose a job and change your life permanently. No, this is not an exaggeration. We've seen it happen. It has happened to me.

It will NEVER happen to me again.

 

[amacbabe]

Good to know thanks- I use dropbox and have a large external drive that I can use. Now that everything is built and running smoothly, what can I do to make sure in the future everything is running smoothly and how often do i need to check if drivers need to be updated etc. Also a big thank you for all your help in guiding me through my first build- It was great and I am excited to do any upgrade in the future to optimize my system.

 

[Darkbreeze]

First, congratulations on accomplishing your first full build. This was a rather advanced system and you weathered the bumps in the road amazingly well. Props.

I would check for driver updates every couple of months or so for the first year, and after that, only if there are problems. Most motherboards don't get many driver updates after the first year, even fewer after the second and practically none unless something is found that poses a security risk after the third, OR, if new hardware is released and it is NEEDED by way of BIOS or driver support in order to use it AND the system is still new enough to be worth using with said hardware so that the manufacturer actually gets enough feedback to goad them into providing it.

To be honest, my system is about four to five years old and I still check the motherboard product page for driver updates about once a month. I rarely, but do occasionally, find that one has been updated. The last time a new BIOS was released for my motherboard was in 2018 shortly after the Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities were discovered for both AMD and Intel platforms. Since then, nothing, but it hasn't been needed either since then.

Be sure to check for Windows updates every week or so, I like to do it on Tuesday evenings as Tuesdays are generally the day when Microsoft releases patches and cumulative updates. Many will simply update automatically.

For non-motherboard drivers, such as those for specialty keyboards, mice, printers or other peripherals, I'd check the manufacturers site periodically as well.

 

[amacbabe]

System is running well, still have not gone through, and adjust fans yet.
I had a question about how to check if I need to adjust any of the drivers, Do I go through the device manager to do this? And if so What I am looking for in this area to see if I need any updates?

 

[Darkbreeze]

Drivers don't need to be "adjusted". You can periodically check the motherboard product page to see if any LAN, wireless, bluetooth or audio drivers have been released since you last installed or updated them, or check the AMD website every couple of weeks to see if the chipset drivers have been updated (Which they often are. The chipset drivers will be the most frequently updated drivers for your board and those you will want to get directly from the AMD website on the B450 drivers page).

You will not do that through device manager. You will download, unzip and install by running the installation program, directly from those site pages.

AMD - https://www.amd.com/en/support/chipsets/amd-socket-am4/b450

B450 Gaming Pro Carbon Max Wifi drivers - https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/support/B450-GAMING-PRO-CARBON-MAX-WIFI#down-driver&Win10 64

Do not download or install the Raid drivers listed under Onboard PIDE/SATA drivers unless you know you need them because you are running a RAID array. I doubt you will be, so just ignore those drivers. You should only ever need to worry about the LAN/ethernet, WiFi, Bluetooth and audio drivers from the product page BUT you might check every few months to see if there is a BIOS update as well. No reason really to update the BIOS unless there are problems, but it also shouldn't hurt to keep the BIOS up to date either.

 

[amacbabe]

Thanks!!!

 

[Darkbreeze]

For sure.