Question: Quote
"Another thing you could add is a small SSD to use as a cache drive to really speed things up. eCollegePC will set up the Intel Smart Response Technology."
how does this work?

Soon.....maybe a xmas present... expect to see a cut down version of Build by Winfrey... although GreyFuss has done most of the work

Check this out... there may be better explanations, but this one is OK.

What is Intel SRT

On GF's build...don't you need a wireless network card?

hehe....this configuration came to $1200 even and with the BlackFriday discount $1140 no taxes and free delivery I am happy.


Cable Guy just left after hooking my Super Duper High Speed Internet set up which include wireless routing throughout the house. Look at these speeds...are they good?
69.07mbps Download
5.90mbps Upload

Now I have to go through the ordeal of changing email

Those are fantastic... me in the country... I think they have one of the horses delivering my internet.

You still need a card in your computer... right?

I don't think so. He hooked up the modem on this computer and just put a USB receiver upstairs on LittleFuss's computer. Installed some software from a disk and he is now hooked up. Will have to check if my Norton account includes another computer or I will have to use some of the free virus protection for that one.

Don't mean to takeover your post GreyFuss... but question Drac.. if I were to go with the Intel SSR my mother board would be like a Asus-Z87 and I would then need 2 hard drives... the second one being like a 64 gb Sanddisc.SDSSDDP? and I did not see an option for them to do the intel SRT connection.

Why do you need to change your email, Greyfuss? You certainly don't have to because of a new computer. I haven't changed mine through Windows 7 or Windows 8.

GreyFuss doesn't need a wireless network card if he's connecting his new computer to the new router with an ethernet cable. I must have wireless in my computer because my router is 20' away in another room. But I don't use a card; I use USB wireless adapters.

And, ummm... can I come live with you, GreyFuss? I would sell my firstborn for those kinds of speeds!

If your Norton doesn't include another computer, there is always Microsoft Security Essentials, Avast, AVG etc. I use Microsoft Security Essentials along with Malwarebytes Pro and it's a great combination.

Winfrey, what your motherboard is depends on what kind of processor you get. EcollegePC is offering the brand new Haswell processors which have a different socket than the Ivy Bridge processors. But if you want to take advantage of the Intel SRT, then, yes, you get the small SSD which is put into a RAID 0 configuration with your hard drive. The software only uses the SSD as a cache drive to store frequently used information to speed things up.

I can't remember who it was, but someone here went with that configuration and through an email with Mike, was told eCollegePC would set it up.

I really never got into what Routers and such were but I don't have that. All the Cable guy did was put in the new Super High speed modem which has wireless already. He then just put the USB receiver on the upstairs computer and it now has the super speed Internet when it wasn't even hooked up before. He said that I can run any other wireless device in the house like a laptop, Ipad, etc by just using the User ID and password he gave me. Hurray...now I can take my laptop in the back yard and surf the web.

Sure, but you will have to bring loads of tomatos, home made Salsa, chilli and more. And you can keep the first born, just another mouth to feed.

Thanks for this as it was my next question

I have to change my email addresses because I no longer use Earthlink as this Super speed Internet is Road Runner and boy is it fast. No more yelling at the computer when I am in a hurry researching.

Ah, I see. Yup, you'll have to change it then. When the time comes, you will have to install an email client on Windows 7. Outlook Express has been upgraded to be Windows Live Mail and is a separate download. Unless you use some other program like Thunderbird...

But, let me know and I can walk you through it! Won't take but a few minutes.

Just came in from walking the 140 tomato plants and they all look very happy!

I wouldn't advise using RAID 0. It may be faster, but if either drive has a problem, you lose all the data on both of them.

When they are set up in Intel SRT, the SSD is not used across both drives like in the normal Raid 0 setup. No data is stored on it. It is strictly used as a cache drive. The SRT manages the SSD differently than if it were in a normal Raid 0 configuration.

Well, I went ahead and did it...Part 3 Build GreyFuss a computer is now complete and ordered. I want to thank each and every one of you for all the help, support and patience you have shown through Parts 1 - 2 & 3. I really had a lot of fun and a lot of learning although the I feel that school will be back in session once the new computer is set up and I have to learn Windows 7. I hope that others who were following the threads silently gleaned some information too.

Thanks all



Intel Core i5-3570 3.4Ghz 6MB Cache Quad-Core |
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO CPU Fan/Heatsink |
GIGABYTE GA-Z77-HD3 (Intel Z77, 2xPCI-E, 6xSATA, 4xDDR3) |
8GB (4GBx2) PC3 10666 DDR3 1333Mhz Memory Lifetime Warranty |
500GB 7200RPM 32MB Cache SATA3 6Gbps (Major Brand) |
24X LiteON Label Tag Dual Layer DVD+/-RW DVD-RAM w/Nero |
2GB GeForce GTX 660Ti GDDR5 PCI-E Dual-DVI/HDMI (Major Brand) |
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit |
Corsair White Carbide Series 500R (4 5.25, 6 3.5) 4 Fans, Audio/USB 3.0 |
650watt Antec EarthWatts EA-650 GREEN 650W 80 PLUS CERTIFIED |
Onboard LAN included |
Onboard Sound included |
Wires and Cables neatly tied up away from fans |
3 Year Parts and Labor Warranty

Congrat's GreyFuss!! How exciting... a big new toy!
Carol and a friend have win 7 and I was surprised that I did not have as much trouble figuring it out. I think the hardest part for me is they made finding the root of something harder to find... instead of just going to My Documents.. it is something like.. user name\local\roaming\documents...lol you will be pleasantly surprised. Now win 8 is a whole different ball game. :-)

Hurrah !!!! And enjoy your new "Beastie" to the max,GreyFuss !!

Congratulations, GreyFuss! I've been following all the threads - very interesting
and informative.

Enjoy your new system.

That should get the job done Greyfuss. About the only thing I'd opt for is a 1 or 2TB hard drive, the price difference is minimal.

InlandAz tell me what you think of my reasoning. I think one should get a small local harddrive,say a 500gb and keeping all the mass storage on a external harddrive with the reasoning that if one would ever get a killer virus that requires a format and start over scenario,it wouldn't take that long and all the important stuff is safe on the external hd.

Thats sounds good InlandAZ, thank you for that advice....I could have used it sooner as I already ordered it on Friday but I emailed Mike at ECollegePC and he made the change and its the weekend. Already I like the service. And you were right, the difference was only $10 for the 1 TB.



@Geo
Interesting question Geo. I am no expert but I always thought that you lose some speed or something through the cable to the external drive or have they advanced in cabling and connections? Or maybe I just didn't understand that technology.

It's a better option now that there is USB 3.0 and many USB 3.0 external drives. It's a bit of a pain to direct everything you download or install to a separate hard drive, but can be worth it. I have my Windows 7 set up that way. I've reinstalled the OS a couple of different times on the 60 GB SSD boot drive and it's nice to not lose any programs and any of the huge downloads from GOG or Steam.

Even though CyberPower has more options to choose from, one of the reasons I always lean towards eCollegePC is the customer service.

In ***this thread*** (post #639277) Inland noted that Windows starts to slow down after your drive has less than 40% free space. So unless you expect to use less than 300 GB in the coming years, you should get a larger hard drive than 500GB.


If you keep all your stuff on one drive, it isn't backed up. What happens if your external drive fails? It's better to have your stuff in more than one place. And keeping your stuff on an external drive doesn't necessarily prevent it from being infected. Arguably the worst malware is the stuff you don't know about. It could have a time delay from the date of infection, or it could steal personal information rather than causing a performance degradation -- so you could transfer infected files to the external drive without knowing it.

That's why I've been using Carbonite. It's save my bacon a couple of times.

Carbonite is an alternative backup method if your Internet is reliable and your upload speed is fast enough. At $99 per year per computer, it may be an affordable alternative to a second hard drive or external hard drive.
http://www.carbonite.com/online-backup/pricing-plans/homeplus

Since all my drives are in my computer, I use the Home option for $59 a year. If I renew for 3 years, they have normally knocked it down to $39 a year. Might not do that next time around though. The initial backup is the only time it takes forever - like 2 weeks for me because my upload speed is dreadful. After that, it's just a minute or two a day.

I don't personally back up my hard drive routinely. I do image it after a fresh install, but that's about it.

Data files, such as spread sheets and word documents are backed up to external drives on a weekly basis (at least on the work PC's). Downloadable content is burned to DVD's and kept in a filing cabinet.

So long as you’ve got the install media for program applications, there’s just no need to backup everything.