Upgrading a Dell Dimension 3100 (E310)
- Thread starter Ethan_Kaizer
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If you were to buy a cheap mobo with the same socket as the processor you are using that also has pcie x16 for under 100$ then it would really open up the variety of parts you can use with that computer. Other than that there isn't really much you can do with that setup.
I'm not sure if dell uses proprietary mobos or not though.
I'm not sure if dell uses proprietary mobos or not though.
allright guys , i got the EVGA E-GEFORCE 9400GT 550MHZ 1GB 1000MHZ 128BIT DDR2 PCI VGA DVI-I HDTV Out Low Profile Video Card - 01G-P1-N948-LR and the power supply , the power supply i know how to install but the gforce i dont not really, i just gotta put it on the empty slot ? do i have to desactivate something ? and by the way that site is really nice , thanks trotter
Monsterhdmi
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Not a bad system... I had no idea that Amazon could compete for computer part sales.
Lokenzo - Were you able to get the new EVGA graphics card working? I have the exact same setup and have not been able to get it to work in my Dell E310.
I purchased the card because I planned to upgrade the box to Win7. When I tried to add the new graphics card when PC was still running XP, the system would freeze up during boot up. So I upgraded to Win7 and now..
After card is installed;
-Onboard Network Interface Card (NIC) stops working
-Video does come out of card in VGA format
-Win7 does not show EVGA card in Device Manager.. only the original Intel chip set
-The device manager also reports the "pci-pci bridge" as not functioning correctly as well.
I have tried everything I can think of including both deactivating and uninstalling the Intel graphics without success. Yesterday I brought home a new power supply and had the exact same problem.
Anyone have any thoughts or suggestions for me???
Thanks,
Scott
Just to follow up on my post... I was able to upgrade the Dell E310 to Win7 but I could not use the EVGA Geforce 9400 GT, I found a list of compatible graphics cards on Dell's website and ordered from them the EVGA e-GeForce FX 5200 (128MB). Not nearly as powerful of graphics card (there were more powerful cards offered) but this was good enough for my needs.
Why my Dell 3000 was able to use the 9400 but the E310 (a very similar machine) wasn't.. I guess I never know.
-Scott
Why my Dell 3000 was able to use the 9400 but the E310 (a very similar machine) wasn't.. I guess I never know.
-Scott
Oh yes, I tried and tried to use the 9400GT PCI. It works wonderfully in my Dell 3000 so I purchased a second one for my E310. But it simply not compatible for some reason (I'm guessing the mother board). I know that sounds strange, but I worked on it for over a week with every imaginable combination of attempts.
When the computer was still XP, it would freeze up during boot with the 9400GT card.
After upgrading to Win7, it would boot okay with the card but only worked at the basic VGA level and, get this, the on-board Network Interface Card would stop working. Very strange.
Went to the Dell website and found a list of compatible cards and the 94500GT was not on the list. So I ordered the lowly 5200 and it works fine.. although not nearly as powerful graphics wise as the 6400GT.
I knew going into this that I was pushing the E310 a bit by going to Win7 but, like I say, the 3000 is running it great. I'm finished upgrading both of these boxes. They are both maxed out on RAM and are running Win7 (one great, one fair).
When the computer was still XP, it would freeze up during boot with the 9400GT card.
After upgrading to Win7, it would boot okay with the card but only worked at the basic VGA level and, get this, the on-board Network Interface Card would stop working. Very strange.
Went to the Dell website and found a list of compatible cards and the 94500GT was not on the list. So I ordered the lowly 5200 and it works fine.. although not nearly as powerful graphics wise as the 6400GT.
I knew going into this that I was pushing the E310 a bit by going to Win7 but, like I say, the 3000 is running it great. I'm finished upgrading both of these boxes. They are both maxed out on RAM and are running Win7 (one great, one fair).
So I take that means the 5200 worked out fine with win 7 on the Dimension 3100? Just to be clear.
I'm asking because I'm thinking of doing the same, only I can't seem to find any drivers for that video card on win 7 (or for barely any of the 3100 hardware for that matter...). How did you solve that?
Thank you,
/Newbie
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