You have invested a huge amount to build a desktop or purchased a high-end laptop so that you can fulfill your gaming desires. Or, maybe you have recently upgraded your old machine to quench your video-editing desires. But, before you do that you would benefit from a CPU stress test. The test will tell you if the brain of your computer in all its entirety is capable of processing high-end applications or resource-intensive games.
In this post, we’ll give you a basic overview of what is a CPU stress test, what are the things you should keep in mind when conducting one, and the tools you can use to conduct a CPU stress test.
1. What is a CPU Stress Test?
A CPU stress test or CPU load test means running the CPU at its maximum efficiency for a specified period of time so as to check how stable it is. A CPU stress testing software uses a variety of methods to help reach the CPU its maximum capacity. For example, it will push the CPU to reach its maximum capacity for 1 hour and then it will analyze the CPU’s performance.
When you conduct a test to stress your CPU, you essentially max its speed as well as temperature. Here all the cores of the chip will be utilized.
2. Prerequisites Before Performing A CPU Load Test
Much before you perform a CPU stress test, it is important that you first make your PC and CPU ready for the same. First and foremost, close all the background apps which are resource-intensive and which you think will hamper the CPU load test. The same goes for any redundant processes on your Windows.
- Close all redundant background processes and applications which you think may interfere with your CPU stress test. This step would also help in increasing the speed and overall performance of your PC. For this first close all applications running on your computer.
- You can also fire up the Task Manager by pressing the ctrl + shift + esc key combination and then selecting app or background process and then pressing End Task from the bottom-right corner of the screen.
- Furthermore, you can also take the help of a utility like Advanced PC Cleanup which helps free up disk space, speed up CPU and RAM.
The same tool can also help clean cookies and cache as well. You can refer to this post and get an exhaustive overview of what this tool is and how it works.
- To avoid overheating, make sure that you check the temperature of your CPU because if the temperature rises above normal, it may take a grave toll on the chips inside your CPU. In that regard, here are some of the best CPU temperature monitor software for Windows.
3. How Safe Is It To Use A PC Stress Test Software?
As far as you are using modern CPUs, you won’t have to worry much because as soon as your CPU perceives that it has hit its limits, your PC will shut down. However, in the case of older CPUs, hardware damages can occur if the test is extended for a longer period of time.
4. How To Conduct CPU Load test?
Tools like Prime95 are one of the best tools that can help you conduct computer stress tests such as CPU stress tests. Prime95 in particular takes into account the Mersenne prime number and can generate a heavy CPU workload. If you can afford to run the tool for 5-6 hours straight, you can get a pretty good indication that your CPU is not just in a good shape but is running great.
For more info on indicators and what to do and what not to do before putting your CPU through this exhausting test, visit this page from where you can download the tool as well.
5. Can You Conduct a CPU Stress Test Online?
Yes, you can. Here you won’t have to download and install an offline PC stress test software that would otherwise take additional storage. To conduct a CPU load test online, you can, for example, take the aid of CPU Stress Test Online tool. It is a free online tool where you can gauge several indicators and even calibrate them because not all CPUs can withstand high loads and if you don’t conduct the test carefully you may cause damage to your CPU. The indicators are inclusive of –
- The speed of the processor
- Number of threads
- CPU power
- FPS
- Points
6. What Does It Mean When Your Computer Says That System Has Failed CPU Test?
At the outset, we’d like to mention that even if you get the above-mentioned error message, needn’t lose heart because most issues are resolvable –
– Hardware Upgrade
Hardware just like any other thing is perishable and as we said, CPU issues may surface if you have an older CPU or power supply. You could start with easy stuff such as getting dust off your fan if it’s clogged. If need be, upgrade your fan or consider water-cooling. If you are someone who is into heavy gaming and overclocking computer resources, especially the CPU, and have scarce RAM, consider upgrading it and getting more RAM.
– Are There Any Outdated Drivers
A failed stress test could also indicate that your PC or laptop has corrupt or outdated drivers. Outdated and corrupt drivers are anyways a plight and should be fixed immediately. And, in case you are planning to conduct any computer stress test such as a CPU load test, even much before doing that, consider updating drivers on your Windows PC.
For the same, using driver updater software is probably the best way to identify outdated drivers and update them. Advanced Driver Updater is one of the best driver updating utilities which doesn’t just help in updating corrupt or outdated drivers but, helps you do the same in an error-free fashion here’s how –
- By identifying outdated and corrupt drivers.
- Letting you create a backup of drivers before updating them.
- Helping you in restoring backed-up drivers should the new drivers create problems.
- Advanced Driver Updater even lets you schedule driver updates so that your day-to-day operations don’t get hampered and you can conduct a scan at your own pace, at your own desired date and time.
How To Use Advanced Driver Updater?
1. Download, run and install Advanced Driver Updater from the above button.
2. Click on the blue-colored Start Scan Now button.
3. Once you have all outdated rivers, select the drivers you want to update by either clicking on the checkbox next to an individual driver or selecting all outdated rivers by clicking on the checkbox next to Driver Details.
4. For updating individual drivers, click on the Update Driver button. And, if you wish to update all the drivers, click on the green-colored Update All driver button.
5. To backup drivers, select the checkbox next to the drivers you want to backup and then click on Next.
Once you have updated your drivers, also consider updating your BIOS as well, if need be.
Wrapping Up
If you found this blog on CPU stress testing informative, do let us know in the comments section below. Also, share it with all your gamer friends and all those who are into using applications that are known to eat up CPU resources alive! For more such content, keep reading WeTheGeek.