Obsolete PC – Linux Multimedia Powerhouse

This is the first of a series of guides that will show you what is possible, once you have come to terms with the fact that you do not need modern PC hardware to run even the most challenging multi-media applications. This is proof that Microsoft marketing brainwashing is just – brainwashing.

Too Old For Microsoft Windows 7

I found an old PC that was still operational. It was currently running MS Windows XP Service Pack 4, in a business environment. When Microsoft introduced Windows 7, the owner was told by the Microsoft Windows 7 Compatibility software that the “hardware was no longer suitable for running Windows 7”. The PC then sat around for 7 years, before it was given to me to look at.

Motherboard Interfaces Checked

I reviewed the interfaces on the motherboard and found that it used DDR2 RAM and had 4 SATA interfaces for disc drives. The motherboard supported up to 8 GByte of RAM, so I sourced a full set of 4 x 2 Gbyte RAM modules from China for $23.

I then removed the old spinning hard disc drives and grabbed a 2 TB SSD SATA drive, for just under $200. (Note that I could have installed a 1 TB SSD drive for even less, as they go for under $100)

I then cleaned the fans, installed the RAM modules and SSD and proceeded to install Linux.

Quick tip:
You can use a domestic vacuum cleaner to clean the inside of computers, provided you hold the nozzle away from the electronics. You just have make sure the PC is unplugged from at the power outlet and all the fans are prevented from free-spinning with the high air currents generated by the cleaner. I have done this for over 20 years and never had equipment fail due to high static charges.

Linux Ubuntu Installation

I took the latest distribution of Ubuntu Linux, Version 23.04 and installed it on a DVD image as the PC could not boot off a USB stick, like all modern computers do.

After waiting for an hour or so, as the DVD drive was very old and slow, I had a running version of Ubuntu on the machine.

To my surprise, everything worked and all of the hardware components were correctly recognised by Linux.

Worked Out-Of-The-Box

Here is a screenshot of the “About – System Info” panel in the Gnome desktop so that you can see that the machine was quite old and yet was quite capable of running a current version of Linux. Remember that the “Intel Core 2 – Quad Q6600” was released in July 2007. That just over 16 years ago from when this new screenshot was taken!

I then installed LibreOffice, Brave web browser and the Zoom app as I wanted to use it for a Zoom meeting the next day after the installation.

I tested all of the apps and found that the machine effortlessly played video from YouTube within Brave, allowed me to create a new document with lot’s of images within the document app and then, on the next day, it worked effortlessly running the Zoom application with the web browser open and word processor running during the meeting.

Not convinced. Look at the screenshot below.

Solid Business Performance

This whole exercise was a testament to the solid and efficient operation of Linux and the maturity of the applications.

Note that I did not install the proprietary nVidia video drivers as everything worked as expected out of the box.

Modern PC hardware evolution is driven primarily by the gaming industry. Consequently, I would not expect this machine to work well playing modern games, as they usually require high power CPUs and modern GPUs to display real-time video at over 25 frames/sec.

If playing games is your goal, I would suggest picking up a second-hand Playstation 3 as that piece of hardware, is still a high performance, despite what Sony tell you.

Conclusion

This article shows you what is possible with ageing PC hardware and current Linux distributions. Keep this in mind when the see the hype that Microsoft and the other hardware manufacturers are pushing at you every day.

Microsoft’s push to get Window 7 on your PC and lock out older hardware is currently being repeated by them for Window 11. This is not good for you, or the environment.

Now I have a new multi-media powerhouse, while doing my bit to avoid adding the obsolete hardware to our landfill, and as an added bonus, this new system respects my privacy!

NOTE: For Detailed Instructions – Seek Experienced Help

If you wish to try doing this and need detailed instructions, I would suggest that you get help from a person who deals with PC hardware and is not afraid of Linux. There are plenty of guides on the Internet, but they are aimed at slightly newer hardware.

I am in the process of creating some new eBooks that will give step-by-step instructions for doing this with your PC and giving some help to problem-solve common issues that you may come across. Keep a look out for these, as these books will be available on this site, for free, for ever.