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Upgrade Guide

Upgrade your system's original Pentium or Pentium II processor, step by step.

  

3. Set the Motherboard Jumpers

To get the maximum performance out of your CPU upgrade, you must ensure that your motherboard's bus speed is set to 66 MHz and that its clock multiplier is set to the maximum value (usually 3.5X). Check the manual that came with your CPU upgrade for details on how to do this.

Some motherboards come with the required setting clearly marked, but most don't. Check the motherboard manual to make sure you're setting the right jumpers (photo). Setting jumpers incorrectly can result in a (temporarily) dead PC.

Some newer motherboards don't have jumpers. In this case, the PC should automatically detect the speed of the new processor and reset itself accordingly.

Some older motherboards (three to five years old) won't allow you to set the clock multiplier as high as the new CPU requires. In this situation the new CPU will still work, but not at its maximum speed.

Don't put the PC's cover back on until you're sure the system is working. Turn on your PC. If nothing happens, double-check that you've inserted the new chip correctly. If it still won't work, call the upgrade maker's tech support. If your PC does start up, run your applications to make sure everything is working correctly.

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