Program for complete system information. Programmer Free programs for your computer, useful tips for Windows
The free AIDA32 utility has been the best program to collect information about the system, and had no worthy analogues. She provided full information for almost every hardware and software. It also allowed us to check the network environment and conduct memory performance tests.
However, in March 2004, the developer announced that the development of AIDA32 would be frozen, and the main development would be transferred to another company. Where the development of AIDA32 was subsequently continued, but as commercial product called Everest. When Everest was acquired by FinalWare in 2010, development of the Everest product was discontinued. However, the product itself continued to exist, but under the name AIDA64, which still exists today. Unfortunately, this product only has trial versions.
Review of free programs for collecting computer information
AIDA32 aka Everest Home for collecting information about your computer
However, you may still find the old version. And there is still a free version Everest programs entitled . Old version AIDA32 performs better at collecting data about the network environment, while Everest covers more modern equipment. So even though they are essentially the same product, you can use both products at once to get maximum results.
The Belarc Advisor program is an analogue of AIDA32 for collecting information about the system
If you need to take an inventory of the hardware of a single computer, then it will come in handy. This program is free for non-commercial use. Of course, it is inferior in coverage to AIDA32, but it has one important advantage. It is actively developing. So the time will come, and the program will overtake AIDA32.
HWiNFO program for convenient system inventory
SIW (System Information for Windows)
| Detailed results, portable. | ||
| Does not support Windows 8 and higher. The free version is no longer updated. |
PC Wizard
| Quite detailed information. Not a bad benchmark. Updated regularly | ||
| The installer contains "Ask Toolbar" (you don't have to install it) |
Belarc Advisor
| Actively developing | ||
| Not as powerful as AIDA32 |
Introduction Why are all these utilities that display information about the system needed? Every more or less advanced user will tell you in detail about the configuration of their computer. But what about such non-trivial things as the drive mode (is DMA enabled)? Or frequency system bus(does it make sense to buy more fast memory- does the processor work for more high frequencies system bus)? In addition, a very common situation is when you remotely consult with your more knowledgeable friend (for example, about the same upgrade), and he asks you to accurately indicate the chipset and revision of your motherboard.
In all of the above cases, utilities that display detailed information about the system can help significantly. You may ask, what’s so bad about the standard “Device Manager” included in Windows?
Basically, it can answer many questions regarding your system configuration. But the utilities we are considering today appear for a reason - the user needs user-friendly interface, centralized presentation of information (which it is desirable to receive in an accessible form), as well as “tasty” additional plugins (for example, tests for processor performance and random access memory). Hand on heart, do you know offhand where all the variety of data about the system is stored (after all, they are scattered in different corners of it)? And in utilities - “everything in one bottle”... In general, in the automotive industry there is such a thing as “tuning” - people turn to a car studio to improve convenience and additional features. In principle, some parallels can be drawn with our case.
The criterion for the subjective assessment of today's test subjects: free delivery (no adware or spyware - this was the main condition for getting on the list), stable operation. Well, if the interface is also convenient, and there are additional modules or plug-ins, then you can’t do without recommending such a program for installation on your computer. And one more important point- we will test under operating system Windows Vista- we will check the readiness of all applicants for professional suitability in the environment of the new operating system from Microsoft.
Let me make a reservation right away - I will not meticulously describe all the capabilities of the utilities, but will focus on conveying my own impressions from getting to know their functionality (in addition, screenshots will tell you much more). If you are interested, detailed specifications and reference documentation are always available on the project websites, the addresses of which are given at the beginning of each description.
PC Wizard 2007
Program website: http://www.cpuid.com/pcwizard.phpDeveloper: CPUID
The author of the PC Wizard program is familiar to many of us from his famous CPU-Z utility. Both products have been in development for over 10 years, and there is no doubt about the professionalism of the author.
The program distribution takes up about two and a half megabytes in the archive (there is also a version with an installation module). In the case of an archive, after unpacking the program is immediately ready to work (it’s nice that it is localized into Russian), a few seconds after analyzing the system and interrogating the sensors, you can go study the details.
The program interface has five sections: “Hardware”, “Configuration”, “System Files”, “Resources” and “Test”.
"Iron". Information is provided (mostly comprehensive) about all components of the system, be it the motherboard, processor or RAM modules. Take, for example, a processor - you will find out not only its characteristics, but also the current temperature, core voltage, load level, etc. What more could you ask for?
At the bottom of the window there are two tabs “Information” and “Drivers”. In the first - it is given detailed description specifications, parameters and their values, etc. In the second, information about the drivers is displayed. Not everything is perfect here - for a number of components, PC Wizard could not determine driver data (for example, I did not display information about printer drivers, USB controller and even video card drivers ATI Radeon 2900XT). There are minor translation errors - for example, the “Drivers” item in “Hardware” should have been more correctly designated as “Storage Drives”. In addition, a number of section titles are left without translation.
The Voltage, Temperature and Fans section deserves special attention - it contains information obtained from various sensors systems.
"Configuration". It contains information about the operating system (version, serial number, user, etc.), web browser, control panel, desktop, processes and threads, dynamic libraries ah (with decryption), OLE records, software products Microsoft, installed fonts TrueType, updates (for some reason this item was empty for me, apparently it only displays information about the Service Pack). There is also a section installed programs, information about application startup, file type associations with applications, DirectX components, security information, multimedia components, performance statistics, etc.
This section is a little “damp” - in some places there is missing data, in others there are shortcomings (I displayed “winter” time, but in the decoding in the Information panel the correct summer time was indicated). In general, the author still has some polishing to do.
"System files". This section centrally displays the information contained in system files Boot.ini, System.ini, Win.ini, etc.
"Resources". Displaying a list of busy interrupts and channels direct access to memory, I/O ports, memory resources. Some points did not work for me - an empty form was given.
"Test". This section contains a number of tests for your system so that you can evaluate its performance. You will be able to evaluate overall performance with the ability to save the results (and compare after an upgrade).
Most of the tests are synthetic, and there are variations in the results. If you wish, you can compare your results with data stored in the PC Wizard database. This can be useful for identifying cases where your system is not optimized properly. I really liked the next point - when comparing your results with standards from the database - you use the slider to adjust the transparency of the window and then overlay it on the results graph to visually compare the chart stripes.
The set includes tests of reading and writing speed in the first and second level cache of the processor, operating speed hard drive and storage on optical disks, random access memory. There is even a video card performance test in 3D, but it is quite primitive. I would also note the MP3 compression test, but for this you will need an audio CD.
Summary: impressions of PC Wizard 2007 are the most positive. It looks like a big beautiful house with many rooms, although several are not yet finished, but what is there is impressive. Unfortunately, there are some flaws in the Russian localization.
SIW (System Information for Windows)
Program website: http://www.gtopala.com/Developer: Gabriel Topala
Romanian programmer Gabriel Topala presents to us the SIW utility (an abbreviation for System Information for Windows). The utility interface will display the following screenshot:
On the left is a tree structure of the components for which information is provided. The "roots" of the tree are the Software, Hardware and Network sections. In addition, the composition also includes the Tools menu, in which there are useful additions. So, first things first...
Software. Information about the operating system (kernel version, serial number, operating time since last download etc.); updates (“patches” from Microsoft); list of programs (names, exact versions, installation date); applications - system and others (name and size of the file to be launched, vendor, directory path, creation date, attributes, etc.); licenses (list of serial numbers of detected licensed programs); regional settings; associations of files with applications; list running applications; list of loaded dynamic libraries; list of files system drivers and kernel level drivers; a list of programs downloaded with Windows; list of installed multimedia codecs; list of ActiveX components; list open files(with the names of applications and processes that opened them); list of passwords from autofill, etc.
In addition to standard information components I’ll note here such useful things as displayed serial numbers of licensed applications and a list of passwords from autofill forms - for especially forgetful users, of course (and not for malicious purposes).
Hardware. System information (index Windows performance Vista, disk space, physical RAM and its load, virtual memory, paging file size, registry size, etc.); motherboard (manufacturer, model, version, serial number, chipset, devices on the board, memory slots, etc.); sensors (information about the temperature of the processor cores and the temperature of the hard drive); BIOS (version, release date, developer, size and characteristics); information about the processor (name, code name, process technology, platform, frequency, multiplier, cache, instructions, etc.); devices (in principle, this section practically provides information from the Manager Windows devices, which is even structured similarly); PCI (information about devices using this bus); system slots; network adapters(name, manufacturer, speed, MAC address, parameters of the established connection); memory (information about installed memory modules - type, frequency, capacity, data transfer rate, error correction, etc.); video (information on video card, monitor, supported resolutions, DirectX versions); drives (comprehensive information on hard drives, optical drives, removable USB drives, etc.); logical drives(common space, free space, type file system, device type, bus, etc.); ports (serial and parallel, USB, modem); battery (in the case of a laptop); printers (printers installed in the system, name, attributes, capabilities, port connection, etc.).
In my case, the information from the sensors is not as complete as I would like - for example, the processor temperature was missing (instead, the temperature of each of the two cores was indicated separately, and for some reason it turned out to be five degrees below room temperature), and the cooler rotation speed was also missing processor. I will also note a minus in displaying information on the video card - it is displayed in a raw, unformatted (for greater readability) form. By the way, this is not an isolated case.
Network. Network information (computer name, name working group, socket version, IP address, DNS servers, etc. - similar to the information produced by the "ipconfig /all" command); additional information (external IP, country, longitude and latitude of location, Internet provider, running servers, information on NetBIOS, etc.); search network environment; open ports (protocol, application, status, local and remote address, description); general access(local resources “shared” by you); remote connections, network (search network resources local network).
I liked this section especially " Additional Information", to obtain which, by the way, you need to connect to external network resources.
Useful tools
SIW includes several useful utilities, some of which we will discuss in this section.
Changing the MAC address.
Actually, it allows you to change the MAC address. Use with caution - if your authorization with the Internet provider is also tied to the MAC address, you will encounter problems.
Eureka!
This module allows you to display the password hidden behind the asterisks - for example, in an account field with password auto-fill or in an email client. In my case (Windows Vista), the module was unable to figure out either the password behind the asterisks in the email client, or the password in the autofill form Internet Explorer- apparently, Eureka! Works maximum under Windows XP.
Password hacking. This module allows you to extract information from .PWL files in the case of operating systems Windows lines 9x.
Network traffic.
A simple module that displays a graph of network connection activity. It can be useful for determining the real access speed or monitoring suspicious network activity.
Allows you to shut down or restart the computer (with forced closing of applications) after a certain amount of time (in seconds). It can be useful for limiting the time other users (primarily children) can work on the computer - provided, of course, that you have a password set in the BIOS.
Summary: not a bad utility, deserves a solid B, but a number of areas require improvement. It is interesting primarily due to the additional tools included in the package.
System spec
Program website: http://www.alexnolan.net/software/sysspec.htmDeveloper: Alex Nolan
The application is one and only executable file, and this immediately wins my sympathy. What will happen next? And then - when we start, an interface of this kind opens in front of us:
This information window is basic and is always returned to when displaying the interface. You get access to components both from a graphical toolbar and from drop-down text menus. In the case of a graphical panel - some buttons have access to additional functions- through drop-down icons when you click on the black arrows on the right.
Let's go through the presented "information buttons". By the way, each window displayed by clicking on it has options for updating information and printing it, which can be convenient in a number of cases.
Personal. Owner of the computer; operating system build number; system operating time since the last boot; default printer; operating system license serial number; version of .NET Framework libraries; etc.
I must say that some fields were not filled in - for example, the serial number of the hard drive, the original installation path, etc.
Memory. Physical amount of RAM and available (free) space; paging file size and its available capacity; dimensions virtual memory; channel width; frequency, etc.
Display. Display information - adapter name, chipset, on-board RAM, graphic resolution, font information.
my ATI video card For some reason the utility did not recognize the Radeon 2900XT in this module.
Drive. Drive name; file system type; volume serial number; size and free volume; number of bytes in a sector and number of sectors in a cluster; total number of clusters and number of free clusters; system "flags"; information from the S.M.A.R.T. area.
There is also a menu item CD / DVD Information - displays information about the optical drive (manufacturer; model; firmware version; description; drive letter; status; list of reading and writing capabilities).
CPU. Processor name; family; manufacturer; serial number; frequency; voltage; second level cache size; capabilities and command sets, etc.
I couldn't determine the frequency at which the second level cache operates. When expanded, the CPU button displays another option - displaying a small window with a graph of CPU resource load.
Internet. Internet connection status; start page in Internet Explorer; default directory for saving files; list of recently visited sites; some flags in browser settings.
A slightly chaotic section in which I did not recognize the installed search bar from Google in the Search Bar item.
Programs. The list of installed programs is displayed, slightly more extensive than the Add or Remove Programs window in Windows XP (or Programs and Features in Windows Vista). Program name, version, manufacturer's website, phone number technical support, installation location on disk, installation source, vendor, path to Readme files, path to uninstaller file, etc. Separately, I would like to note the ability to quickly go to the application manufacturer’s website using the Website button and the colorful Delete button Entry, which allows you to delete unnecessary entry from the displayed list of installed programs (this can be useful in case of failures that lead to information about the program being left behind after it has been completely removed).
A simple user will be scared, but seasoned system administrators will feel like a fish out of water. The utility provides information in the following categories: NDIS Info, System Info, System Accounts, User Accounts, Share Info, Network Connections, Network Adapters, Adapters Configuration, System Processes, Computer System, Display Info, System Settings, System Services, System Devices, Logical Disks, Serial Info, Proxy Settings.
In general, despite the information being provided in raw form, you can still find its advantages - the information provided (in particular, useful information about certain settings of the operating system or device drivers) is very interesting. For me, the utility was unable to provide information about network connections (most likely due to incomplete compatibility with Windows Vista).
Summary: It’s still obvious that FreeSysInfo is a “piece” that is part of complex network audit packages. Here we see a minimum of end-user friendliness and the production of raw information. Previous subjects had the necessary data immediately in sight, but here you have to rummage through the displayed list with technical information and find necessary information, and “raw” (for example, in the “country” field you will see not Russia, but “code 7”, look for it yourself by code, etc.). In general, the project's target audience is advanced users and system administrators.
XP Syspad
Program website: http://www.xtort.net/xtort-software/xpsyspad/Developer: Kenny Heimbuch (xtort.net)
The distribution takes up just under 800 KB and requires installation after downloading. The review included version 7.9 of the XP Syspad utility. After installation, the following window appears in front of us, essentially copying the task manager window with information about running processes:
Next, navigation is carried out by the titles of the lists of menu commands: Admin, Control Panel, Directories, My Menus, Network, Programs, System, Settings, Help.
I will not list all the contents of these categories, I will only say that again we have a situation where the developer did not invent a wheel, but decided to simply place links to many components, information modules and configuration tools for the Windows operating system within the interface of one utility. It is important that XP Syspad “minimizes” into the System Tray and is available from there at any second.
You can launch regional settings, view user accounts, delve into the Control Panel, quickly go to usually difficult-to-reach (read - in a few mouse clicks with a careful look at a large list of folders) directories and menu items, clear the web browser cache, browse address book mail client, find out the IP address, call up the calculator, open/close the CD-ROM tray or DVD-ROM drive, copy floppy disks, list installed drivers, etc. This is just the tip of the iceberg - everything the utility provides centralized access to about two hundred regular functions operating system.
There are also some nice little additions - like the ability to display the IP address, Windows and Office serial number, etc.
Unfortunately, the information about the system hardware is not encouraging - here, for example, is what the processor data looks like:
Not very friendly and informative, right? Some menu items do not work (some incompatibility with Windows Vista is obvious, when running under which my XP Syspad noticeably slowed down), so if I recommend this product, then first of all - Windows users XP, which, in fact, is what the very name of the utility warns about.
Summary: XP Syspad provides centralized access to components, information modules and settings of the Windows operating system, “sitting” with an icon in the system area. Complete and comprehensive information about hardware components is not provided. XP Syspad is more of a configuration tool with the ability to display a certain amount of information about the system.
Conclusion
I am sure that many readers can add a couple or three more to the list of utilities presented (and some enthusiasts can even add a couple of dozen). There are a whole lot of offers of this kind on the Internet. I chose these five programs simply because they caught my attention at different times and were put aside for further study.Without a doubt, I liked PC Wizard 2007 the most, and the professional level of the creator of this program evokes extremely respectful responses. Yes, some things need to be completed, “combed”, finalized, but all this mainly concerns secondary things.
System Information for Windows- also very good, although it is obvious that PC Wizard 2007 looks more interesting. But SIW contains additional useful components (PC Wizard 2007 has mainly interesting additional tests) like changing the MAC address, timer to turn off the computer, etc.
The rest of the participants are either specific, or mediocre, or slightly off-topic applications that I cannot recommend to all users without exception.
ADDITIONAL LIST OF USEFUL UTILITIES
This article, I hope, will have a long lifespan. In that last section, specially allocated in capital letters, I will indicate utilities that are similar in functionality to the current participants in the close examination.Send applicants either to my email address, or talk about them in our conference.
I will also try to supplement this article with fresh samples found. So let's get started...
Lansweeper
Program website: http://www.lansweeper.com/
Developer: Geert Moernaut
There are development teams that dig a certain topic quite deeply. However, they are not limited to just one platform or operating system. On the contrary, having conquered another height, they strive higher. So the CPU-Z program being considered today for analyzing the hardware components of the system is authoritative both in Windows platform, so recently he has been feeling quite well and mobile devices running Android.
CPU-Z Features
It would seem that what’s so difficult about writing a program that will show the insides of your computer or tablet? The most difficult thing is to make an application that will process data correctly for everyone possible combinations system components. In addition, difficulties arise from the constant emergence of new processors, memory modules and other modules. Therefore, in this class of programs, indicators of quality and authority are the relevance of the database of known devices and components, as well as the ability to work on all computers or tablets.
CPU-Z for Windows
On a computer there is a lot of work for CPU-Z: processor, memory, video card, etc. What useful things can be learned from this purely technical information? Using this program, you can easily determine that the laptop you purchased has an overclocked processor. This means that in six months, when the ventilation holes become clogged with dust, you will have problems with cooling the processor. In addition, when diagnosing faults, you can use data about the system to find out the operating features of a particular component. And when updating hardware, it is important to make sure that the installed hardware is really what is written about on the box.
CPU-Z will also help expose a not-so-honest seller by providing all the information about the processor and memory capacity of the unit you are purchasing. Sometimes this helps a lot to reduce the price or simply avoid buying 100% junk. At auctions for the sale of used laptops or computers, it is CPU-Z information is a kind of passport of the unit being sold.
Information about motherboard will allow you to find the manufacturer's website and check the availability of fresh BIOS version or drivers, which is very important to ensure stable operation the computer as a whole.
In general, the CPU-Z program tells the whole truth about the insides of the computer without having to disassemble it.
The Android version does everything the desktop version can do. It also provides the most detailed information about the components of your phone or tablet. From the information about my phone provided by the program, I saw, for example, that one core of my dual-core processor was being cut off to save power. It's nice.
I also saw actual size RAM, since the information for my phone model is different on different sites.
Many will find useful information about the device battery: its type, temperature and state of charge are indicated. While the last two parameters may not be very necessary, knowing the type of battery is very important if you want to extend its life.
On the “Sensors” tab, I found out that my phone has a proximity sensor (“Proximity sensor”), which is not used by the system. However, you can download a program that allows you to use this sensor.
Publication of results
Both desktop and mobile versions have the ability to publish your configuration on the Internet. This is necessary, for example, to communicate your configuration to people who want to help you on some forum or in technical support.
When publishing, you must indicate your username and, optionally, your email. If you provide an address, you will receive a link to the publication by email.
Conclusion
CPU-Z has become a kind of standard that is trusted by both ordinary users and authoritative publications when conducting different reviews and device tests. Now it is also in Google Play! During testing, not a single inaccuracy was identified in determining the configuration of the phone, tablet and computer. Moreover, it was discovered that there was a sensor on the phone that I didn’t even know about. The only thing missing is a GPS and Wi-Fi test. Many competing test programs they already know how to do this.
Surely today, any more or less prepared user can easily name the parameters of his computer or information about the system, including the installed operating system, processor type and frequency, amount of RAM, disk, etc. But not many people know that this is just so to speak, the tip of the iceberg. What if you need to know the operating mode of the DMA channel? What to do then? Now let's talk about how to find out all the parameters in detail.
General information about the system
Many users, naturally, may be indignant, they say, what’s wrong with the parameters called up by right-clicking on the computer icon, where you can view basic information on your terminal or laptop?
The answer lies in the question itself. The information presented in this section is very superficial and does not give a complete picture of the configuration.
The same applies to the standard “Device Manager”. Of course, in it you can see all the “hardware” or virtual components present in the system, even if they are disabled in the BIOS or those that have problems or conflicts. However, in some cases, in order to identify the causes of failures and eliminate emerging problems, it is necessary to have more complete information about both the hardware and the software environment.
System Information: Windows OS Program
In any operating system Windows family there is one of this type, regardless of the version of the system itself.
There are quite a lot of different parameters presented here. Of course, some of them are not needed by the average user in everyday work, but for specialists who repair or assemble computer terminals, such information can tell a lot. It should be noted that the built-in utility collects information about the system and instantly responds to the slightest configuration change at all levels. And this largely makes the “native” Windows utility simply irreplaceable.
How can I view system parameter data?
Now let's see how exactly you can view system information. There are at least three ways to do this in Windows.
The most common method is to use the Start menu and then select either Utilities or Administrative Tools, where the partition you are looking for is located (the difference in location is due to different versions the operating system itself).
The second and third methods are also simple. But many users either forget about them or simply don’t know about them. You can use the “Run” menu (Win + R), where the msinfo32 command is entered. You can go the other way by first calling command line(Win + R + cmd) and then entering system info. In principle, exactly how this program will be called does not play a special role. Whichever is more convenient for you.
Main Menu Components
Now let’s look at what interesting things you can find out in the “System Information” section. There are several main categories presented here. Let's immediately pay attention to the general information line. This contains not only information about Windows system, but also many parameters associated with it. For example, version, assembly, disk placement, bootloader, etc. You can also view here current versions installed BIOS and SMBIOS, user and geolocation data, information on RAM and virtual memory, or even the status of the Hyper-V module, if any. Next comes the hardware resources section. Regular user is unlikely to understand what kind of data it is. But the system administrator can easily view some important characteristics to eliminate one or another failure at the hardware level.
The components section is very interesting. It is somewhat similar to Device Manager, but the data presented in it is more detailed. After all, here you can see not only the name of the component, but information about the driver files. In addition, for multimedia, all codecs and decoders installed in the system are indicated, for network devices - their advanced parameters, for disk drives and controllers - their information, etc. In general, you can learn much more from such information than from that presented in the dispatcher. It is worth paying special attention to devices with conflicts (problems). Windows OS itself cannot always provide such information even in the manager, but here you can get the maximum amount of information for each faulty component.
Finally, in the software environment section you can find all the information the user is interested in about drivers, modules, installed and automatically downloaded applications and services. And even information about errors. In outdated operating systems you can find more sections of browser settings - everything related to the Internet or installed components Office. In general, as they say, there is enough information. But few people know that in the environment of this program you can view the parameters of remote computer terminals or save information about the system in a single text file with the .nfo extension (the program can also work with .cab or .xml formats).
Third-party utilities for viewing system information
Among third party utilities The most popular programs can be noted. This is, for example, PC Wizard from the developer CPUID, familiar to many from the CPU-Z utility, or small applications like SIW, System Spec, FreeSysInfo, etc.
They often contain interesting features related to setting up or testing equipment, which makes them very popular in their field.
Conclusion
In general, it can be noted that information about the system is not particularly useful for most users in their work. But for system administrators, developers of compatible software, or simply specialists involved in manual assembly or repair, such data will be extremely important. Although they may also be useful to some users. Let's say, in a situation where you need to do something manually and the user does not know where to look for it.