Reviving old M11x

I have a substantial amount of sentimental value for, and it is still functional just not up to my standards. Everything about the computer lags, from running games, loading programs and especially network connection (if anyone knows what could be the source of this problem could you shed light onto it? Browsing capability is minimal, and I'm not sure if the network adapter could be the problem). My main question here is, I want to get this laptop up and running well enough that it's worth keeping and if anyone knows some solutions? I want to switch out the HDD for something bigger, and install a new CPU but I don't know if that's doable.

 

Your problems may just be software related. You may want to backup your data and reinstall the operating system. You can always try updating the drivers for the network adapter too. You may also want to re-seat the adapter and the two antennas that attach to it. If problems still continue you can always change the wifi adapter with a compatible half-height mini pci-e card like an Intel 6300. You may also want to take a look at your wireless router as the source of your networking issues.

You may also want to give the laptop a good cleaning. I am talking primarily about cleaning the heatsink and reapplying thermal paste. To do this you will need to dismantle the laptop which is not hard to do.

As far as the hard drive, you have many options. An SSD will be a significant boost in disk performance, but it will also be more expensive per gigabyte compared to a traditional hard drive. If you want a good, big, and fast traditional hard drive, I recommend the HGST 7K1000. It is 1TB and is probably the fastest mechanical laptop hard drive available at the moment. You can also look at hybrid hard drives, aka SSHD, which combine a traditional platter system with a separate SSD type NAND memory.

You can't upgrade the CPU directly. You might be able to swap the motherboard with another one fitted with a faster CPU, but this may not be practical to do.

Reply with your laptop's specs and you'll get more suggestions.

 

Thank you so much for all the advice and I'll definately look into it all and I hope it all goes well. Again, thank you!

 

Good luck

 

So far I have reinstalled Win7 and cleared out old files and it runs beautifully now. Updated all drivers provided on the Dell website and still issues with the lights and power button not working, in regards to another post I made. Now, I have Updated my Nvidia driver but under device management there's a caution sign by the listing for it. My resolution is off compared to how it used to be and I don't know the cause of this. Also almost every steam game i have won't work and I think it's because of two drivers that I don't have. Is there any source of every driver that is needed that isn't provided by dell? And no I don't have a factory disc that came with it, it's long gone.

 

Power button and Lights issue: How are you turning the system on without the power button? Do any of the LED lights come on or are they all dead?

Graphics issue: Are you using the Nvidia driver from Dell's site or from Nvidia? I suggest the ones from Dell.

I am starting to suspect that maybe your motherboard is having issues.

 

Funny story about the power actually. Under the keyboard there is a hinge (not sure if mines broke or what) that if it is pressed down and released it turns on, so i just hold down a few keys until it boots up. I figured this out recently because the computer was believed to be broken for the longest because it wouldn't power back up (I believed it to be a hinge to screen problem so i took it apart, got a spare screen from the same model computer and put it back together and happened to stumble on that.)
Graphics card issue now. I have the driver from the dell website and it's installed and running but yet I don't think the card is being read by the computer still as this is the issue for applications not running. Some just won't work and after trying to find a solution online they just close out with no explanation but with Skyrim it gives a message on why, I'll get back with you on that tommorow afternoon. I thought it was those two unknown drivers but from other forums, they say it's the Card reader but in my devices there's 3 unknown devices and I can post screen caps of all of this tommorow.
I understand that this may be a lost cause, but the laptop was a gift from my girlfriend a few years back and it's been with me every where and I don't want to stuff it on a shelf.

 

this popped up when attempting to run the NVidia control panel.

 

If you already tried different drivers and it's still coming up with these errors, then your Nvidia chip is probably dead. You may want to look into replacing the motherboard at that point, or just continue to use it with the Intel graphics if you don't plan on gaming.