How to Check Computer Specs

Microsoft Windows offers detailed system information about your computer, but the method by which you access it depends on your Windows operating system. The modern tool in Windows 10 was originally deployed in Windows 8, but the process is different for Windows 7.

Checking Computer Specs in Windows 10

Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc. From the Task Manager, select the Performance tab.

The Performance tab contains several important bits of information:

• CPU: The processor type and speed (as well as the current processor load).
• Memory: The amount of total and currently available system memory.
• Disk: Metadata about the processor/drive, including the number of cores and logical processors, and whether virtualization technologies are in effect.
• Ethernet: The current disk throughput for each attached physical disk.
• Wi-Fi (or another type of connection): The type of network connection and the current amount of network traffic.
• GPU: The graphical processing unit and its present load.

Checking Computer Specs in Windows 8.1

Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 offer a similar Task Manager experience as Windows 10. To open it, press Ctrl+Shift+Esc.

Select More details to reveal the full version of the Task Manager. The look-and-feel of the Performance tab is identical to Windows 10 version 1909, released in 2019.

Checking Computer Specs in Windows 7

Although Windows 7 is no longer supported by Microsoft, some people still maintain Windows 7 computers.

From the Command Prompt, type systeminfo to see the relevant information about your system's hardware and software.

Alternative Tools

Other programs offer detailed system information, too, but you may not benefit from it. For example, to obtain precise information about your video card, you're probably better off using a tool from your card's vendor rather than relying on a different vendor's tool.