To identify your motherboard and find out what processor and processor socket a motherboard is currently using, you can use BIOS/UEFI setup, Windows utilities, or third-party software such as Speccy at ccleaner.com/speccy/download/standard. To research which processors a board can support, you can use the motherboard user guide, the website of the motherboard manufacturer, and for Intel processors, the Intel site at ark.intel.com. Research the current processor and processor socket of your computers motherboard, research which processors your board can support, and answer the following questions:

What is the brand and model of your motherboard? What processor socket does it use? How did you find your information?

Identify the currently installed processor, including its brand, model, speed, and other important characteristics. How did you find your information?

List three or more processors the board supports, according to the motherboard documentation or website.

Search the web for three or more processors that would match this board. Save or print three webpages that show the details and prices of a high-performing, moderately performing, and low-performing processor the board supports.

If your current processor fails, which processor would you recommend for this system? Explain your recommendation.

Now assume the Core i5-8600K processor that you saw installed in Figure 3-12 has gone bad. The motherboard in which it is installed is the Asus Prime Z370-P desktop board. The owner of the motherboard has requested that you keep the replacement cost as low as possible without sacrificing too much performance. What processor would you recommend for the replacement? Save or print a webpage that shows the processor and its cost.