Hey everyone! I have two older computers that my kids use primarily for gaming (indie games, Roblox, and some older titles) and school work. Here are the specs: Intel i7-4790, Geforce GTX 960 (2GB), and 8GB RAM. I'm thinking about what operating system would be best for these machines and have a few options in mind:
1. Stick with Windows 10 after support ends and have them do all purchases from my main computer starting this October.
2. Upgrade to Windows 11 using Rufus to flash a boot disk, with the side effects of not having TPM.
3. Switch to Linux (possibly Pop!_OS, Cachyos, or Mint). I've heard Pop!_OS has good compatibility with Nvidia.
My main concerns are:
1. Can these computers handle gaming well on Linux with that older GPU? They've performed decently on Windows 10 with games like Borderlands 3, Sifu, Palworld, and Ghostrunner 2. I've heard mixed reports on performance—some say around a 50% drop, while others report only around 10-5% or none at all.
2. Which of the three OS options would you guys recommend for this setup?
I have some experience with Linux from 2005-2015, so I'm not totally new to it!
5 Answers
A few things to think about:
- You could extend Windows 10 support in some ways if needed.
- Honestly, Windows 10 should still run fine for a couple more years; a lot of folks are still using Windows 7!
- Remember, if your kids play games that don't need Internet, they can still use the machines on a local network without issues.
- Dual booting could also be an option to consider if you're torn between systems!
Linux isn't Windows, just a heads-up! But I get it—you want to know about gaming compatibility specifically. I’ve had decent experiences with gaming on older Nvidia cards using WINE and Proton, but make sure to check the specific drivers and support details for your GPU, as that can make a difference!
Roblox doesn't really run on Linux natively, so if that's a must-have for your kids, you might need a Virtual Machine. Some people recommend using Sober, an unofficial Roblox port. And I've heard Grapejuice from Flathub works pretty well too, but your mileage may vary!
Thanks for the tip! I’ll look into Sober and Grapejuice.
MX Linux is great for older Nvidia cards! Their driver installer works smoothly, and it's based on Debian with some nice QoL tweaks. Definitely worth trying if you're going the Linux route!
If you're leaning towards Linux, I suggest trying either Zorin OS or Pop!_OS with Nvidia support. They tend to be user-friendly, especially for kids. Pop!_OS is particularly good with gaming performance on Nvidia cards!
I appreciate the heads-up! I’m focused on hardware compatibility for gaming, so any tips on that would be helpful.