Should I buy a separate PC for work if overclocking??

[Dave3000]

I right now have one PC that I use for both gaming and work (word processing, spreadsheets, payroll, and billing). It has an i7-4930k. I created 2 overclocking profiles in the BIOS of my motherboard, one is called Stock (stock CPU settings) and another one called Gaming (overclocked CPU settings). I just find it a hassle to go into the bios each time and change back to the "Stock" profile each time I want to do work and then when I want to go play a game, reboot my system and go into the BIOS and change to the Gaming profile. My overclocked setting for the Gaming profile is 4.2 GHz. I'm still trying to verify to whether the overclock is stable or not. I'm just worried about getting a calculation error if I do my work with even though the work I do is not CPU stressful, when overclocked but at the same time I want better performance in FSX and other CPU intensive games and this is my only PC. Would it be worth it to buy a cheap laptop or cheap desktop for work and just use my current PC for entertainment? Should I just keep the two overclocking profiles in the BIOS instead and just stick to one PC and keep switching between profiles depending what I'm going to do on my PC?

 

[VirtualLarry]

Don't overclock work PCs. Especially ones that deal with financial transactions. Unless you're really elite and uber, and know what you're doing.

 

[Chiefcrowe]

Yes, I agree. If I were you, I'd get another machine for work purposes and use the overclocked one for gaming.

 

[crashtech]

Sounds like the work stuff could be handled by a relatively inexpensive laptop like a Thinkpad T540.

 

[Dave3000]

I'd rather not keep switching profiles in the BIOS, so think I'm going to get a separate PC for work even though I could just run my current system at stock settings when doing work and then back to overclocking when gaming, but that is just too much of a hassle for me, not to mention that I don't want to tie up my PC when stability testing and not have another system to use.

I think I'm going to buy a cheap laptop for work. Here is the one I was thinking about getting. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/hp-pavi...lver/3463056.p?id=1219582883277&skuId=3463056

 

[crashtech]

Just my opinion, but working within that price range, I would rather have a lightly used T430 with a faster CPU, 8GB RAM, and an SSD for less money. (I have no affiliation with that listing,btw.)

 

[DigDog]

wh...what.

:/

dude your overclocked PC is perfectly fine. there is no harm whatsoever that can come to your work files from overclocking. at worse, and i mean really unusual and unlikely, you could fry your cpu or make it last slightly less than they usually do (which is more than their practical lifespan anyway), but a dead CPU does not mean lost work.

Overclocking does NOT affect the precision of calculations done by the CPU - if it works, it works. On ridiculously high overclocks, like LN2 record breakers, it might cause crashes, but if you can run a stability test (gaming itself is enough of a test), you are safe.

If the paranoia really eats your brain, buy a second drive and keep a copy of your files there, but aside for that, your pc is fine.

 

[crashtech]

I own a small business and just wouldn't run it from a gaming PC, when alternatives are cheap and also a fully deductible business expense.

 

[Dave3000]

Would you shop online and pay bills online, using an overclocked gaming PC? Would a wrong calculation get process during those transactions resulting in getting overcharged or an extra 0 got added to a number, for example you bought something online for $100 but when the transaction was processed it resulted in $1000 due to unstable overclock which did not show stability problems in gaming or stress tests? I use my gaming PC to do those things as well since it's my only PC.

 

[crashtech]

My concern from experience is lost productivity and lost business from having a PC that stops working properly at an inconvenient time, or corrupts or loses some customer data.

 

[WilliamM2]

Would you shop online and pay bills online, using an overclocked gaming PC? Would a wrong calculation get process during those transactions resulting in getting overcharged or an extra 0 got added to a number, for example you bought something online for $100 but when the transaction was processed it resulted in $1000 due to unstable overclock which did not show stability problems in gaming or stress tests? I use my gaming PC to do those things as well since it's my only PC.

My 2500K has been running at 4.4GHz for over 3 years. I don't hesitate to shop online or pay all my bills with it. Errors like you are describing just don't happen. That's just not how it works.

 

[2is]

I run my own business as well. Most of the things I need to do I do from my main (and gaming) PC. Answer emails, remote support, VPN into clients networks, etc.

I do have a separate PC for my QuickBooks though, which is all stock. I need to have access to my QB at all times and my gaming PC is just too inefficient with it's overclocks and dual graphics cards to keep running 24/7

Now if I was a programmer compiling tons of code that took months to write, i'd probably feel a bit uneasy doing it on an overclocked computer.

Shopping online isn't an issue. Your computer isn't the one adding up the totals anyway, it's just displaying it. If your OC is so unstable that it can't properly register a keyboard input, you'll notice it well before windows even boots up.

 

[LTC8K6]

If it's a stable overclock and you leave it alone, that's one thing.

If it's a PC that you are constantly fiddling with, changing components, adjusting clocks, trying different things, etc., that is another thing entirely.

The former is probably fine and reliable for a work PC.

The latter is definitely not.

 

[Blue_Max]

My concern from experience is lost productivity and lost business from having a PC that stops working properly at an inconvenient time, or corrupts or loses some customer data.

This. This right here.

This alone is worth the small expense of a dedicated machine for work only. Besides, you can get great off-lease Dell or HP workstations with classic Q6600 processors (etc.) which are solid for work and only $50-100.

It's tempting to use it as an excuse to buy a laptop, but I don't recommend carrying vital business info around on something so easily damaged or stolen. A cheap but reliable SFF Intel workstation is just the ticket. If you don't want to buy used, one of those Intel "Next Unit of Computing" (NUC) machines are very affordable (~$200?) and so small they can often be VESA mounted right to the back of your monitor.

 

[jji7skyline]

This. This right here.

This alone is worth the small expense of a dedicated machine for work only. Besides, you can get great off-lease Dell or HP workstations with classic Q6600 processors (etc.) which are solid for work and only $50-100.

It's tempting to use it as an excuse to buy a laptop, but I don't recommend carrying vital business info around on something so easily damaged or stolen. A cheap but reliable SFF Intel workstation is just the ticket. If you don't want to buy used, one of those Intel "Next Unit of Computing" (NUC) machines are very affordable (~$200?) and so small they can often be VESA mounted right to the back of your monitor.

But most NUCs are barebones and require you to buy all the extra components separately including an mSATA SSD, Wifi card, RAM, power cable, etc. As a result they end up being relatively expensive even compared to a similarly specced Mac Mini.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

When I "made money" with my computer(s) and expertise, I would not have had the slightest thought to overclock, although I was building my own computers back then.

I tend not to sell my old systems, but rather use them until they're prime for disassembly and carting off to the electronic waste recycler.

So I always have two PCs, oriented to different purposes. However, my current practice is to overclock them both. Files are stored on my server; I run CHKDSK periodically; I occasionally run SFC /SCANNOW to assure myself there's been no HDD or system-disk file corruption. I monitor my event logs carefully, and quickly focus my attention on resolving errors and warnings that are not "benign."

The hard and fast rule: A business computer should not be overclocked. Don't overclock a computer that monitors life-signs in a hospital or manages a nuclear reactor. Don't overclock a computer used for complicated project management with CPM or PERT in a project to build a large skyscraper.

But I have no problem using an overclocked system for my accounting, my taxes, the management of my rental property. I just wouldn't use it for serious purposes while the process of determining stable clock settings is in progress. I try to get the overclocking finished and fine-tuned before making "operational use" of my computer.

Otherwise, I"ve never had any troubles that folks here -- some of them -- dream up in their worst nightmares.

 

[R0H1T]

When I "made money" with my computer(s) and expertise, I would not have had the slightest thought to overclock, although I was building my own computers back then.

I tend not to sell my old systems, but rather use them until they're prime for disassembly and carting off to the electronic waste recycler.

So I always have two PCs, oriented to different purposes. However, my current practice is to overclock them both. Files are stored on my server; I run CHKDSK periodically; I occasionally run SFC /SCANNOW to assure myself there's been no HDD or system-disk file corruption. I monitor my event logs carefully, and quickly focus my attention on resolving errors and warnings that are not "benign."

The hard and fast rule: A business computer should not be overclocked. Don't overclock a computer that monitors life-signs in a hospital or manages a nuclear reactor. Don't overclock a computer used for complicated project management with CPM or PERT in a project to build a large skyscraper.

But I have no problem using an overclocked system for my accounting, my taxes, the management of my rental property. I just wouldn't use it for serious purposes while the process of determining stable clock settings is in progress. I try to get the overclocking finished and fine-tuned before making "operational use" of my computer.

Otherwise, I"ve never had any troubles that folks here -- some of them -- dream up in their worst nightmares.

This, anything having critical data or being important to you financially (or otherwise) should not be overclocked. There are literally billions (slight exaggeration :awe of things that can crash a modern PC mid session, you wouldn't want to facilitate any of them especially when you're in the middle of something important in fact I'd go so far as to suggest a T or S (low power) CPU variant for anything that doesn't require lots of computing power, like in your case perhaps.

 

[ClockHound]

If I stopped overclocking my work PCs my work throughput and income would drop 30-40%....Until I can make the cost benefit argument for Xeon render farms at stock, I'm going to keep rendering using OC'd PCs...none have crashed due to overclocking in 5 years.

When I worked for corporate masters, had more failures from stock Dells/HPs made to fit the BOM than systems I put together using premium parts and meticulously assembled and tested.

I don't OC my systems to the ragged edge - it's possible to have stability and performance. Although, I dream of my own data centre where clients could press their noses against the glass and watch the marvel of robotic arms dripping LN2 into pots while their 4K video footage of tedious lawncare products is rendered 50% faster.

In the video/motion graphics world silent data corruption is a sought after luxury. When render boxes go boom, it's not silent - it's a mess. And 90% of crashes are a software issue. The other 90% are video drivers.

I'm a fringe use case, but strongly recommend those writing pithy one page marketing blurbs in Word always type safely at stock clocks. One corrupted character could result in a product claim too far. :biggrin:

 

[cytg111]

If I stopped overclocking my work PCs my work throughput and income would drop 30-40%....Until I can make the cost benefit argument for Xeon render farms at stock, I'm going to keep rendering using OC'd PCs...none have crashed due to overclocking in 5 years.

When I worked for corporate masters, had more failures from stock Dells/HPs made to fit the BOM than systems I put together using premium parts and meticulously assembled and tested.

I don't OC my systems to the ragged edge - it's possible to have stability and performance. Although, I dream of my own data centre where clients could press their noses against the glass and watch the marvel of robotic arms dripping LN2 into pots while their 4K video footage of tedious lawncare products is rendered 50% faster.

In the video/motion graphics world silent data corruption is a sought after luxury. When render boxes go boom, it's not silent - it's a mess. And 90% of crashes are a software issue. The other 90% are video drivers.

I'm a fringe use case, but strongly recommend those writing pithy one page marketing blurbs in Word always type safely at stock clocks. One corrupted character could result in a product claim too far. :biggrin:

Almost +1.
Overclock away, I assume you have a decent backup plan in place right? I wouldnt think twice about running my business (I am an independent contractor as well) from an OC'ed machine as long as it is not OC'ed - to the edge-. When you're tossing office apps around the CPU is going to idle at ~800mhz anyway, I dont see the harm. Data corruption *may* occur while writing to the harddrive if the bus is oc'ed. So dont oc any busses and you're good to go.

 

[ClockHound]

Yes, have backups for key source material and project files. In depth. Early and often. If something untoward happens during a render pass, well...life's a gamble anyhow. Restore from backup and start the render again.

Wait! What? You can overclock the SATA bus??? What speed gains have I been missing....;-)

 

[Lonyo]

You can buy SSDs with capacitors to prevent data loss in the event of sudden power loss, but if it's that mission critical you should be running stock, have a UPS and have an effective backup system, ideally. Something off-site as well as an on-site backup (or RAID).
If you don't have that sort of thing already, it's presumably not that critical, and running on an overclocked machine (if stable) should be fine.
My main machine has random crashes sometimes, so I would never do work on it, bt if it was perfectly stable then I wouldn't be bothered if it was as uncritical as things that don't require any UPS or backups.

A laptop is a good idea purely because it already has a built in UPS. Get one in which you can put a replacement SSD with power backup for itself (if required) and you'll be fine, then just plug in an external HDD for backups and maybe mirror any super critical data to something in "the cloud" for extra peace of mind.

 

[Ryun]

Overclocking does NOT affect the precision of calculations done by the CPU - if it works, it works. On ridiculously high overclocks, like LN2 record breakers, it might cause crashes, but if you can run a stability test (gaming itself is enough of a test), you are safe.

Over clocking can affect the precision of calculations though. This is what stability programs like Intel Burn Test are designed to test.

I'd never have an active over clock on a PC I use for work. I'd get another PC, OP.

 

[sm625]

That's silly. I ran a work pc with a 30% overclock for 6 years. Never had any "calculation errors". The only downside is that due to it being so fast, I never got an upgrade so I was still running Core 2 when everyone else was getting SB's. My pc just ran so smoothly there was no need for an upgrade.

 

[komatta]

For whatever reason I find Linux gets more fussy about overclocks than Windows. Since I work in the former and game in the latter, I do not OC my work PC. Spending any time chasing stability problems is a waste when I could be being productive.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Where's Rubycon when you need her? She once related a story about overclocking a Core2Quad 45nm CPU, and finding out that the SSE4.1 instructions failed to calculate accurately, above something like 3.4Ghz. (Note: There were never any stock speed Core2Quad CPUs at or above this speed.)

So overclocking certainly CAN throw calculations off. Sandy Bridge and newer contain some mitigations internally for this, supposedly, that sort of "double-checks" some calculations, and retries them if they are erroring. I believe that IDontCare wrote a sort of expose on that issue, with a chart or graph of voltages, and LinX / linpack calculation FLOPS. Showing that insufficent voltage caused internal calculation failures and thus retries, bringing your flops down, at the same external clock speed.