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Need Advice on Upgrading My Intel CPU

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Apr 4, 2017
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I have always bought PCs with tower cases. But in 2013, I bought an All-in-One because of space and affordability. I have had excellent service from it. It's a Lenovo C560, 23" Monitor, Intel Core i3-4150t @ 3.00 Ghz, 8GB DDR3 Ram @1600.

I overclocked the processor about 9% in a test, while mining Bitcoin. Well, I kept getting messages saying the CPU was too hot, the fan is malfunctioning, etc. I have it torn apart and scattered across my desk. I contacted Lenovo Support who were no support at all. So I contacted Intel and the tech was out in left field, babbling about hyper-drive and quantum mechanics. So I came to a forum looking for answers. My CPU is an Intel i3-4150t. I am looking at the Pentium G series. And a local tech was talking about a Xeon E series. I have a LGA 1150 socket, Haswell motherboard. I had Windows 7 Pro originally but when my update came to Win8 they gave me Home premium. It never ran well on that so for the last two years I have been using 32-bit Linux Ubuntu 14.04.2. Any comments or suggestions would be gratefully received.
 
You have two issues here:
  1. The CPUs that you can use are limited by the BIOS more than the system. Lenovo only puts certain CPUs in the BIOS ID table. If the BIOS doesn't recognize the installed CPU, it will refuse to boot.
  2. You have to keep a close eye on heat output in an all-in-one system. Because of the machine's design, you're stuck with the CPU cooler that Lenovo installed.
I found the datasheet for the C560. Here are the CPUs that Lenovo listed:

Intel Core i7-4770T : 2.5 / 3.7 GHz, 4 cores / 8 threads, 45W TDP
Intel Core i5-4570T : 2.9 / 3.6 GHz, 2 cores / 4 threads, 35W TDP
Intel Core i3-4130T : 3.0 GHz, 2 cores / 4 threads, 35W TDP
Intel Pentium G3220T : 2.6 GHz, 2 cores / 2 threads, 35W TDP​

These T-series CPUs are low-heat models.

You could try putting an unlisted CPU in that machine, but it may not boot up. If it boots and runs, you're likely to experience cooling issues if that CPU gets too warm.
 
Two issues I can think of are power delivery and heat.
A.I.O.'s generally use a power brick to supply sufficient power for it's original design and intended use.
If you put in a higher powered CPU you will have problems, including greater heat being generated and possibly insufficient power.
Assuming the CPU is not BGA, because I couldn't be arsed to look it up, you need to use one from the same socket (1150) within the same designed Tdp.
I wouldn't even attempt to use a Xeon Processor in an A.I.O.
If you want to upgrade the Processor, then don't waste time looking at Pentium CPU's, look for an i5 or i7 which will give you greater performance while staying within the stock temperature range.
Edit: From a quick look on Ark, the highest you might possibly install is the i7-4790T which boosts up to 3.9GHz, and only differs from the listed, supported i7-4770T by a slightly higher clock speed.
 
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