What is the best computer “burn-in” or stability testing software? [closed]

Question

When you buy a brand new computer, it's a good idea to run some software to "burn it in", to make sure that everything is running properly (and the system is stable). People who overclock also do this, to make sure their overclocking wasn't too aggressive.

What are some good tools to check the overall stability of the system? Memtest86+ is one example; it performs a very thorough diagnostic of your computer's RAM to make sure you don't have any bad sticks.

What other software do you run to check your system's stability, or run a "burn-in" test?

Answer 1

• 3D Mark for CPU and GPU
• Distributed.net's client for CPU cores
• Any modern game

Answer 2

Mersenne Prime Test or StressCPU

Answer 3

Whenever someone builds a new computer, the very first thing (after the sort out their voltages, clock speeds, RAM timings, etc...) I suggest they run is Memtest86+ (as you said). Your computer will randomly crash and it will be difficult to troubleshoot if you're unaware that your RAM is corrupted (it is possible for this to happen with a new stick of RAM).

As a plus, you can also run the tool off of a USB key. If you choose to overclock your memory or change the timings, run the test at stock settings first. If it passes, then go to overclock (and re-test it afterwards).

Once that's done, you can use some tools off of the Ultimate Boot CD (which you can coincidentally also run off of a USB key). These include burn-in tests, although I would highly recommend you install an operating system with the appropriate hardware monitoring tools (e.g. HWMonitor or HWiNFO) and then burn in your CPU.

As for burning in the CPU, you can use Prime95 on all CPUs, or you can also use Linpack (used in the IntelBurnTest program). Both programs will definitely give your CPU a run for it's money. Ensure that your computer passes both tests (iterate the test enough times for you to find your system stable). These tools all require you have an operating system installed.

Answer 4

HeavyLoad

From webpage:
Heavyload is intended to stress all resources of a PC (the CPU, RAM, hard disk, network, operating system, etc.) in order to test reliability under a heavy load. This is useful for testing important MS Windows file or database servers before using them for production, or just to check if your new PC might get too hot when used intensively. To stress your PC or server, HeavyLoad writes a large test-file to the temp folder, it allocates physical and virtual memory, performs complex calculations and it draws patterns in its window.

Answer 5

Intel TAT. It is much more stressful than Orthos, Prime95 or any other CPU burn-in test. IT got my cores to hit about 8 degrees C higher than any other test.