How Computers Work · Inside a Computer · Lesson 3 of 5

Reading Your Computer's Specs

Find your processor, RAM and storage, then check if an app or game will run.

Finding your specs on Windows

Your computer's specs, short for specifications, are the facts about its parts. How fast is the CPU? How much RAM is there? How big is the storage? You don't need a screwdriver to find out. The computer will tell you.

On Windows 11:

1. Open Start and choose Settings.
2. Click System, then scroll down and click About.
3. Look under Device specifications.

You will see a few lines worth knowing:

• Processor is the CPU's full name, like "Intel Core i5" or "AMD Ryzen 7", followed by its speed.
• Installed RAM is how much memory the computer has, like 8 GB or 16 GB.
• System type says whether Windows is 64-bit. We will explain that in the next part.

To see storage, go back to System and click Storage. A bar shows how much space is used and how much is free.

On a Mac, click the Apple menu in the top-left corner and choose About This Mac. It shows the chip (the CPU), the memory (RAM) and the macOS version. For storage, open System Settings, then General, then Storage.

It's worth writing these numbers down somewhere. They help when you buy software, ask for tech support, or think about upgrading.

On the practice computer, open About and find the processor, the installed RAM and the system type. Then check the storage, and answer the game question at the end.

GB, TB and will it run

Specs are full of short units. Here are the ones you will see most.

A byte is a tiny piece of data, about one letter of text. Bytes add up fast, so we use bigger units:

• A megabyte (MB) is about a million bytes. A phone photo is a few MB.
• A gigabyte (GB) is 1,000 MB. A movie is a few GB.
• A terabyte (TB) is 1,000 GB. That is room for hundreds of thousands of photos.

So a 1 TB drive holds about four times as much as a 256 GB drive. One small surprise: Windows counts a little differently than the box does. A new 1 TB drive often shows up as about 931 GB. Nothing is missing.

64-bit describes how much information the CPU and Windows can handle at once. A 64-bit system can use far more RAM than an old 32-bit one. Windows 11 only comes in 64-bit, and most apps today expect it.

Software lists system requirements, the parts a computer needs to run it. You'll usually see two lists:

• Minimum means it will run, but maybe slowly.
• Recommended means it should run smoothly.

To check, hold the list next to your About page. Compare each line: operating system, processor, RAM, free storage and graphics. If every line on your computer is equal or higher, you are good.

Check free space, not total size. A 512 GB drive that is nearly full may not have room for a 50 GB game.