Summary

Overclocking is the process of increasing the speed of your computer's CPU or other processor. Overclocking can improve the way the computer performs in benchmark tests and games, but it may have less obvious effects in other real-world applications. The best reason to try speeding up a computer is for the pure fun of it, if that's your idea of fun. On the other hand, overclocking does carry some risks, including damage to your CPU and other components, and lost data. If problems do appear, you're on your own; the warranty doesn't cover damage caused by a failed attempt at overclocking.

If you do try overclocking your CPU, the two best sources of instructions are the motherboard manual and the overclocking enthusiasts' Web sites. It's always cheaper to learn about potential disasters from somebody else's experience. To overclock a graphics controller, use either the Nvidia control panel software, or a third-party program such as RivaTune or ATITool.