Not every organisation has the budget for new computers every three years. Schools especially operate with tight finances, often running hardware that's five, seven, or even ten years old. The machines still work - they're just slow, temperamental, and require constant attention.
When evaluating any management tool, a crucial question for these environments is: will this work on our older hardware, or does it require modern machines we can't afford?
Faronics Cloud not only works on older hardware - it can actually help those machines perform better and last longer. This guide explains the hardware realities many schools face, sets realistic performance expectations, and shows how Faronics products can extend the useful life of ageing computers.
Hardware Realities in Schools
Let's acknowledge the situation honestly:
Budget constraints are real
School IT budgets face constant pressure:
• Capital budgets for new hardware compete with building maintenance, teaching resources, and staff costs
• Refresh cycles stretch from the recommended 3-4 years to 6-8 years or longer
• "Good enough" becomes the standard - if it turns on and runs applications, it stays in service
• Replacement happens when hardware fails completely, not when it becomes slow
This isn't poor planning - it's financial reality. Every pound spent on computers is a pound not available for direct educational impact.
What "older hardware" typically looks like
In school environments, older hardware often means:
• Age: 5-10 years old, sometimes older
• Processors: Intel Core i3/i5 from several generations ago, or older Celeron/Pentium chips
• RAM: 4 GB, sometimes still 2 GB on the oldest machines
• Storage: Traditional hard drives (HDDs) rather than SSDs
• Operating system: Windows 10, often upgraded from Windows 7
• Condition: Physically worn but functional
These machines were adequate when purchased. They can still be adequate for basic tasks - web browsing, document editing, educational software - if managed properly.
Why old computers feel slower than they should
Here's an important distinction: older computers feel slow partly because of their age, but significantly because of accumulated software problems:
Hardware ageing: Real but modest. CPUs don't get slower. RAM doesn't degrade. HDDs do slow down as they age and fill, but the core hardware capability remains largely unchanged.
Software accumulation: Significant and accelerating. Temporary files, registry bloat, background processes, malware, fragmentation - all accumulate over years of use. This "cruft" often causes more slowdown than the hardware's age.
A five-year-old computer that's been reimaged is dramatically faster than the same computer after five years of accumulated use. The hardware hasn't changed - the software burden has.
Faronics Cloud system requirements
The official requirements are modest:
• Operating system: Windows 10 or Windows 11 (current supported versions)
• RAM: 2 GB minimum, 4 GB recommended
• Disk space: Adequate free space (10-15% of drive recommended)
• Network: Internet connectivity for cloud management
• Processor: Any processor that supports Windows 10/11
If a machine runs Windows 10 adequately, it meets the requirements. The agent and Deep Freeze are designed to be lightweight - they don't demand modern hardware to function.
Performance Expectations on Older Hardware
Let's set realistic expectations for what Faronics Cloud delivers on older machines:
Resource usage on limited hardware
The Faronics agent is designed to be lightweight:
Memory: Typically 50-100 MB. On a 4 GB system, this is 2.5% of RAM - noticeable but not burdensome. On 2 GB systems, the percentage is higher, which is why 4 GB is recommended.
CPU: Near zero during normal operation. Brief activity during check-ins. Older CPUs handle this without strain.
Disk: Deep Freeze's disk redirection adds minimal overhead. On SSDs, imperceptible. On HDDs, slightly more noticeable but still modest.
Network: Small data packets for check-ins. Under 1 MB daily - irrelevant on any network connection.
Boot time on HDDs vs SSDs
Boot time is where older hardware shows the most noticeable impact:
SSD systems: Deep Freeze adds perhaps 2-5 seconds to boot. Total boot time remains fast, typically under 30 seconds.
HDD systems: Deep Freeze adds 10-20 seconds to an already longer boot process. Total boot time might be 60-90 seconds or more.
Practical impact: In lab environments where computers boot at the start of day and stay on, boot time matters less. For environments with frequent reboots, HDD boot times can be frustrating.
The net performance question
Here's where older hardware actually benefits from Faronics:
Without Deep Freeze: Older machines degrade quickly under shared use. Limited RAM fills with background processes. Slow HDDs bog down with fragmentation and temporary files. Within weeks, performance becomes painful. Within months, machines feel unusable.
With Deep Freeze: Every reboot clears the accumulated burden. RAM is freed. Disk clutter is removed. The machine returns to its baseline performance - every single time.
For older hardware especially, preventing degradation is more valuable than the small overhead cost. A frozen old machine consistently outperforms an unfrozen old machine that's been in service for months.
Setting realistic expectations
To be clear about what Faronics can and cannot do:
Can do: Maintain consistent performance at the hardware's capability level. Prevent degradation. Eliminate malware burden. Reduce support overhead.
Cannot do: Make old hardware perform like new hardware. A 2015 machine with 4 GB RAM won't run like a 2024 machine with 16 GB RAM. Faronics maintains the machine's potential; it doesn't transcend hardware limits.
The promise is sustained performance at the hardware's level, not magic upgrades.
Extending Device Lifespan
This is where Faronics Cloud provides significant value for schools with older hardware:
Preventing premature retirement
Many computers are retired not because the hardware failed, but because:
• They've become too slow to use productively
• They require constant reimaging to maintain usability
• The support burden exceeds the value they provide
• Users complain constantly about performance
• IT staff spend disproportionate time maintaining them
Deep Freeze addresses these issues directly. Consistent performance means machines remain productive. No reimaging cycles means less IT burden. Reduced complaints mean less pressure to replace hardware that's actually still functional.
The economics of extended lifespan
Consider the financial impact:
Replacement cost: A basic desktop suitable for school use costs £400-600. For a lab of 30 machines, that's £12,000-18,000.
Refresh delay: If Faronics allows you to delay replacement by even one year, you've deferred that capital expenditure. Interest alone on £15,000 is meaningful.
IT time savings: Less time maintaining old machines means IT staff can focus on higher-value work - or simply cope with existing workloads.
Faronics cost: Substantially less than replacement hardware. If the software extends useful life by a year or two, the return on investment is clear.
Practical steps to maximise lifespan
To get the most life from older hardware:
1. Create an optimised baseline. Before freezing, strip the machine down to essentials. Remove bloatware. Disable unnecessary startup programs. Configure for performance over appearance. This lean baseline becomes permanent.
2. Consider SSD upgrades. A £40-60 SSD transforms an old machine. Boot times drop dramatically. Application responsiveness improves. It's often the single best investment for ageing hardware - far cheaper than replacement.
3. Maximise RAM where possible. If machines have 2 GB, upgrading to 4 GB makes a meaningful difference. DDR3 RAM is inexpensive now. Even 8 GB for older machines is affordable.
4. Maintain adequate free space. Keep 10-15% of the drive free for Deep Freeze's redirect operations and Windows breathing room.
5. Use appropriate policies. Configure WINSelect to limit user access - fewer things running means better performance on limited hardware.
When replacement is actually necessary
Faronics can extend life, but some situations do require replacement:
Hardware failure: When components physically fail - dead drives, failed motherboards, non-functional displays - no software helps.
Operating system support: Windows 10 support ends in 2025. Hardware that can't run Windows 11 will eventually need replacement for security compliance.
Application requirements: When required software exceeds hardware capabilities - modern software may need more RAM or processing power than old machines provide.
Fundamental inadequacy: Some machines are simply too old. A 2010 machine with 2 GB RAM and an HDD may not be worth preserving regardless of management tools.
Faronics helps you get more life from hardware that's worth preserving. It doesn't make sense for machines that have genuinely reached end of life.
Signs that lifespan extension is working
You'll know the approach is successful when:
• Performance complaints decrease despite unchanged hardware
• Support tickets for "slow computers" drop significantly
• Reimaging cycles are eliminated
• IT time shifts from maintenance to improvements
• Refresh requests become about capability needs, not performance complaints
• Older labs remain productively in service
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the oldest hardware Faronics will work on?
If it runs a supported version of Windows 10 or 11, it should work. The practical limit is Windows support, not Faronics support. Very old machines that can't run Windows 10 are outside the support window.
Should I upgrade RAM or SSD first?
SSD first, usually. The performance improvement from HDD to SSD is dramatic and immediately noticeable. RAM upgrades help if you're running out of memory, but an SSD transforms the entire experience. Both are worthwhile if budget allows.
Will Faronics work on machines with only 2 GB RAM?
It will run, but 2 GB is tight for Windows 10 regardless of Faronics. The agent uses 50-100 MB, which is significant on such limited memory. We recommend 4 GB minimum for reasonable performance. If upgrading RAM isn't possible, test carefully before broad deployment.
How do I know if my old machines are worth preserving?
Consider: Can they run Windows 10/11 adequately? Can they accept an SSD and RAM upgrade cost-effectively? Are they physically in reasonable condition? If yes to all, preservation likely makes sense. If the hardware is fundamentally inadequate or failing, replacement may be more practical.
Does Deep Freeze help more or less on older hardware?
Arguably more. Older hardware has fewer resources to spare, so the burden of accumulated software problems is proportionally greater. Preventing that burden provides a larger relative benefit. The machines that gain most from Deep Freeze are often the oldest ones.
The Bottom Line: Breathe New Life Into Old Hardware
Faronics Cloud works on older hardware - not just tolerably, but often beneficially. By preventing the software degradation that makes old machines feel slow, Deep Freeze helps older hardware maintain consistent performance at its capability level.
For schools and organisations with tight budgets, this translates to real value: extended hardware lifespan, deferred replacement costs, reduced support burden, and machines that remain productive years longer than they otherwise would.
The computers you have might have more life in them than you realise. Faronics Cloud can help you find it.
Ready to Extend Your Hardware's Life?
Try Faronics Cloud free for 30 days. Test it on your older machines and see the difference.
