Viewing System Information in Windows 8.1

Before you start

Objectives: Learn how to find basic and detailed system information in Windows 8.1

Prerequisites: no prerequisites.

Key terms: system information, Windows 8.1, Control Panel, Administrative Tools


Basic System Information

As in previous versions of Windows, in Windows 8.1 we also have full access to Windows settings and information. We need to know how to access basic and detailed information about our system before we start making configuration changes. Typically, the easiest way to find system information is to right-click Start icon, and then select the System option.

 1 Right Click

Right-click on Start

Here we see a list of common places that we might go to to find system information and to configure our system. If we select the System option, we will see basic information about our system, including Windows edition, CPU model, memory size, system type (64-bit or 32-bit), computer name, and activation information.

 2 System info

Basic System Info

From here we can also access Device Manager, Remote settings, advanced system settings, Action Center, and Windows Update. Note that we are actually located in Control Panel now, so we can browse other Control Panel items from here.

Another way to find System information is to simply search for it in Start screen. While in Start screen we simply start typing “System”, and the search will start searching our system. From the results we simply select System option.

Detailed System Information

“System” only displays basic information about our system. To see more detailed information we can search for “System Information” in Start screen, and select the appropriate result.

 3 System Information

Search for System Information

 3 System Information 2

Detailed System Information

In System Information we can see a detailed summary of our system, and also different information related to different system categories (hardware, components, software).

Administrative Tools

If we have admin privileges on the computer, it is great to see admin tools in Start screen itself. But, this option is disabled by default. To enable it, from the Start screen open the Charms bar, and click/tap on the Settings charm (if you are not on the Start screen, press the Windows key to go to it). In the right pane, click/tap on Tiles at the top, and move the Show administrator tools slider to the right to say Yes.

 4 Tiles

Tiles Option

Administrative tools will show on Apps view of the Start screen when turned on.

 5 Administrative Tools

Administrative Tools In Start Screen