Can I do a graphics card upgrade on my HP p7-1221b PC?

[Chuck78]

Hi.  I was wondering if my p7-1221b PC could be upgraded with a better GPU.  I understand the motherboard has a PCI express slot for the GPU I want.  My other questions are:

Would cooling be an issue?

How many watts is the PSU, and can it handle the card?

Would space be an issue?

If I need a PSU upgrade, what PSU do you recommend? 

Are there any other problems you see plausible?

The GPU I want is the EVGA GEFORCE GTX 1050. (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487400&Description=3gb%20gpu&cm_re=3gb_gpu...)
Thank you for the help.

[Grzwacz]

Greetings,

Welcome to the forum.

I am not a HP employee.

I can't find a p7-1221b. The p7-1200 series PCs start at 1202 and end at 1299. There are about 40 product numbers and five motherboards.

A p7-1220 can be reviewed at this site (Link). This PC was released for sale in 2011.

Check your BIOS version first. Type or talk to Cortana. Search for msinfo. The summary screen will list your PC's current BIOS version and if it is a UEFI BIOS.

You need a UEFI BIOS version 8.xx or higher to run Nvidia 700, 900, 1000, or 2000 series graphics cards. Your PC may not have a UEFI BIOS.

Let the forum know what BIOS you have.

Regards

[Chuck78]

1.  It is not an Nvidia card.

2. My computer is on Windows 7 so there is no Cortana. 

[Grzwacz]

Hi,

A EVGA GTX 1050 is based on a Nvidia reference design.

Sorry about getting the OS wrong.

Use Search on Windows 7 to look at the "msinfo" summary screen. 

What BIOS version are you running and is it UEFI?

Regards

[Chuck78]

It is AMI 7.11 4/28/2012

The SMBIOS is 2.7

Is there a way to update the BIOS?  If there is, how?

[Grzwacz]

Hi Chuck78,

I can't find a p7-1221b. The p7-1200 series PCs start at 1202 and end at 1299. There are about 40 product numbers and five motherboards.

I can't check for a BIOS update to a 8.xx (UEFI) version for your specific HP product. 

You can't run a 1050 on a BIOS version 7.xx.

Regards