What's the optimal PC configuration for ArcGIS Pro?

[HelenCooper]

My trusty Lenovo ThinkPad has always been great for ArcGIS desktop, but just doesn't cut the mustard when running ArcGIS Pro.

Any suggestions for the best PC (not laptop) recommendations to run both ArcGIS desktop and ArcPro?  I've been looking through the recommended and optimal system requirements, here:  https://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/get-started/arcgis-pro-system-requirements.htm 

is it feasible to get a system that works blisteringly fast with ArcPro for under £3,000?  If so, any specific recommendations?

Many thanks,

Helen

[ThomasColson]

https://community.esri.com/docs/DOC-13504-sasquatchs-annual-what-computer-should-i-buy-for-pro-recom... 

[HelenCooper]

Thanks Thomas, that's really helpful.  I definitely fall into the 'You have ADHD and run 4-5 Pro projects at once...' category!

[JimmyKroon]

I have an Alienware 17 laptop that I bought last year.

Alienware 17 Gaming Laptop Built for Virtual Reality | Dell United States 

And a Dell Precision 3630 that is a few months old and they both run Pro very well. I'm not sure I'd say 'blistering', but the tower is definitely fast. I just timed it and Pro opens in 7 seconds and it never seems to lag, even working with large map layouts. I believe key specs are a high end graphics card, a solid state drive, and plenty of RAM. 

Both of these were under $2,000. That did not include monitors for the Precision.

Jimmy

[HelenCooper]

Thanks Jimmy, that's very helpful.  Pro just took > 40 seconds to open here, without even thinking about doing anything useful with it, so that's a useful comparison!

[Mark_Hotz]

I bought the same computer for home, and have ArcGIS Pro installed on that too.  This is an awesome computer, and I have never had an issue with it either.

[HelenCooper]

Also, does anyone have any recommendations for Intel Core i7 or i9 vs. Intel Xeon or Intel Core Xeon? 

[RobertBorchert]

In my professional and honest opinion most of what I read here is overkill for the computers being used.  If your having serious issues taking that long to open Pro you should look to your HDD and system software integrity. 

There are many things that can effect performance and no matter the size of you computer unit they will contribute to performance. 

I do generally recommend gaming computers as GIS workstations.  Xeon processors are overkill and you would not even begin to touch what they are normally designed for.   

Below is a snapshot of my work computer.  It is far from a gaming computer and does not have stats that make you grin.   But I just opened Pro in 9 seconds.  It works very well.  

[HelenCooper]

This is a good point, and my computer has been perfectly adequate for most things I need to do in ArcGIS Desktop (sometimes a bit slow if I need to process a lot of lidar data or similar). 

The current config is:

Intel (R) Core(TM) i7-4600m CPU @ 2.90GHz 

16GB RAM

NVIDIA GeForce GT 730M graphics card

the system drive is an SSD which isn't massive but should be adequate (250GB with 46GB free)

but ArcGIS Pro is painfully slow (and I mean unworkably so, it can sometimes take a minute or so to just change something basic in the symbology panel). 

Any suggestions to optimise it?  Is there anything different I could be doing with swapfile sizes, etc.?

Thank you to everyone for the suggestions.

Helen

[JimmyKroon]

Here is another writeup I found on real-world Pro hardware. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1j0XOrBmsVxsMVVGjM8v90JyV-e8mtmP2/view

The easiest and probably least upgrade to your current setup would be more RAM. If it's reading/writing to virtual memory that'll really slow it down and 16gb is on the low end of requirements. After that, consider a better video card.

I'd make sure your windows virtual memory/Pro cache locations are local drives (not on a network). I've seen that where someone is having poor performance and Arc a network folder for a cache. Not helping!!

Your CPU has 2 physical (4 virtual) cores and that doc recommends more, but not too many people are going to upgrade their processor. 

Jimmy