Personal Computing at the School of Architecture and Planning

Architecture Requirements General Recommendations

General Computing Recommendations

Our general recommendations apply to all degree programs (except MArch) at the School of Architecture and Planning including PhD in Urban and Regional Planning, Master of Urban Planning, MS in Architecture, MS in Real Estate Development and MS in International Development and Global Health.

Computing Hardware

System configuration 

  • Intel Core i7 2GHz CPU or faster
  • Windows 10 or above - MacOS is not supported
  • 16 GB or more strongly recommended
  • Discrete graphics card with 4 GB or more of memory (NVIDIA graphics card with 4 GB or more of video RAM recommended)
  • 512 GB or larger SSD hard drive storage
  • 4 year/extended warranty/multi-year service agreement 
  • Web Cam/microphone

We do not support Apple sysems since Mac OS will not run many required software packages and they generally cause printing problems. Chromebooks will not run required architecture software.

Additionally, it is recommended that you purchase a laptop cable lock to secure your laptop when using it on campus.

While we recommend the use of UBbox, the university’s cloud storage system, it is also recommended that you purchase a portable external hard drive and/or flash drives.

You can find special discounted pricing on Dell laptops. 

Software Resources

Verify what software is required by contacting your department which may include

More information about UB provided software and ways to access it.

Please contact the School of Architecture and Planning IT services (ap-itservices@buffalo.edu) with any questions with regard to Computing Hardware and Software.