"DS: My system is out of warranty and older but can I upgrade my graphics card?"

Hi @Dell-Jordan the graphics card is soldered onto the Alienware 17 R4 system board and is not upgradable. 

If you want to use a modern full-size graphics card, this requires more power (wattage) than the Alienware 17 R4 can provide. Getting an external graphics card enclosure and installing a powerful external graphics card is the current solution. Have a look at the sliding table in Best eGPU Enclosures - September 2022 External GPU Buyer Guide, to get eGPU enclosure for your full-size powerful graphics card option.