When your PC goes wrong and you have lost all hope the normal final stage is to reformat your computer and start afresh. This will most likely resolve any software issues, remove viruses or any other nasties and give you a clean start. But what happens if you have already reformatted and the problem still exists?
This means, most likely, you have a hardware fault. This is where problems can start.
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Diagnosing a computer hardware fault can be a right pain as any of the computer components could the cause. Unless you are intending to replace the entire machine you need to carefully diagnose with what components the fault lies with.
I would advise you look at the computer into these main areas to analyse.
Memory / RAM
Power Supply
Hard Disk
Motherboard
This isn’t a complete definitive list, obviously depending on your issue ie if your issue is that you don’t get sound then it could be a sound card issue, similarly if you don’t get a display then graphics could be the culprit. If it is a random fault then either of the above could be the cause.
Memory – this is fortunately quite easy to diagnose. Search the Internet for a memory tester. Generally these can be put onto a CD (or Floppy if you are stuck in the past!!), boot up from the CD which then enters the memory test. This will constantly cycle through, testing the memory for errors. It is wise to leave this on for several hours or even better over night. It will advise you if the memory fails.
Power Supply – this can be a strange one. People generally assume that if the power supply does fail then you would get no life from you computer at all. This sometimes is not true. I have had computers that turn off at random times, computers that have the power light on, but do not start up etc and it has turned out to be the supply – I would advise this should be one of the first things to test as can be a problematic area. Testing it can be difficult without the right equipment. Really the only way is to get a volt tester and check the voltage and current coming out.
Hard Disk – this can be one of the worst problems to have as if your hard disk does fail, unless you have been sensible and done regular backups of your most valuable data, you stand to lose it all. Hard disks can go at any time and usually you will hear a harsh sounding clicking noise that is coming from your computer. If this is the case you need to probably replace the hard disk. Get someone who then knows what they are doing here to try and recover your old data for you.
If none of the above solves your problem then you could possibly be looking at the fault being with the motherboard or any other plug in cards or devices you have. Remove everything to leave only the very basics. Take out all sound cards etc and any other PCI devices that are not essential. If you have more than one stick of ram then leave in only one and see if the problem resolves.
Really, solving hardware issues comes down to a case of trial and error here so take the time to test everything out. Bear in mind that even if your keyboard or mouse is faulty, very strange things can happen to a computer, so if you can, try to remove and test every single item.
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Help answer the question about computer hardware
What computer hardware is illegal to own?I just barely learned from a computer wiz from my oop class that the government prevents sale of certain hardware that is impossible for them to decode. Anyone here a computer wiz at this as well?
Power supplies are notorious for being cheaply made. Especially low end "bargain bin" power supplies, and ones in Prebuilt PC's (like Dell, HP, Gateway.) To save money they tend to use crappy ones.
Most power supplies (even the cheap ones) have a protective circuit to protect them from frying your whole computer if something goes out. I would try just replacing the power supply first. Maybe test it with a cheapo 20 dollar version. If it works, upgrade to a more expensive one. If not, your out 20 bucks (which is still cheaper than taking it to a shop and having them test it for you.)
In rare cases (I have only seen it once) a power supply can damage other parts of your computer. I had one in a Dell pop loudly, start smoking, and it fried my motherboard, RAM, and hard drive motors. This case is EXTREMELY rare though – I work tech support for a school district so I work on hundreds of computers per week and like I said, have seen this once.
I have probably replace 200 or more power supplies in my time, and every one of them smelt burnt, but the rest of the PC was intact, so definitely check that out first.
As to what could have caused the damage, likely it is just like a said – a very cheaply made power supply. To prevent it from happening again, buy a mid range or high end power supply (if that turns out to be the problem.) They tend to outlast the rest of your PC.
If you try another power supply and still have issues feel free to hit me up again I would be happy to help.
well im 16 im currently in a local summer class about pc and stuff :> yay! me
now were all about reformatting
Learning about PC is freaking cool! 100 times better than the f*cking school
If we get interested about something, we learn it fast!
4gb will do just fine
ddr3 is recomended…
im new to computer’s, it’s so complicated.
thank you petarr
If you are trying to 're-install' Windows XP, why are you using a boot disk? You need to do a clean install. You will lose all your info on the hard drive. Put the windows xp disk in there and let it go to work
Hey tamethebea Win 7 is just like vista. It is vista but better faster and looks a little bit different not much but little.. You mean 8 gb to install?
it requires 16 GB on 32 bit computers and 20 GB on 64 bit computers.
Thank you
Nice Vid,
Thanks Man!
It’s now how it works, it doesn’t just double everytime..
If you're on a different floor that the router your signal is probably pretty weak. There are two things you should do:
1) Tile the antenna on the router so your computer is looking more at the length of the antenna and less at the end of it.
2) Get a wireless adapter with an antenna (an internal card) and aim its antenna the same way, so that the router is seeing the length of the adapter's antenna.
awsome man..cant wait to see the rest of the lessons!!
thank you