The PC Doctor's Fix-it-Yourself Guide- P20: A technical director for a UK-based computer company who teaches such courses as Caring for Your PC has developed prescriptions for treating sick PCs. Arguing the benefits of fixing it yourself rather than relying on experts, his mission is to empower users with trouble- shooting and safe repair skills. | CHAPTERS Motherboard RAM CPU and BIOS 169 Here I ll cover some of the most common problems along with possible solutions to them. Dead PC The worst-case scenario is a dead PC because there are a handful of things it can be some relating to the motherboard some not. Check the following on the motherboard Check for signs of damage or corrosion on the motherboard. Corrosion can occur for a variety of reasons from poor manufacturing to a sweat drip landing on the board from you or someone else working on the system. Check for cracks and bum marks too as these might indicate damage from a careless upgrade or overvoltage from the power line or a lightning strike. If there are no signs of damage corrosion or bum marks take a look for any loose connections onto the board. Over time usually because of a small amount of corrosion or the continual expansion contraction of the connections from heating and cooling a coldjoint bad electrical connection can occur causing all kinds of problems. The remedy is to undo and redo the connections and test again. If the system still doesn t work shift your attention to the power connections from the power supply unit to the board. Check that all the cards CPU and RAM are properly seated onto the motherboard. Check for any signs of activity on the motherboard. This includes fans moving or lights illuminating. If there is nothing the next item to suspect if you know that the electricity supply is OK is the PSU. Unstable PC If your PC is unstable there are many possible reasons for this. Generally it s a software issue that you have to resolve but if you find that your PC is unstable and you can t pinpoint the instability to a particular piece of software or connected hardware then it could be a good idea to open the case and check that everything is OK. Look for Loose wires or connectors check all of them for soundness. Undo and redo the connection if in doubt. 170 The PC Doctor s Fix-It-Yourself Guide Loose or incorrectly fitted expansion
