1. Introduction.

This tutorial was written to help you found what's wrong with your Computer when it freeze or restart, without any aparent reason, or corupt data appears on your Hard Disk shortly after formatting it. Those kind of troubles are the most frequent, but the reasons are almost the sames.

I will present you an short FAQ, with the problems and what you should check for them, then detailed each component and what you need to check for it, and how.

I will consider that you already have check for viruses and tryed to reinstall your O.S. but without any result. Also your System has no Overclocked Components.

Note: If your computer is factory sealed and is still in the warranty period, you cannot check all the problems, because for most of them you must have acces inside your Computer. In this case, I recommend you to go to the shop you buy it, or to an authorised service for checking it. However you still can make an memory test as example.

If nothing of those helps, I recomend you to go to an authorised service.


2. Warnings.

Before starting your troubleshooting please read that:

• Read carrefully the Mainboard Manual to see jumper positions and BIOS settings.



• Never use excessive force when phisically check the components. Verify first if there is an retention mechanism wich keep them in place before removing them. When reinserting in their slots, do it firmly but don't force them.



• Try as much as possible to not touch the electronic components. Most of them are sensitive to your body static electricity. Keep the boards from their margins. You may reduce your static electricity by using special gloves or by keeping your hands for few time on an waterpipe, or an grounded object.



• If using an screwdriver, be carefully to not touch accidentally the boards circuit or the electronical components.

3. FAQ.

Now, the problems and the components to check:

Q - The Computer freeze when you play an game or an 3D application.
A - This is probably an problem with your Video card, or an conflict with the Mainboard.

Q - The Computer exit the application when you play an game or an 3D application.
A - This is probably an problem with your Video card, an conflict with the Mainboard, or an bad Power Supply.

Q - The Computer restart when you play an game or an 3D application.
A - This is probably an problem with your Video card, an conflict with the Mainboard, or an bad Power Supply.

Q - The Computer freeze whatever you play an game or any application.
A - This is probably an problem with your Video card, or Processor (CPU).

Q - The Computer restart whatever you play an game or any application, or even if not working.
A - You should check more coomponents: Video card, System Memory, Mainboard and Power Supply.

Q - When reinstalling the O.S. I receive errors during Setup.
A - You should check your System Memory.

Note: Those Q & A are just an simple guide for usual symptoms. Sometimes could help to check also the others components.


4. The Video Card.

First you should try to install new Drivers for your card. Go to the card Producer web page and download them. You may try also generic drivers from the chipset producer such ATI and nVidia.

If this happens only in some games and changing the drivers don't solve the problem, try to get latest game updates.

Check also for an conflict with the Mainboard. Install the latest Mainboard drivers. Also check in BIOS to have disabled any reference to BIOS/Video BIOS cache or shadow ( Don't touch the processor cache ! ). Those settings may interfere with latest generatios drivers. They are an reminiscence from the old DOS.

If even this don't solve the problem, it could be Hardware.

Check the temperature of your Video card. If the processor is to Hot, check the Cooler Fan if it works, and also clean the Cooler and Fan from Dust. If you have an Cooler but no Fan, perhaps you need one. Try to use your Computer, case open, for an better cooling. If it works, you can buy an Fan to add it, directly to the cooler if the board accept it or in an PCI slot - there are some in the commerce. Also an Case Fan is usewfull - 2 recommended.

If your Video Card has an extra Power connector, check if this is well inserted.

Also check if the Video Card is well inserted in his slot.

If still not works, try with an other Video Card. Maybe yours is deffective.

Note: If your Computers freeze in an game for about a second or two, the you can play again for few minutes, and it repeats, but not freeze completely, you may need more memory !!!


5. The Processor (CPU).

If your processor is to hot, it could make your computer to slowdown or freeze. Check his temperature, with your hand or read the temperature from BIOS.

Check if the Fan works properly. Also clean it from dust.

If the cooler is cold but the BIOS gives an high temperature check if the Processor Cooler is well mounted and has an contact with the processor on all the surface. Some coolers don't have an perfect surface and the contact could be only partial. An other possibility is that the cooler support is broken.

The thermal grease may dry if it's not an high quality one. If your cooler is not an original Intel or AMD, you may try to remove it , clean both surfaces ( processor and cooler ) with an clean cloth and alcohool and use an high quality thermal grease, such Arctic Silver. Be carefull to not put to much - an drop is enough - and to be uniform distributed on the surface. If the grease is conductive - such some silver based ones, be shure to not touch with it the contacts on procesor - if they exists.

For better cooling an Case Fan is usewfull - 2 recommended.


6. The System Memory.

The quality of your System Memories is extremely important for the stability of your system.

You must check your Memory modules with an Memory Diagnostic Tool. There are several, but the most common and recommended is MemTest. You may download it and run from an floppy or bootable CD. I recomend you to use Ultimate Boot CD, because is already an Boot CD - you should not made one - and there are an lot of usewfull tools on it, including several different Memory Tests.

If you have changed your Memory modules or have added new ones, reset your BIOS. Check in the Mainboard Manual how to do this.

There are several posibilities:

• An incompatibility between the Memory module and the Mainboard.
  
  Some Mainboards uses lower latencyes to increase performance. You cannot install an CAS 3 Memory module on an Mainboard wich permits you to set only CAS 2.5 or 2, except if you have an high performance module. This is the case for some ASUS Mainboards. For them you should read in the Mainboard Manual wich Memories are compatible with your Mainboard. Try to replace the module with one wich support lower latencyes or try to reduce the Memory working frequency and test again.



• An incompatibility between the Memory modules if they are 2 or more.
  
  If you have added recently an other Memory module in parallel with the existing one, this could be the cause. Is recommended to use identical modules - same type, same manufacturer to increase compatibility. If each module tested separately works fine, this is your problem.



• The slot in wich the Memory module is inserted is defective.
  
  If you receive Memory errors, try to move the module in an other slot. Also check the slot if some pins are deformed.



• The Memory module is defective.


In this case you should replace it with an good one and check again.

Note: If your Memory gives you errors, the Hard Disk could have Bad sectors or corrupt data on it. After you have solved the problem with the Memory, and no more errors are generated, you must reformat yor Hard Disk and check it for Bad sectors, before reinstalling again your O.S. !!!


7. The Mainboard.

The Mainboard could produce also some troubles, especially if it's not an new one.

Check first if you have the latest Mainboard Drivers installed. If your mainboard chipset is an old model, probably your O.S. has installed them, nut is better to install the newest, especially the drivers for the video Slot: AGP or PCI-Xpress.

Also try to load BIOS Safe Settings and see if it works now.

An very big problem could be created by the capacitors mounted arround the Processor. If any of them is deformed or you see brown spots on them, you have found an part of your problem.

If you have some knowledge in electronics, you may change them. If not go with your Mainboard to an Authorised Service to fix it.

I've say an part of your problem, because if you meet this, it may be necessary to change also your Power Supply. it's an high possibility that your No-Name Power Supply to give bad filtered tension to the Mainboard and to short the capacitors life.


8. The Power Supply.

For most people, this is an less important Component. However, it could create the biggest problems, because nobody think at it when something goes wrong with the system. Especially unexpected restarts are caused by the Power Supply.

Check the Power Supply voltages in BIOS. Especially 5V, -5V and 12V are important for this. If those voltages are an little bit higher, is ok. But, if they are lower, something is going wrong.

There are few possibilities - the power needed by your Components is bigger than the Power Supply could provide, the input voltage is lower than standard and your Power Supply cannot manage it, or, the Power Supply is damaged.

Unfortunatelly there is no way to fix this. You should replace it with an new one, more powerfull and as recommandation - an Brand one. I say that, because there are lots of cheap No-Name Power Supply on the market wich are not able to provide the power marked on them.

However before to buy one, check your system using an other Power Supply to see if the voltage is ok with this one.


Note: Is common that after an Power Supply crashes definitively ( completely dead ), other Components will crash too in the next few months. The most sensitive are the Hard Disks, so I recommend you for this extreme case to make an backup of it !!!


9. Conclusions.

Normally, checking all presented Components as mentioned for each, could solve your problems in more than 80% of cases. If they did't, is very probable that one of the Component is damaged in such way you cannot solve alone.

If you can replace some Components with good ones - may be an friend with similar computer could help you with, you can try to identify the defective Component by elimination. If something don't works fine on your computer but works on his one, means you should check an other Component. If something don't works fine on your computer and also on his one, means you have found the defective Component.

An problem could be an incompatibility between your Components. In this case everithing will work on his computer, tested separately.


10. Usewfull Links.

• Ultimate Boot CD - Ultimate Boot CD home page.

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