Advice for repairing a computer

It all started one night when I returned to my computer after being away from it for a few hours, turned on the screen, and found only black. I had experienced the computer freezing earlier, where the image on the screen would be stationary and the only way to make the computer respond was a reboot. The black screen was consistent with this, since I currently use that as a screensaver. I knew something was wrong with the earlier freezes, as my computer has never done that before when I’ve been using Linux. Naturally I saw this as a hardware fault, but believed it to be a simple case of overheating. The sudden onset of this problem would fit with the higher temperatures we’ve had recently, and especially with the fact that the building has just been insulated (and yes, getting the insulation done on the hottest day of the year is an extreme example of forward planning).

Diagnosing the problem

The steps I used to diagnose the problem were (a slightly more inefficient version of) the following:

1. Switch it off and on (obviously)
2. Notice that not even the BIOS information comes up
3. Unplug all the unnecessary components from the motherboard (leaving the CPU, RAM and graphics card) with just the power cord and monitor lead connected
4. Notice the same problem (and the harddrive light stays on if the drives are connected to the motherboard)
5. Use a known-working graphics card
6. Notice the same problem (so it must be the monitor or CPU / motherboard / RAM)
7. See the OSD message on the monitor change based on whether the monitor is plugged in to the motherboard or not, and check that nothing happens when you press the AUTO(matic adjust) button (showing that the screen is probably still working and you can’t be bothered to move a CRT monitor just to confirm that your monitor, which was turned off when the fault happened, isn’t the problem)
8. Notice that it must be the CPU / motherboard / RAM
9. Take the RAM out and see if it behaves differently, then do the same for the CPU (and inspect both for signs of heat damage, then reseat them firmly)
10. Notice that it’s the motherboard

There is always a chance that there is some terrible flaw in your logic when you do something like this, and the cost of buying unnecessary replacement parts can be not inconsiderable. One way to offset this cost, from a certain point of view, is to take into account how soon you were going to replace those components as part of a natural upgrade cycle (discussed later). Do not let your inability to diagnose computer problems be an excuse for unnecessary expenditure though. Another factor to consider is the cost of any parts that have to be upgraded due to incompatibility with any replacement part you have to buy. In my case, buying a new motherboard meant buying a new processor and RAM, since my existing parts would not fit.

Choosing the parts

Back to the story, and I was left, a few days before I was due to go on holiday, in need of a new motherboard and compatible CPU and RAM. Fortunately at this point, the Internet connection was still working, and I managed to use another computer to browse the Web and ask for advice over IM. So with help from my mind, the hive mind, and the live hive mind, the criteria for the motherboard became:

1. Able to take an AMD processor (having served me well in the past and the company not being involved in past and present “evil”)
2. Specifically able to take an AMD64 chip (for future-proofing and inspired by Linus’ “disgust” at Intel’s handling of the 64-bit issue)
3. AGP (not PCI-Express) slot (to reuse my existing, albeit aging, AGP graphics card)
4. SATA connectors (for future-proofing again, even though at my last computer purchase I decided to stick with IDE)

One tacit assumption in this is that I wanted the components quickly, and to have the reassurance that comes from a shop-bought product, such as the ability to compare the boxes side by side, and take the product back if it doesn’t work. For my last computer purchase I had gone OEM, and got quite a discount and not had to wait particularly long for delivery, but with the holiday coming up and rapidly decreasing free time, I needed something quicker. “Where in the world” did I go? I’m sure you can guess which large computer shop I drove to. They offered quite a range, even though it was a fraction of what I could find online, perhaps eight motherboards, four of which took AMD chips. Narrowing it down further to those which took AGP graphics cards, I had a choice between two. The more expensive one did offer gigabit ethernet, which I think of as standard nowadays, but it was based on the NForce chipset about which I had heard some doubt expressed. To clinch the deal, I saw that the cheaper one had embedded graphics, which would mean that I had a failsafe in case my graphics card was actually the component at fault, or was soon to fail.

Both of the AGP compatible motherboards had SATA support, needless to say, and both took 754 pin AMD chips, namely “Athlon 64” and “Sempron”. It turned out, however, that the shop only sold one type of 754 pin chip, the AMD Sempron. My research had told that the two features to look out for were NX bit support and Cool’n’ Quiet functionality. The latter of these two seemed like a wise investment, given the suspected cause of the problem I had experienced, but unfortunately the processor on offer only had the former feature.

Prepared to accept this perfectly adequate chip, I moved on to look at the RAM. The only options I was interested in were 512 MB (which is what I had in my now-defunct motherboard) and 1 GB (which I knew was common, but seemed a little too pricey, especially given the expenditure I was already committed to). Looking over the options, I saw that the 1 GB RAM was not very popular, and the main two sizes were 256 MB and 512 MB, so I was persuaded to go for the half gigabyte. While comparing the products, though, I noticed there was another figure to take into account. The boxes quoted different clock rates of the RAM, but none seemed to offer the 400 MHz figure that my new motherboard would be capable of supporting. I had already made use of the friendly support staff in the shop, and decided to ask my final question of what they had available in the 512 MB size. The assistant listed two brands, neither supporting the 400 MHz, but then noticed on their screen that the 1 GB RAM was on special offer and was indeed listed as 400 MHz (and a brand I trusted). I then, surely, had all the parts I would need, so paid for them and went back to my ailing machine.

Fixing the problem

Getting back home, I carefully skimmed through all the instructions, and duly took apart my computer (which wasn’t so hard, as most things were already unplugged from the diagnosis stage). I even made sure I recorded the positions of cables and motherboard screws, just to avoid any embarrassment. By this time, though, I was due to leave for the holiday destination in a matter of hours, or minutes, and I was trying to not let the pressure cause me to slip up. With seconds to spare, I had the CPU and RAM installed in the motherboard, power connected, and the monitor connected to the onboard graphics. I pressed the power button and looked at the screen. Nothing. No BIOS information, just black. To make matters worse, when I plugged the harddrive connector into the motherboard, the LED on the front of the case just stayed on and I didn’t get any sign of it booting, just like before. Not wanting to miss my holiday for the sake a computer fault, and needing to sleep on it, I turned everything off and left.

The holiday was mostly relaxing, except the first day as I wondered about the cause of the problem, and the last day as I thought about returning home to a broken computer. Fortunately I had found a plausible explanation for the continued lack of picture on my screen, and the change needed was relatively minor. I remembered that someone I know had got a new AMD 64 machine and had the same problem of a blank screen, and the cause had turned out to be insufficient power. A new PSU had fixed it, so when I got back from holiday my first task was to go to the shop again and buy the extra part. I had previously checked the Web (using my mobile, since my Internet connection was now down for some reason) and heard of someone running a similar system to mine on a 350 W power supply (although they said they had upgraded to a 450 W) and I found out that the person I knew who had an AMD 64 system was using a 400 W one. Unfortunately, however, the shop was low on choice and could only offer upto 350 W, or something like 600 W power supplies. I didn’t think I had a particularly power-hungry system, and the bigger power supplies were significantly more expensive, so I opted for a 350 W.

With the new part by my computer, I set about removing the old power supply and it’s myriad of tangled cables. This was no simple task, nor was connecting up the new power supply, but I did succeed. The minimum amount was plugged in, to keep things in control conditions, I flicked the switch and was rewarded with a BIOS screen, finally. Not waiting around, I followed this with slowly adding components until my system was back to its original working state… except for the fan on the power supply. I had a feeling this was due to the little cable from the PSU to the motherboard, which the single page of instructions said was related to the fan. That page also gave instructions like “log on the power”, though, so I thought this called for further research. Of course I had to resort to my phone again, and I read that the cable was just to tell the motherboard at what speed the fan was rotating, and the fan should work whether this was plugged in or not. In retrospect this made perfect sense, after all, why would the PSU need the motherboard to tell it whether to turn on the fan?

This left no choice left but to return to the shop and ask for a replacement, and the assistant was happy to do this. Unfortunately they could only find one 350 W power supply, it was the same make and was in a box that said 500 W, which had only been discovered when a customer had opened the box and been disappointed. I was assured this was the only problem with the unit, though, and duly made the free exchange of my faulty one for this incorrectly boxed one. Thus I returned to my now desperate computer ready to perform open-case surgery with a transplant circulatory system. I got just as far as seating the power supply in position when I read the little sticker on the side: 300 W. Not only that, but the casing was battered, and earlier when I had asked why I couldn’t have the 400 W PSU of the same make that was under the assistant’s desk, I was told that that one had been returned as faulty. Three problems with 3 products and I was starting to think that the company had more problems than just not being able to write a page about their product in decent English.

Back once more to the shop, and this time I was not going to mess around. I found the only power supply that wasn’t made by that brand, a 580 W beast, bought it, and now I couldn’t be happier with it. It has two fans (which both work, one even stays on for a few minutes after the computer has shut down to aid cool-down), a mesh-like casing, and an ingenius modular design so that you only need to plug in the power cables you need (in my case no SATA or PCI-Express). The power cables were even of different lengths, so you could choose almost exactly how to wire up all your drives, and they are also kept together in tight black tubes, making them the most usable I’ve ever known. I guess sometimes it does just make sense to go for a more expensive product.

The only other problem was the lack of Internet connection, the same problem also causing a lack of television signal because both are provided by our cable company. I phoned the broadband help line and a recorded message told me that there may be problems some time in the next week (the same message as I found online with my phone), but this didn’t seem relevant. The non-zero-cost general phone number for the company did however say that there were currently localised problems affecting televisions in a certain post code, and the post code did sound similar to my own, so I decided to sit it out and see if the problem disappeared as unexpectedly as it had appeared. This problem was going on while I was trying to fix my computer, however, and at one point I bumped into someone on the same street and asked if their cable television was working. They told me that it was last time they checked, which pretty much made me scrap my assumption that the problem was at the provider’s end. My last possible idea was to go into the loft and wiggle the cables, but you only need one idea if it’s the right one, and it was. Presumably one of the cable joins had come loose with the heat, and I had tightened it back to working.

Conclusion

I can’t finish the post without some sort of conclusion, and I have a few points to make. Firstly the upgrade did make a noticeable difference to my computer’s responsiveness, and I was intending to make an upgrade eventually (although perhaps not the one I ended up making due to the circumstances). Secondly I feel that a lot can be achieved if you put in the effort, against all the odds, using a common “bricks and mortar” shop. Thirdly one must always plan against multiple simultaneous failures, such as by having a spare computer and secondary means of accessing the Internet.

My fourth point is more complex. I feel that soon I will not be able to buy an AGP graphics card, and I have just bought a motherboard which only takes that sort. If I had been upgrading more frequently, the sudden failure of my motherboard would not have had so many knock-on effects and unplanned costs; it also might have given me more options about which parts to buy as I would not need some of the legacy support.

Perhaps contradicting that point, though, I have a fifth, thought-provoking point. With the cost of all the components I had to buy, and the time it took me to buy them, and the risks associated with building a system yourself (for instance not realising the PSU fan doesn’t work), it might soon be cheaper to just buy an all-in-one, non-upgradable PC. The extra power of a high specification machine is not useful to most computer users, and rarely worth the extra cost premium. Furthermore, we all made do with the previous generation of computers when they were the current generation, so taking a single step backwards in terms of performance for the sake of simplicity and cost is not as limiting as it might seem. Certainly my main criteria for a replacement machine now are based on size, quietness, and power usage.

Is this the end of the modular PC (assuming the market stops catering for the niche enthusiast)? Have I been using too many brackets? Do I have enough time left this month to rewrite my sentences?