Maintaining & Troubleshooting PC

Cleaning the systemThings to consider:- Tools to get the case open- ESD protection- Cloths (cotton is by

far the best)- Vaccum cleaner

1. Disconnect the system and openthe case.2. Wipe the metal surfaces of the PC case.3. Use vaccum cleaner to cleanparts that are reacheable. For MOBO, you must handle itw/ care.4. Clean the CPu fan and other fan.5. Reassemble the system.6. Wash your hands well.

Maintaining the cooling system- Cooling system is important for Pc because PC produces heat, itis necessary to have air intakesto reduce heat that can cause:- reduce of life span of PC- destruction of importantcomponents like the CPU.

1. clean all fans2. make sure that all air intakesare clear from dirt, dust and paper3. give the CPU heat sink a goodcleaning*Removing heatsink, you shouldreapply thermal paste to avoid overheating and damage to CPU.4. check all fans appear tobe rotating.5. Don't put your PC down on a carpeted floor, this will increase the dust pulled into the system.

6. Reassemble the PC case and place it 6-8 inches distanceat the back & 12- 18 inchesdistance at sides.7. Make sure that the air intakesand exhausts are kept and freefrom papers and books.

Signs and Trouble (Cooling system)- The PC is crashing or lockingup after prolonged use.- Burning smells.-The case feels hot to touch.- The air coming out from thesystem feels unussually hot.- fans are noisy.- fans are not working.- excessive dust is visiblearound air intakes.

PSU- It transform the AC input to a lower DC voltages.-3.3 volts- digital circuits-5 volts-12 volts- larger devices (hdd)

PC connectors- Mobo powercables (24 & 4 pins)- HDD and OD power cables- PCIe card power cables

APM & ACPIAPM- Advanced Power Management- A technology developed by Microsoft and Intel to make PCuse lesser power and make themboth more ecnonomically and moreenvironmental friendly. ACPI- Advanced ConfigurationPower interface.- Controlled by operating system. Power Management States- Ready- Stand by

- suspended- Hibernation- Off

Power Issues"The many the devices used ina system the higher the wattof PSU should be used."

ex. You have 250 watts totalin devices, do not use 250 wattsPSU, instead use 400 watts PSU.

PC Components-----------WattsMOBO(w/out CPU/RAM)-----30CPU---------------------30RAM---------------------10/128MB HDD---------------------15AGP---------------------30PCI---------------------5Network Card------------5OPtical Drive-----------30

Symptoms of a dying PSU-Burning smell at the PSU(PC back)-Irregular noise coming from the PSU fan-Unwanted rebooting or crashingO.S. or devices (optical drive)- Devices attached to the systemwon't work.

"For any problems you suspect(PSU), you will need to replacethe PSU."

Common Motherboard Problems- Mobo problems are "rare"1. Dead PC- Check damage on the motherboard

- rusts- cracks- burn marks (careless upgrade &

over voltage)- Check for any loose connections ontothe MOBO.

- try to undo and redo connection and test again

- If the system still doesn't work. Shift your attention to:

- cards, CPU and RAM are installed properly.- check any signs of activity on mobo (fans moving/ light)

- If still doesn't work, the next itemto suspect is the PSU.

2. Unstable PC- cause by software orhardware.

- check for loose wires and connectors.- loose or incorrectly fitted expansion cards

*remove the module and reinsert*check contacts for corrosions*carefully remove corrosion on contacts using a pencil eraser* clean the slots.

-loose or improperly installed RAM* remove module and reinsert* check contact for corrosion* carefully remove any visible corrosion using a pencileraser

3. PC reboots periodically for noReasons

- check connections especially fans- check for any loose connections fromthe PSU- check that the PSU has the right powercapacity for all the devices you haveinstalled.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Keep all cables and wires inside thecase tidy.- wrap cables up and keep them tidyw/ plastic cable ties to avoid touchingfans and other moving components.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

RAM errors-Memory size has changed

-Memory access failures-Any other error message containing the word "RAM" or "memory"*You may see these messages if you added, removed or replaced RAM.reasons: loose, ESD damage,

damage before purchase.

Testing RAMs1. Remove and clean RAM modules.2. Take one module and insert themin the system.3. Reboot4. Continue to swap modules.5. Once you detected a damaged RAM,store it away and replace it w/a good one.

"These steps may not be the exact sciencefor testing."

Signs of Trouble w/ the CPU-Spotting problems on CPU is not easy.-Error messages relating CPU orbeep codes that indicates problemsw/ the MOBO and CPU.

* Is there a problem on the rotationof CPU fan? -If yes, replace the CPU

cooling system.* Check heatsink if it is securely attached to the CPU.

* Check signs of overheating (burn on neighboring components)

* Double check that the cooling fan power cable is properly connected.

* Make sure that lever is locked properly.

The BIOS -Its first job when you boot a PC:

*to establish whether all of the devices attached to your system are still in place and operational. *absence of device can cause error message. *it loads key parts of OS to RAM.3 major BIOS for MOBO-AMI (American Megatrends Incorporated)-Phoenix-Award

Other BIOS for Mono-Quad tel-Toshiba-Microid Research (MR BIOS)-System Soft-IBM-Intel-ASUS-Acer

BIOS & POST codes-upon booting, there will be a test ofthe system. (POST)Power on Self Test

POST errors- in codes or beeps, whereyou can determine what part of systemis having a problem and find solution.