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Computer Help

Troubleshoot Windows, Linux, and general PC hardware by separating power-on self-test, display, storage, operating system, performance, and network failures.

Safety first: Disconnect power before opening equipment. Do not open power supplies, monitors, microwave-size UPS units, or swollen-battery laptops; dangerous voltage can remain after unplugging.

Guide 1 of 6

No power or no signs of life

Verify the external power path before assuming the motherboard is dead.

Check these in order

  1. 1Test the outlet and power bar with a simple known-good device, then connect the computer directly to the outlet for comparison.
  2. 2Reseat the detachable power cord or laptop charger and inspect for bent pins, fraying, heat marks, or a loose charging jack.
  3. 3Disconnect every USB device, dock, card, external drive, and display. A damaged peripheral can block power or startup.
  4. 4For a laptop, disconnect power, hold the power button for 15 seconds, reconnect only the charger, and try once. Do not disconnect an internal battery unless following the service manual.
  5. 5Record charging LEDs, motherboard standby lights, clicks, fan movement, and whether the charger indicator goes out when connected; these details narrow adapter, jack, short, and board faults.
What the result means: External power working but no indicators points inside the device. A charger light that goes out when connected can indicate a short. Power returning after peripherals are removed identifies an accessory or port issue.

Guide 2 of 6

Fans/lights turn on but the screen is black

Decide whether the computer completed hardware startup and whether only the display path failed.

Check these in order

  1. 1Check brightness, monitor power/input, cable seating, and the keyboard display-toggle shortcut. Test one known-good cable/monitor.
  2. 2Listen for the login sound, drive activity, keyboard lock-light response, or remote-network presence. These signs mean the system may be running without an image.
  3. 3Connect an external monitor. A normal external picture on a laptop points to its panel, backlight, cable, or lid sensor.
  4. 4Record repeating beep/blink codes and look them up for the exact manufacturer/model. They often identify memory, graphics, CPU, or board self-test failures.
  5. 5If qualified and out of warranty, follow the service manual and ESD precautions to test removable memory one module/slot at a time; never work while power is connected.
What the result means: External video working points to the built-in display. No video anywhere plus diagnostic codes points to pre-boot hardware. A logo followed by black screen points more toward the operating system or graphics driver.

Guide 3 of 6

Logo appears but Windows/Linux will not load

Protect the data first, then separate drive detection from damaged startup files or a recent update.

Check these in order

  1. 1Photograph the complete error and note the last successful startup and what changed immediately before failure.
  2. 2Open BIOS/UEFI only to check whether the internal drive is detected and the expected boot entry exists. Do not randomly change storage mode, Secure Boot, or firmware settings.
  3. 3Disconnect external drives and USB devices that could be selected as a boot source.
  4. 4Use one non-destructive Startup Repair or recovery update. Avoid Reset, reinstall, format, partition, or command-line repairs until important data is backed up.
  5. 5If the drive clicks, disappears, reports SMART/read errors, or contains irreplaceable files, stop repeated boot attempts and use a data-recovery plan.
What the result means: A missing drive suggests connection or drive failure. A detected drive with a repeatable recovery/error screen suggests boot files, updates, filesystem, or drive health. Successful safe mode suggests a driver, startup app, or update conflict.

Guide 4 of 6

Slow, freezing, or crashing

Use measured CPU, memory, disk, temperature, and timing instead of installing random cleaner software.

Check these in order

  1. 1Restart, reproduce the slowdown, and sort Task Manager/System Monitor by CPU, memory, disk, and network. Note the process and whether usage stays high.
  2. 2Keep at least 15% of the system drive free. Back up first, then remove downloads, temporary files, and unused software you recognize.
  3. 3Check whether slowness occurs only after startup, with many browser tabs, during heat-heavy work, or during updates/cloud sync; each pattern points somewhere different.
  4. 4Run the operating system’s trusted security scan and review browser extensions/startup apps. Avoid registry cleaners, driver-updater bundles, and unknown optimizers.
  5. 5Check drive SMART status, memory diagnostics, and temperatures before buying upgrades. Match any RAM/SSD exactly to the model’s interface and capacity limits.
What the result means: High memory use points to workload/RAM; sustained disk use plus low space or health warnings points to storage; heat-linked slowdown points to cooling; one process dominating use points to software, update, sync, or malware.

Guide 5 of 6

Random restarts, blue screens, or application crashes

Capture the error and determine whether one program, one driver, heat, memory, power, or storage triggers it.

Check these in order

  1. 1Photograph the stop code, faulting module, or Linux kernel message and note the exact activity at the time.
  2. 2Check Reliability Monitor, Event Viewer, or system journal around the crash time; focus on repeated critical events, not every harmless warning.
  3. 3Undo a very recent driver, RAM, overclock, peripheral, or update change one item at a time.
  4. 4Run the built-in memory diagnostic and drive-health checks; monitor temperature and power stability during the workload that triggers failure.
  5. 5Back up before firmware updates, driver cleanup, system restore, or reinstall. Use the computer/motherboard maker’s official drivers and firmware.
What the result means: One app alone failing points to that app/data. Hardware errors under load suggest memory, cooling, power, graphics, or storage. Repeatable stop codes and logs provide a better repair direction than the word ‘crash’ alone.

Guide 6 of 6

No internet, sound, USB, Bluetooth, or another feature

Compare another device, port, user account, and operating system state to isolate hardware from configuration.

Check these in order

  1. 1Test the same network/accessory on another device and a second known-good accessory on this computer.
  2. 2Check physical switches, airplane mode, mute/output selection, disabled adapters, permissions, and whether the device appears in system hardware tools.
  3. 3Disconnect docks/hubs and test directly. For Wi‑Fi, compare Ethernet or another network; for audio, compare speakers/headphones and output devices.
  4. 4Restart the relevant service or computer, then install the official computer/chipset/device driver—not a generic driver-download utility.
  5. 5If the feature vanished after an update, use documented rollback or restore. If it vanished after impact/liquid or does not appear in firmware/system tools, suspect hardware.
What the result means: The accessory failing everywhere identifies the accessory. One port failing identifies that port. A feature absent from hardware detection suggests connection/hardware; visible hardware with errors points to driver, permissions, service, or configuration.

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