636 Computer Service and Repair
shareware to systems costing several thousands of dollars. The more expensive
programs include a diagnostic board that plug into the PC’s expansion slots.
Most problems can be diagnosed without expensive system diagnostics.
The value of expensive diagnostic tools is they can be used to save time and
money when trying to identify problems that may be caused by two or more
components. For example, it can be difficult to determine if a problem is caused
by a troublesome CPU or a bad motherboard. When this situation arises, a simple
solution is to substitute a known or good CPU for the suspect CPU. However, this
substitution alone can be a very expensive proposition.
Common Sense Practices
Remember, when troubleshooting and repairing PCs that “time is money.”
When diagnosing PC failures and problems, always take the quickest and easiest
path first. When troubleshooting, there are some common sense practices you
should follow:
✔ Determine the major area at fault.
✔ Determine what action occurred just prior to failure or problem.
✔ Write down settings before you change them.
✔ Go slowly.
✔ Think, think, think!
Determining the Major Fault Area
The first step is to try to determine what major area is the most likely source
of the fault. There are three major fault areas to be considered:
✔ Hardware failure.
✔ Software failure.
✔ User-generated problems.
The most common error or problem is the user-generated problem. Some
users like to tinker with Control Panel, and others will try to solve their problems
alone. Users with a little technical knowledge can be the most dangerous. They
often attempt to fix a problem alone before calling the technician. When this
happens, you may very well be faced with more than one problem. First, the
original problem likely still exists, and then there are additional problems created
by the user. Repairing computers in a school setting can be the most frustrating.
Some students love to experiment on the settings on a school’s computer before
trying the activity on their home computer.
What Happened Last?
It is critical to determine from the computer user what the last action on the
computer was prior to the problem occurring or before computer failure. Often,
the last action taken by the user can lead the technician directly to the problem.
Find out if the user recently installed some new software. Perhaps, there has been
a recent hardware upgrade to the problem PC. Has the user recently downloaded
a file from the Internet? Ask as many questions of the user as possible. This can
save valuable time.