A few Common Laptop Faults & Solutions

A few Common Laptop Faults & Solutions
8 min read

Overheating

Symptom: Computer crashes, freezes

Solution: Clean vents for air, place filtering material on the vent for inhalation or upgrade BIOS

The heat can drain your laptop's performance and frequently cause numerous hiccups, including system crashes and freezing. Each computer produces a lot of heat. However, laptops are particularly susceptible to overheating due to their tiny size and absence of airflow. Dust accumulation can block air vents and deprive your system of cool air to cool down the CPU.

It is often possible to solve overheating problems by simply cleaning the air vents using an instrument cleaner or a cloth.

To stop further dust buildup and prevent dust accumulation:

  1. Put a piece of cloth that has been filtered, like from a Swiffer, over the vent for inhalation.
  2. Do not place it over the exhaust vent because this is the area where hot air is intended to escape from the system fast.
  3. If the cloth does not work, consider upgrading the BIOS that controls your laptop's hardware.

The majority of manufacturers offer an installation program that updates BIOS files automatically. This will usually address issues with heating management. When you update the BIOS, ensure your laptop is connected to a power source.

Read Stop mcafee scanner service

Slow Hard Drive

Symptom: Overloaded program load times and slow file transfers

Solution: Disk defragmentation

The unorganized data stored within your computer may slow down performance as the computer takes longer to sort between data bits and damaged sectors. This issue can be cleaned by a simple process (but not necessarily quick; defragmenting may take several hours) using the built-in Windows software Disk Defragmenter. This program is accessible by clicking the Programs menu within the Accessories or System Tools folder. Just click the Analyze button to determine whether your disk drive needs defragmenting. Click Defragment to start.

Battery Will Not Hold the Charge

The symptom: Your notebook is running for a short time when disconnected

Solution: Replace the battery

In the course of their life, lithium-ion batteries will be unable to store charges. After a while, certain batteries can last just a fraction of the runtime they are advertised to have. Replacing a battery is easy; most come out of the back or bottom of your laptop.

A top tip: Never leave the laptop plugged into an overcharged battery, as it can cause more harm to the battery over the long term.

Bad Keyboard

The symptom is missing or lost Keys

Solution Alternative: Replace the keyboard

Keyboards are the primary targets of the abuse laptops suffer, whether from writing or spilled drinks. Because of this, keys often get damaged or smashed. Luckily, laptop makers offer short online instructions to repair keyboards via their support pages. Search for "keyboard replacement" in the search box or browse the manufacturer's knowledge base.

It's impossible to connect to a Wireless Network.

Symptom The cause is: There is no Internet connection and frequent time-outs when Web surfing.

Solution: Ensure wireless is on, use smarter software tools, and make sure that your router broadcasts the network name (SSID)

A major part of carrying your laptop is expected to be connected to any WiFi network, whether at the airport, a cafe or even a hotel. Wireless networks, by their nature, are tricky beasts. Certain laptops have an external switch or button separate from the software settings to allow wireless connectivity. Make sure that the wireless toggle is turned on. Please make sure this network is broadcasting its name or the SSID.

Stuck Pixels

The symptom: Green or red dots appear on the screen of your notebook

Solution: Massage away dead pixels

Pixels that aren't aligned or stuck can cause a problem on a laptop that is otherwise functional LCD. The pixels are usually red or green, but they are not lit up consistently with other pixels on the screen. The problem is that manufacturers cannot swap out an LCD with just one or two stuck pixels. Some need as many as 10-18 dead pixels before taking action.

There's a solution, but. Use a soft object, like a felt or cloth and rub it gently with a circular motion around the stuck pixel. Doing this will typically cause the pixel to be lit up correctly.

Once you've found the perfect spot and the right pressure to light the pixel, place your finger in place for a maximum of two minutes. Then, voila, no more stuck pixels.

System Crash

The problem is that the notebook won't boot up

Solution: Disconnect the hard drive from its enclosure and put it in an external enclosure.

Run Check disk.

The majority of people enter anxiety when computers fail to start. Most of the time, it's a matter of if the issue can be as easy as a lost system file or an infected section on your drive. To determine if this is the case, take out your hard drive following the directions provided by the manufacturer. Then, you can place it in a USB enclosure. These are external housings to house internal hardware.

Then, connect your enclosure's USB cable to an open USB port on a functioning PC. If your file system remains in good condition, the drive should appear as an external device. It should also allow the transfer of data to or from the device. Next, try running the check disk on the drive by opening a DOS prompt (Start/Programs/Accessories/Command Prompt) and typing in X: where X is the letter of your external drive. After that, press Enter. After that, you can type "chkdsk /f." Your system could require you to unmount the drive. This is perfectly fine, so you can type Y and hit Enter.

The notebook will display the details about the drives (file system type and serial numbers), check the drive for errors, and correct any errors it discovers. An error report will be printed out, allowing you to determine what changes were implemented to your drive. If everything goes as planned, you'll be a good start when you plug the drive back into your crashed notebook and turn it on.

Also Read What Type of Software can Protect your Computer from Harmful Attacks?

The virus or Spyware Infestation

Symptom: Lots of pop-ups and slow downloads

Solutions: Download antispyware applications and use virus scans for free

Nothing can cripple your system as much as malware. The best protection is always prevention. Getting an active subscription to a program such as Norton 360 is recommended. Norton is a standout for its non-intrusive security suite, which offers excellent security against spyware and antivirus, backups of files and the ability to tune performance without a complicated user interface. Norton's Norton suite also comes with an option for firewalls that effectively block most threats while alerting users to any friendly applications requesting Web access.

If you're unwilling to shell out any cash to enhance your defences, use free programs like Ad-Aware or Spybot, including Find and Destroy. Both are great tools; each comes with distinct strengths and weaknesses. Spybot is more adept at identifying malware, such as pop-ups. At the same time, Ad-Aware is better at removing cookie files (text files that advertisements transfer to the user's computer to track their online activities). It is recommended to schedule periodic tests using both tools to ensure that you are sure of your security.

If these tools fail to locate a virus, you may try Trend Micro's free House Call at housecall.trendmicro.com, which is sometimes more adept at identifying viruses than other programs. Trend Micro also offers a free database of viruses and manual removal methods if automated methods are not working.

 

In case you have found a mistake in the text, please send a message to the author by selecting the mistake and pressing Ctrl-Enter.
Mattie Santos 0
Whether you're brand newly initiated in nursing or employed in the field, please take advantage of our guide to discover which specialties provide the most oppo...
Comments (0)

    No comments yet

You must be logged in to comment.

Sign In / Sign Up