Guess whose computer is broken?
Yes, friends, my PC is broken again. The motherboard (Asus P4P800 Deluxe) I put in this summer suddenly lost its onboard audio and NIC. The audio revived when I reinstalled the drivers but nothing seems to be bringing back the NIC. Further, my spare PCI NIC reports the same problem: the drivers install but the system says that it cannot be started. I have flashed my BIOS and it says that the onboard services are enabled. (When I replaced the motherboard this summer, the network capability shorted out within hours and I had to replace the replacement. Hmmm.)
I’ve also noted occasional raster problems since the networking problems happened. ..little flickers of instability.
It feels like a surge problem, but it’s plugged into a Back-UPS Pro 650 which ought to be enough to keep its electrical diet healthy. Might it be the internal power supply? It, too, is only 6 months old and pumps some hefty wattage, although I don’t recall how much.
Consider also that I go through hard drives the way other people go through socks. I get about 1.5 years out of ’em before they grind to a halt. This is true not only of my desktop machine but also my laptop, which is plugged into a plain old surge protector, not the UPS. Am I just in a Bermuda Triangle of computing?
[Two notes: 1. Yes, I am a backup fanatic. Multiple backups every night. 2. The first person who tells me to “Get a Mac” will receive a stinking fish head in the mail, COD. Yes, a cod COD.] [Note: I will admit that that’s a very long line.]
Categories: Uncategorized dw
You know, David, you wouldn’t have these problems if you just used a computer running Palm OS instead of Windows….
UPS sounds like it might help a lot. Any sources of static in the area?
Only other thing I’ve seen that might do something flakey like this is a faulty wiring harness…
Maybe you need to check your qi or get an exorcist; that’s a lot of equipment inside two years.
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David,
Is the computer near any sources of EM interference like a fridge or furnace? is there anything like that on the same circuit as the computer? At this point there are two possibilities – 1) it’s something in the computer’s immediate environs or 2) you’re jinxed.
The computer seems to be on the same line as some other household appliances because if you turn on a vacuum cleaner or a toaster oven, the screen jiggles, even though it and the cpu are plugged into the UPS (APC Back UPS 650); I was expecting better power cleaning from the UPS.
My office is not close to any obvious EM interference.
Couple of things to try:
1) make sure whatever box is on the other end of your ethernet is *also* plugged into the UPS. It’s possible (though not likely) that you’re getting power surges of some kind thru the ethernet.
2) Turn your computer on and off less. If it’s a desktop in your office, just leave it on all night. Cycling it exacerbates potential thermal expansion problems. This should also have a prolonging effect on your hard drives because they’re not spinning up and down so often.
Just a couple things off the top of my head.
The other end of the ethernet is a linksys router that is *not* plugged into the UPS, although it is plugged into a mediocre surge suppressor which I’ll upgrade. Thanks.
As for cycling the power: I rarely do. Only when I have to – a couple of times a week, maybe.
I’d guess your failure rate is unusual. It’s been 15 years since I’ve had a hard drive fail.
I currently have two desktop machines (Sun & Linux PC) and a laptop and I do pretty hard-core development and database operations. I do pay attention to the brand of my drives and I don’t turn of the desktops at night (just the monitors)…
I can’t possibly imagine what you might do to improve your computing experience — since I haven’t used Windows for many happy years.
Get a Mac!!
David,
If you can, plug the LInksys, the computer etc into a circuit not connected to the rest of the appliances. I’m guessing that you’re seeing nasty spikes when appliances go on and off. Hard drives should last for years – I had a 20g IBM drive last 4 years and replaced it only because it started making noises and it’s on my email server.
Hmm, completely forgot about EM. Have a friend who can’t use his PS2 for viewing movies while the furnace is running; it causes static in the display. Every time the furnace fan kicks on the screen is pure snow.
Go to the closest RadioShack and see if they have something like a filter you can clip on around your power cords — ask if it can also be used on your ethernet (I don’t know). I have some I bought years ago; they look like magnets in a plastic housing that open to insert cord then clamp on.
My dad is an electrical engineer; I’ll email him and see if he has any other suggestions.
Hooray for Hollywood
Or Pasadena, at least. My plane travel went very well, Chicago to Denver, Denver to Burbank, connections on time and no lost bags. A friendly volunteer picked me up at the airport and whisked me to the hotel right away, with instructions to change and …
i’ll willing to pay for my cod.
Trevor, sorry to tell you this, but: There is no cod.
Here’s what Dad said:
>>For the kind of problems he is having, it looks like power problems PLUS mother board. The power problems first. There are THREE types of UPS systems. Only one takes care of LOW voltage/brownout problems. All three take care of backup and surge. If he is marginal on voltage, his power supply might fluctuate, causing all kinds of secondary problems on the motherboard AND hard drive. So, he has got to solve the primary problem first. When his micro or toaster or furnace/AC comes on, does his TV picture shrink momentarily? If it does, then he has low voltage problems. Concerning the hard drive. Western Digital and Maxton are the preferred brands for reliability. He should leave the computer on continuously to reduce the number of start/stops which are hard on the hard drive. However, he has to stop and restart occasionally for upgrades, etc. Concerning the motherboard. He needs to use a reliable brand after he solves the power problem. He could have a chip(s) on the motherboard that is going bad and or sucking lots of power that will aggavate the power problem. So which came first, the mother board problem or the power problem. I’d check the power first, since he has to solve that problem regardless, as it will affect all of this hardware and firmware. < I worked for a couple of years in IT provisioning; dished out about 4000 disk drives in that period of time, all brands. Never had a failed Western Digital in that time. Ever. You might want to plan on a call to an electrician; wonder if this power issue is causing problems with other electronics? Best of luck ~
Thank your father for me. This is extraordinarily helpful.
No prob, Dave, glad to help. Just realized I left off the close quotes on his stuff; I’m the one who was in IT provisioning. He’s a retired electrical engineer who’s conveniently available and eager to answer questions like this one.
Dad’s answer also solved the PS2/furnace problem for my friend — what a bonus, a two-fer. How often does that happen? Best~
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