TROUBLE

SHOOTING
FORM 3

MKWICHI SECONDARY
SCHOOL
 Define trouble shooting.
• Refers to the process of diagnosing and resolving hardware and software
related problems.
• There are hardware and software problems.
• Common hardware and software problems are
1. Failure to load the operating system during booting process
2. Computer failure to respond (hanging)
3. Abnormal restarting of a computer
4. Failure of the monitor to display
5. Failure of the operating system due to device drivers problems.
 Hardware problems
1. Computer Boot failure
• When a computer is started, BIOS perform a power on self-test
(POST) to check for the status of basic input and output components
• If any error is found during POST, it is typically indicated using error
messages on screen or by series of beeps.
• If the computer produces beep sounds, count the beeps and listen to
whether they are long or short.
• Typically, one beep indicates that all components have passed the
POST.
 Hardware problems…

• Depending on the type of BIOS, a computer may display error codes starting
with error code such as code 120 that indicates a problem with the motherboard
or code 162 for problems with the processor.
• Errors starting with code 2 indicate memory (RAM) failure while those starting
with 3 indicate keyboard failure.
To troubleshoot start-up related process, proceed as follows;
1. Start the computer to initialise the POST process. This is usually a dark screen
with some scrolling text. At the bottom of the screen is a prompt like “press
F10 to enter BIOS setup”
Note: the BIOS setup key depends on the type of BIOS utility chip on your
computer.
 To troubleshoot start-up related
process, proceed as follows;
2. Press special key or combination of keys (mostly DEL,
ESC, CTRL + ESC or CTRL + ALT + ESC) to display the
BIOS setup screen.
3. In the setup screen, make necessary changes.
Note: some changes you make might cause the computer to
Malfunction! Never make or save changes unless you are
sure of the configuration implications!
4. Save the configuration changes and restart the computer.
 Hardware problems
2. Failure of motherboard, memory or processor
• If you turn on the computer and it does not complete POST or it only
displays a red LED light instead of green, the problems may be due to
motherboard, memory or processor failure.
• Such errors are rare because most system boards and processor
errors are serious enough to prevent the computer from displaying
error codes or messages.
• Some memory related errors are not reported by the computer at all.
• To resolve RAM errors, proceed as follows;
 To resolve RAM errors, proceed
as follows;
1. Disconnect the computer from power and open up the system
unit and locate the slots where the RAM modules are plugged.
2. Discharge static electricity that might have built up on your
body using a wrist member
3. Check whether the memory modules are firmly plugged into the
slots. If they are, connect the computer to power and restart.
4. If the problem persists, you need to replace the RAM modules
with new ones. The memory modules may be damaged.
 Hardware problems…
3. Failure of power supply unit
• Power supply unit may fail due to power surge or failure of the
cooling fan inside it.
• To resolve power supply unit problems, do one of the following;
1. Check to make sure that the power supply is properly connected to
power socket or UPS.
2. Check the power selector to ensure that it has the right power
rating. For example, in most countries, the rating for domestic
power is 240V while in US the rating is 110V.
 To resolve power supply unit
problems, do one of the following;
3. Open the casing and check whether the power cable that
connects to the motherboard is properly attached.
4. If the problem persist, replace the power supply unit with
a new one.
Never try to repair a power supply unit because it may
cause serious body harm.
 Hardware problems…
4. Failure of cooler fans
• A computer may have several cooling fans such as that of
power supply unit, microprocessor and the chassis.
• The fans protect delicate computer components from the
damage caused by overheating.
• When a fan begins to wear out, it makes a whining or
grinding noise.
• To protect fans from failure do one of the following.
To protect fans from failure do one
of the following.
1. Place the computers in a dust free place or if the
computer is in a dusty place, always remember to cover
it.
2. Always use a blower to blow out dust that may have
settled on computer parts.
3. In case one of the fan happens to fail, turn off the
computer, unclip it and replace it with a new one.
 Hardware problems…
5. Abnormal restarting of a computer
• If a computer is restarting or shutting down abnormally, the
problem might be due poor operating system configuration,
hardware failure or virus attack.
• If the problem is serious, the computer may display a blue screen
with a message such as “fatal exception error has occurred….”
• To resolve this problem, do the following:
1. Confirm that all hardware devices and drivers are properly
installed or configured using device manager.
 To resolve this problem of Abnormal
restarting of a computer do the following:
2. If the problem is related to operating system, follow this procedure:
a. Press combination of keys (Ctrl + Alt + Del) to restart the computer.
b. During the reboot process, and before Windows is loaded, press F8 to
display the safe mode startup screen
c. Choose safe mode to load Windows with minimal settings. Scan the drives
or check for any hardware or software related problems in device
manager.
3. If the problem persists, the Operating system may be corrupted by a
malware. In such a case, you may need to use up-to-date antivirus software
to scan the boot sector for virus.
To resolve this problem of Abnormal restarting
of a computer do the following…

4. If all the above fails, you have to re-install or repair the

operating system using the recovery disk created during
installation.
• The last but painful option is to install the operating
system afresh which means losing installed programs and
sometimes data.
 Hardware problems
6. Damaged Removable storage media
• One of the most common symptoms of damaged removable
storage is message indicating that there is an error reading
from or writing to the media.
• An error message “Error writing to disk” is displayed.
• This type of message typically indicates that storage media
may be corrupted or physically damaged.
• To solve the problem, try one of the following:
 To solve the problem of damaged Removable
storage media, try one of the following:

1. Open the removable media such as CD or DVD in a

different computer to rule out drive failure as the cause
of the problem.
2. If the problem is not related to the storage media, clean
up the drive using cleaning tools available in most
computer vendor shops.
3. If the problem persists after cleaning, consider replacing
it with a new one.
 Hardware problems
7. Hard drive failure
• If you start a computer and get an error message starting with 16
err0r code, it means that the computer doesn’t recognise or cannot
communicate with the hard disk drive.
• To troubleshoot this problem, proceed as follows;
1. Enter into BIOS setup program to ensure that proper hard drive
type is selected
2. If the error message persists, the disk platter(s) may have
crashed. Consider replacing it with a new one.
 Hardware problems
8. Display problems on screen
• Display problems may cause health related problems such
as eyestrain, fatigue and headaches.
• To minimise such health risks, CRT (Cathode Ray Tube)
monitors have been replaced by LCD ( liquid crystal
display) and TFT (Thin-Film Transistor) flat panel
displays that are safer and more comfortable.
 Hardware problems
9. Continuous beeping sound
• This is an indication of missing monitor or faulty video
adapter.
• Check to ensure that the monitor is properly attached to
the video card through the VGA (Video Graphics
Array) or HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia
Interface) port.
 Hardware problems
10. No display or Flickering Monitor
• If a monitor fails to display and does not issue an error code, the first
thing you should do is to move the mouse or press any key on the
keyboard.
• Most computers use power management modes that cause the screen to
go on standby or sleep mode.
• On the other hand, flickering may be caused by a poor refresh rate or
failing monitor.
• The refresh rate determines how often the display on the screen gets
redrawn.
 To resolve such display problems,
try one of the following;
1. Make sure the monitor is plugged into power outlet and turned on.
Also ensure that the brightness is set at adequate level.
2. If this step does not solve the problem, check whether the monitor
is properly plugged to the VGA or HDMI port usually at the back of
the system unit.
3. If the problem is not related to power or interface, you may need to
test the monitor using another computer before declaring it dead.
4. Replace the monitor with a new one, preferably a TFT flat panel
display.
 Hardware problems
11. Repeated Display on Screen
• Is due to poor colour and resolution settings
• This setting results in multiple copies of the same image.
• To resolve this problem, use display setting properties to
change the colour resolution settings.
 Hardware problems
12. Keyboard and mouse failure
• Keyboard and mouse problems may be due to improper connection of the
device, poor handling or even mechanical failure of the device itself.
• For example, irregular movement of the mouse pointer across the screen
suggests dirty mouse ball or LED contact.
• Note that current trends in mouse technologies is to replace mechanical
ball and rollers with optical LED contact at the bottom.
• For a keyboard that has failed completely or some keys fail to function, the
only option is to replace the underlying circuit board or entire keyboard.
 Hardware problems
13. Problem with sound output
• Components that make up a computer audio system are the
sound controller, speakers and device drivers.
• If a computer does not produce sound, try the following:
1. Adjust the volume to adequate level. Check to make sure
that they are plugged into the sound interface.
2. Ensure that the speakers power cable is properly plugged
into power outlet and speakers are turned on.
 If a computer does not produce
sound, try the following:
3. If the speakers and the interface cables are not faulty,
turn your attention to the sound adapter drivers.
4. If the problem is still not resolved, open the computer
and make sure that the sound adapter is available or
properly plugged.
 SOFTWARE PROBLEMS
1. Missing Operating System
• After POST, a computer searches for the presence of an Operating
System (OS) on the hard drive.
• In an OS is not installed, the error message “missing operating
system” may be displayed.
• This means that you have to follow the procedure for installing the
operating system described earlier.
• If you are sure the operating system is installed, the problem may
be due to boot sector or hard disk related problems.
 SOFTWARE PROBLEMS
• A boot sector is where the booting instructions are stored
once you install an operating system.
• To resolve this problem, do one of the following;
1. Enter the BIOS setup screen and check whether the hard
disk is visible to the computer.
2. If the hard disk is okay, reboot the computer using the
system recovery disk and try to repair the operating
system.
 SOFTWARE PROBLEMS
2. Corrupted system registry
• In windows, registry is the database that keeps record of
all system and application software installed on the
computer.
• If the registry is corrupted, the computer may fail to boot.
• For example, failure to load the desktop may be due to
infection by Malware or corrupted system registry files.
• To troubleshoot problems relating to corrupted registry,
try the following:
To troubleshoot problems relating to
corrupted registry, try the following:
1. Repair the registry using emergency recovery disk or
restore the registry backup if you created one. If all
these fail, reinstall the operating system.
2. If the system can start in safe mode, locate the
malfunctioning device in the device manager and disable
it.
 SOFTWARE PROBLEMS
3. Windows protection error
• Windows protection error is displayed during start-up before the
desktop is displayed.
• This problem occurs when critical windows drivers fails to load.
• To deal with this problem, do the following
1. Restart the computer in safe mode. If windows does not load, use the
recovery disk to repair the operating system.
2. Using the recover disk, repair the operating system paying attention
to details
 SOFTWARE PROBLEMS
4. Problem of Non-responding system
• Non-responding system commonly referred to as hanging
refers to a computer failing to respond to commands.
• To resolve the problem, do one of the following;
1. Press Ctrl + Alt + Del keys to display the Task Manager
2. In the Task Manager window, click the Process tab, and then
select the non-responding process e.g. explore.exe.
3. Click End Process button to terminate the application.
 PRINTER – RELATED
PROBLEMS
• A printer is one of the most commonly used peripheral devices to
produce hard copies.
• Some of printer related problems are:
1. I/O print error
• The I/O print error indicates that the computer cannot properly
communicate with the printer.
• Ensure that the correct printer is selected and turned on
• If this does not work, you may be forced to reinstall the printer
drivers.
 PRINTER – RELATED
PROBLEMS
2. Paper jam
• Paper jam usually stop the current print job until the jam is
completely cleared.
• If paper jams in the printer, locate the paper and gently try to remove
it.
• If the printer continues to jam at frequent intervals, try using a
different papers.
• Printers work best with a particular weight of paper, hence if you use
a paper that is too light or too heavy, paper jam may occur frequently.
 PRINTER – RELATED
PROBLEMS
3. Poor printout quality
• Quality related problems is easily resolved by replacing ink,
toner, or laser head/drum.
• However, quality problems may be due to failures within the
device’s print process.
• If a printer produces a garbage, this may be due to
communications problem between the computer and printer.
• Make sure that appropriate drivers are properly installed.
 PRINTER – RELATED
PROBLEMS
4. Toner/Ink Cartridge problem
• Most printers give warning of low toner or ink level before
it is completely used up.
• In such a case, be ready to replace or refill the cartridge.
• By refilling used cartridge, make sure it is tested to avoid
possibility of using faulty cartridge.
 PRINTER – RELATED
PROBLEMS
5. Smudged printout
• If a dot matrix printer produces smudged printouts, check on the
printer head.
• Stuck pins may cause printouts to have a smudged appearance as
they drag across the page.
• In laser printers, smudged printouts may be as a result of the drum
failure to fuse the toner onto the paper.
• For inkjet printers, smudges are mostly due to touching the printout
before the ink dries up.
 To troubleshoot smudged printout
problem do one of the following;
1. In case of a dot matrix printer, replace the print head.
• If this doesn’t solve the problem, it could indicate worn-out
printer head or poor ink ribbon.
• Simply replace the head or the ribbon.
2. For laser printers, consult the user-guide that may be helpful
in locating the problem especially relating to the fuser.
• Because the fuser is a sensitive component that gets very hot, it
is advisable for it to be installed by an experienced technician.
 Practical Activity

Sangulusyo bought a new PC three months ago. One

morning, he turned on the computer but he was greeted by
beeping sounds and LED indicator on the system unit and
on the monitor. Identify the cause of the problem and
demonstrate how you would troubleshoot the problem.
 Revision Exercise

1. Identify symptoms associated with failure of RAM modules.

2. A user complains that the mouse pointer does not move smoothly on the
screen. Explain the reason why.
3. When a user tried to access a hard drive, he received “invalid Drive” error.
Explain the possible cause of the problem
4. A customer complains that her computer spontaneously reboots and sometimes
does not start at all. Which device is most likely causing this problem?
5. When a customer’s computer was first configured after buying, it was playing
audio and video CDs and DVDs, but after sometime, it produces no sounds at
all. What might be the problem?
TROUBLE SHOOTING
THE END