Top Computer Problems and Solutions
Have you ever had a computer issue and wanted a quick way to resolve it? We’ve put our experts together and asked them to come up with a list of the most frequently reported computer problems and the quickest solutions and here they are:
Problem: My computer is slow.
Solutions: Replace the aging mechanical drive that’s in it with a solid state drive; solid state drives are proven to dramatically improve the speed of any system running a mechanical drive and provided added reliability. Add more memory; anything below 4 GB is not enough to run Windows 10 effectively. Scan your system for malware. Check the system for things running in the background that you don’t need; we call these autoruns; there’s a great tool free from Microsoft’s own guru, Mark Russinovich to help you find and remove them. If all else fails, press Ctrl+Alt+Del simultaneously and check Task Manager for run away processes or high memory consumption; end any processes that are too resource heavy and then decide if you want to uninstall them or look for an update for them.
Problem: My internet is slow.
Solutions: Check your systems for malware by running an offline scan with the Microsoft Safety Scanner if you’re using Windows. Check the internet performance by running a speed test from Google.com. If you’re not getting what you’re paying for, check your internet’s connection with your ISP to make sure you have the latest firmware on your cable modem, dsl modem or other device. Get the latest firmware and remove any unwanted devices from your network. Change the default wifi network name and password to something only you know. Change the default password on the router and wireless access points to something only you know. Open a command prompt and run this command “ping -n 4 8.8.8.8”; if the response time is over 200 ms then your ISP is slow and you need to ask them to fix it or move to another ISP. We’ve written a script that you can download and run minimized that will continuously check and log slowness in your internet connection.
Problem: My computer won’t start.
Solutions: Your drive may have failed or you may have corrupted boot files. Download the Windows 10 ISO and create bootable media. Boot the system to the bootable media and go into the repair and let the installation check and attempt to fix your drive corruption and files. You may need to download utilities from the hard drive manufacturer and test to see if the drive is beyond repair. If needed, replace the drive and restore from backup.
Problem: My screen is blank.
Solutions: You may have a program running that has stopped responding and is causing your display to be blank. Try pressing Ctrl+Alt+Del simultaneously and then click Task Manager if it shows. Find the related program that is not responding and end it. You also may have a problem with your monitor; check the cabling and power to the monitor; make sure the cables are plugged in properly and working correctly. If possible, replace the monitor and cables with ones that you know work on another computer. If all else fails, power cycle your computer and see if the screen begins working again. If it works only until Windows or a specific program starts, then further troubleshooting may be needed to determine if the problem is a display driver issue or video card issue.
Problem: My computer is making strange noises.
Solutions: Your system may have some mechanical parts that are failing or in need of cleaning. Check the fans, drives including CD/DVD drives. Clear anything that could be blocking or hitting any fans. Your system could have a fan on the processor, video card and the system chassis. If the fan is just running at a high speed, you may need to use compressed air to blow out dust that could be restricting the airflow around key components of the system like the processor or memory. If the problem is the hard drive making the noise, make sure you have a good backup and replace the drive asap. Drives that are close to failure will sometimes make strange noises.
Problem: My internet connection keeps dropping.
Solutions: If you’re using wifi to connect, try connecting to the network with a wired connection to see if the problem goes away. If it goes away when you’re wired, then you need to adjust the settings on your wifi network. Some things you can try to change on your wifi network include: updating the firmware; changing the network name (SSID) to something unique - in other words, not Linksys or Netgear; change it to something like Jones2582 so that you’re not battling with your neighbor’s Linksys or Netgear wifi networks.; check to see if you have anything in between your wifi router and your computer like a wall or power cables, microwave ovens, fluorescent lights, wireless video cameras, and cordless phones. If you need to cover more square footage with your wifi, consider a mesh type of wifi system like Google’s Wifi. This is a pretty simple way to extend good wifi signal to all areas of a home or small office.
Problem: My email isn’t working.
Solutions: If you’re having email related issues, you’re not alone. This is a very common issue and it’s caused by many factors. First, you need to have good internet in order to get email to work; see the previous problems for internet related solutions. Second, if your email is a free email from your ISP, you may have maxed out the amount of storage your ISP allows; contact them to see if you can expand the storage for a small fee per month or consider a more industrial type of email system like Microsoft’s Office 365. If you’re using Microsoft Outlook as your email client, you may have issues with disappearing emails; this is a common issue that’s usually caused by an Outlook rule that needs to be adjusted or possibly a too restrictive Junk Email Option setting; look under Safe Senders and Blocked Senders too.. If you’ve already checked these places, ask your administrator or IT people to check the settings on the server; there could be policies set there that are preventing emails from getting to your inbox; the sender could also be on a blacklist of known spammers and may need to do more on their end to get the email to you.
Computers are complicated and the list of problems continues to grow. Solving some of these problems and preventing them can require expertise. When you’re ready to hire an expert to fix and prevent the problems, check out how Managed Services can help.
