14 guides
Fixing Things
When something has stopped working — how to find the cause instead of guessing.
Graphics Card Problems: Diagnosing What Went Wrong
No display, beeping, freezing or worse performance after fitting a card — how to work out which of the four usual causes you have.
Motherboard Lights On, Computer Won't Start: Finding the Fault
Diagnostic LEDs, stuck boot screens, new memory that won't post and case compatibility — the motherboard problems that stop a machine starting.
Memory Problems: Freezes, Crashes and Missing RAM
Freezing, random crashes and only half your memory showing — how to tell a faulty module from a seating problem or a setting, and how to test properly.
External Drive Problems: Slow, Not Recognised, or Freezing the Machine
A drive that slows everything down, shows in Device Manager but not in Explorer, or locks up the computer — the causes and how to tell them apart.
A Computer That Won't Start: Working Through It in Order
Six questions that narrow a non-starting computer to one of a handful of causes, in the order that eliminates the most possibilities fastest.
Why Is My Computer Slow? Finding Out Before Spending Money
Four things cause nearly all slowness, and the system monitor tells you which in thirty seconds. How to read it, and what fixes each.
Why Computers Get Slower Over Time: The Actual Reasons
Hardware does not wear out in a way that makes it slower. Six real mechanisms explain the decline, and most of them are reversible.
Reading an Error Message Properly
Error messages contain more than people extract from them. Which part to search, which part to ignore, and how to find what actually happened.
Computer is Not Recognizing a USB Printer
A USB printer that will not appear: the checks to run in order, from cable and port to driver and print spooler.
Computer Keeps Making USB Sound
The repeated USB connect-disconnect chime explained — what causes it, how to find the culprit device, and how to stop it.
Computer Not Recognizing RAM
Why installed memory is not detected or only partly recognised, and how to test modules, slots and settings to find the fault.
Hard Drive Activity LED Lit on a Slow Computer
Constant drive activity with a slow machine: what is reading and writing, how to find the process, and when the drive is failing.
My PC is Stuck During a Reset
A Windows reset that has stalled: how long to wait, how to tell if it is frozen, and how to recover without losing files.
Troubleshooting Common Device Problems: Quick Fixes and Tips
The general method for diagnosing any device problem, plus the specific fixes for the faults that come up most often at home.
For broader technical standards and computing references, see NIST Information Technology Laboratory.