3.4.5 Motherboard Troubleshooting

A clicking noise in your computer has now evolved into a grinding noise. In addition, you are beginning to see frequent error messages while running software, and your computer occasionally freezes. What is the MOST likely cause of these issues?

A failing hard drive

While running a graphics editing program on your Windows workstation, a screen suddenly pops up with an error message warning. You note the error message, but the only way to continue working is to reboot your system. What is this type of error screen called?

BSoD

When booting your workstation, you hear a series of audible beeps, and the system locks up. What is the FIRST step you should take when troubleshooting this issue?

Check the motherboard documentation for POST errors. Every time a workstation boots, it runs a Power-On Self Test (POST) to make sure that all of the basic hardware in the system is present and functioning correctly. If a problem is identified during POST, an error is generated, which can be a series of beeps. You need to check the motherboard documentation to interpret what the series of beeps represents. If the motherboard battery fails, the system clock can lose time, or the BIOS/UEFI settings may reset to their defaults. However, this would not cause the series of beeps you are hearing when the system boots. Dust buildup can cause overheating and other symptoms. However, this is not related to the POST error beeps you are hearing when the system boots. Disconnecting non-essential peripherals and then rebooting is a troubleshooting step for resolving a Blue Screen of Death issue and is not related to POST error beeps.

When you turn on your workstation, you immediately hear a grinding noise coming from inside the computer case. Which of the following are the MOST likely causes of this noise?

Dust buildup that needs to be cleaned. An uneven case surface that causes fan blade and motor noise.

Which pin on the power supply connector connects to the power good wire on the motherboard in order to indicate an appropriate action for the motherboard if the power disappears, quickly reappears, or does not appear at all?

Pin 8 Pin 8 on the power supply connector connects to the power good wire on the motherboard. If power disappears from this wire, the motherboard shuts down. If power quickly reappears on this wire, the system may attempt to come back on by itself, resulting in continual reboots. If power does not reappear on this wire, the system shuts off.

While performing data entry on your Windows 11 laptop, your screen suddenly goes black. What can you do immediately to troubleshoot the issue without losing any data that you have entered?

Press the Windows key + P four times If your screen suddenly goes black, try using the Windows key + P four times to switch between the four different display modes to see if the black screen disappears. Pressing Ctrl + Shift + B resets the video driver in Windows 10 and can be useful when encountering a black screen. However, this is a Windows 11 laptop. Pressing Ctrl + Alt + Del lets you terminate an application task or reboot the operating system. However, in this scenario, you probably want to check the display first before terminating applications or rebooting the system. Pressing F5 refreshes the screen, which will probably not resolve your black screen issues. In addition, pressing F5 may cause the data entry software to close, causing you to lose your data.

An employee calls to complain that their computer is behaving erratically. Some days, it functions correctly, and other days, it crashes frequently. Sometimes, the system won't boot at all. You open the system case and notice the following: Two of the mounting screws are missing from the system hard disk drive. The system uses memory modules from several different manufacturers with mismatched capacities. Several capacitors on the motherboard are bulging and have a brown liquid oozing from them. The chassis fan on the front of the case is oriented to blow air into the system. What should you do?

Replace the motherboard.

When playing videos games or watching movies on your workstation, the screen sometimes freezes and displays strange colors. You suspect that your video card is causing the issues. What is the BEST solution to resolve your display issues?

Replace the video card.

After arriving at work, you turn on your computer to begin your day. Instantly, you see smoke and smell a strange odor coming from the computer. Which of the following would be the MOST important action to take first?

Shut off the system immediately.

When you try to boot your computer, it hangs after POST. When you access the UEFI setup program, you see that the date is several years behind, and the time is set to 12:01 a.m. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of this behavior?

The motherboard battery has failed.