Mod 4 Troubleshooting

You have an eight-year-old computer with all the original components still in place. The power supply fan seems to be going bad, so you start troubleshooting. You replace the power supply, but the fan continues to have the same problem. You then disconnect all the other components except the motherboard. Only under this condition does the fan works as expected. Which of the following is most likely to be true?

• a. The power supply needs to be replaced with one that has a higher power rating.

• b. One of the other components was causing a short and drawing too much power.

• c. The system was overheating; opening the case cooled it down and fixed the fan.

• d. The motherboard should be replaced right away to prevent additional damage.

While you are working on your computer, it shuts down unexpectedly, and you detect a burning smell. When you remove the case cover, you notice a distended capacitor. What can you do to fix this problem?

• Replace CMOS Battery

• Replace Motherboard

• Replace Power Supply

• Replace the capacitor

A system has been having intermittent problems. Miya decides to measure the output voltage of the power supply. The voltage exceeds the expected value by an unreasonable amount. What is the most likely consequence?

• a. The system will overheat causing a shutdown.

• b. The processor will be overclocked excessively.

• c. None, devices only draw the power they need.

• d. Excessive voltage will damage the motherboard.

Your laptop at home is exhibiting intermittent problems and you suspect it could be related to power. How can you verify the power adapter is supplying the proper voltage?

• a. Replacing the old power adapter with a new one is a reasonable way of verifying it is delivering the right amount of voltage and power.

• b. Verify the electrical outlet is delivering power then plug in the power adapter. Connect the 24-pin P1 connect into a power supply tester.

• c. Use a multimeter. Place the black probe of the multimeter in the center of the DC connector and the red probe on the outside cylinder.

• d. Use a multimeter. Place the red probe of the multimeter in the center of the DC connector and the black probe on the outside cylinder.

Rebecca completed work on a computer and is verifying the functionality of the system when she finds a new problem. This problem is not urgent and can be easily fixed. The policy at Rebecca's company is that all problems need to be reported and given a priority code before they can be assigned to someone. What should Rebecca do about this new problem?

• a. Report the new problem.

• b. Troubleshoot the new problem.

• c. Ignore the new problem.

• d. Determine whether fixing the first problem caused the second problem.

Tania is examining a system because the user claims their Word documents are getting corrupt. What is a reasonable best guess as a starting point?

• a. The user is not saving the files properly.

• b. The application needs to be reinstalled.

• c. The application needs to be patched.

• d. The hard drive needs to be replaced.

You are troubleshooting a serious issue for a friend because their computer does not boot up properly. What method should be employed to ensure the user's data is protected?

• a. Use a professional data recovery service to copy the data to another storage media.

• b. Use Windows Explorer to copy the data to another storage media on the local system.

• c. Connect the drive to another computer and copy the data to another storage media.

• d. Ask the user if they backed up the data. If they say yes, you can proceed with caution.

When you verify a fix, you determine that the problem could have been prevented. What should you do to help the user avoid having the same problem again?

• a. Lock the user out of the problem area.

• b. Instruct the user on how to prevent the problem.

• c. Don't tell the user anything so that he will have to call you back when the problem occurs again.

• d. Document the problem and hope the user reads your notes.

Sara works in the IT department for a large retail store. She has been testing a theory about why an error message keeps popping up on a coworker's computer when they try to start Windows. She has hit a wall and doesn't know where to look next. Sara feels very frustrated with the problem. What should Sara do to help work out the solution?

• Take a break and come back later

• Blame the coworker for causing the error message.
• Write down everything

• Restart the computer and try again.

Larry got a new job and moved from New York to Hawaii. After a couple of weeks, he notices that occasionally, the time, date, and time zone are all wrong. He has no idea what is happening and believes it is because he moved to a different time zone. What is likely to be causing the problem?

• a. BIOS is corrupt and needs to be flashed.

• b. The internal clock rate is unstable and drifting.

• c. The motherboard is degraded and about to fail.

• d. The CMOS battery is failing and needs to be replaced.

• e. Larry didn't set the time on his computer after he moved.