Tag Archives: failure

Best Practices for Backup

Every computer relies on the hard disk drive inside to store programs and data. When a failure occurs and the drive cannot be used, restoring files from a backup is necessary. However, there are many approaches to backup and not … Continue reading

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How Long Does a Computer Last?

A previous post described how to determine the real age of a computer by looking at the power-on time instead of the date of manufacture. A related question that is frequently asked is how long will a computer last? Based … Continue reading

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How Old is Your Computer?

We frequently hear people say “my computer is old” and then they try to remember when they bought the computer to determine its age. Describing a computer by its age is only part of the story, and it can lead … Continue reading

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Capacitor Failures

We continue to see motherboards with radial electrolytic capacitors in various stages of failure, starting with bulging and proceeding to cracking and leaking. Once they begin to bulge, they continue to expand until they crack and leak. This eventually leads … Continue reading

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