Repair motherboard problems

A short tutorial on how to repair motherboard.

Consider this: Do you have the tools and knowledge to do low level component repair? Do you know what I mean by low level component repair?

If no is the answer to either of these questions then there is no repairing the motherboard (mb) for you. There is however things that can be done to a main board that is malfunctioning that does not require repair of the board itself. So this section will deal with trouble shooting and things that can be repaired/replaced.

Instructions:

Before opening your computer case check the safety precautions !!

If you have a proprietary computer there in not a lot you can do besides diagnose your problem then call the manufacture support and get it replaced.

Troubleshooting motherboard problems, before repair a motherboard you need to troubleshoot it.

Most manufactures buy their BIOS from programming houses like Phoenix or AMI. Some manufactures have their own in house bios programs like IBM, or Compaq (now HP).

These bios programs have a section for diagnostics, some of them are accessible by the user, others are not. Most have a way to tell you there is a problem with the computer, these are "post" (Power On System Test) codes that display on the monitor or beep codes from the computer speaker.

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I can not list all post and beep codes here but they can be found by noting the BIOS program name when the computer starts up, then searching the web for the codes by the programming house name.

From the post or beep code you get a general idea of what the problem is. Memory? Video? Keyboard? Mouse? and so on.

Note: Some embedded devices such as video, sound, USB, or NIC (Network Interface Card) that fail can be replaced with an add on card until you are ready to replace the motherboard. Once one embedded device fails others will also fail so plan on replacing the motherboard as soon as possible.

Most problems with components can be resolved fairly easily and quickly. Sometimes reseating the component will take care of the problem. Sometimes removing the component and putting it back in will clear the problem. If the problems persist after reseating it then it is dead, needs to be replaced.

Note: Sometimes going into the BIOS setup will clear a problem but with an error code or beep code it will not. The BIOS on POST detected a hardware failure, troubleshoot and replace is the only option.

The main thing is troubleshoot the problem before replacing it, this will save you some money.

Note: I get questions all the time about replacing the caps (Capacitors) that are associated with the power supply (see top image, the two rows of caps at the top and on the right hand side of the CPU are NOT power supply caps!). You can replace the caps if they have failed. Your main problem is did the caps fail because of low quality material or over voltage/amperage?

If you are really serious about doing low level component troubleshooting and repair motherboard here is a tutorial I wrote for those that want to give it a try, what do you have to loose?