It’s almost inevitable: Someday you
will face a laptop failure. But take heart. Although it can be difficult to
pinpoint the cause of a failure, there are many common solutions that often
yield positive results. So the next time your Laptop experiences a serious
error, remember these tips.
1. Blue Screen
The oftentimes cryptic message on a Windows stop error, aka BSOD
(blue screen of death), can make it difficult to determine the origin of
the problem. But the BSOD is actually the result of a Windows safeguard, so you
can consider it better news than when your computer suddenly shuts down
completely for no obvious reason.
When Windows detects a serious problem, it will stop whatever it
is doing (including whatever programs are running) to protect itself and your
computer from further damage. The visible result is the blue screen.
Windows typically displays a stop error when there is a hardware
issue or conflict with device drivers.
Restart the Laptop. Restarting your Laptop will often solve the
issue. However, if a BSOD appears repeatedly, write down the entire error
message. Note as much information as possible, particularly the stop error
number itself (for example, “STOP: 0x0000007E”). You can pass this information
along to IT when you return to the office, or you can use it yourself to
identify the problem using Microsoft’s Help And Support website
(support.microsoft.com).
2. Frequent Reboot or Shutdown
Your Laptop may, without warning, spontaneously reboot or shut
down completely. Although there could be numerous issues causing this,
there are three common possibilities.
Check for hardware incompatibility.
If you or your IT staff recently upgraded the Laptop’s hardware,
one or more components may be incompatible, causing the system to shut down to
avoid damage. To solve this, you can try removing or replacing a newly
installed component to find out whether the shutdown still occurs.
Remove airflow restrictions. If you do this and find a component isn’t the
cause, or if you are fairly certain the failure is not hardware-related,
check that the air intake fans are not impeded. Blocked fans decrease the
amount of cool airflow into your Laptop. If the computer gets too hot, it will
shut down as a precautionary measure.
Scan for malware. Automatic
reboots or shutdowns can also be the result of a virus. If you have antivirus
software installed on your Laptop, make sure it is up-to-date and then run a
full scan of the hard drive. If you don’t have an antivirus program installed,
you can search the Web for a highly rated free one.
3. Frozen Laptop
You’re undoubtedly familiar with this scenario: Things are going
fine with your Laptop when suddenly you
can’t switch between multiple applications, a program hangs when
you try to open it, and the mouse and keyboard may not respond. Freezes such as
this are often the result of memory overload. The memory in your computer has a
certain capacity, and if there are too many processes running simultaneously,
your Laptop may freeze because it can’t keep up. Freezes can also occur when a
graphics processor can’t keep up with intensive tasks. Even video streaming and
online games have been known to overwhelm a Laptop’s graphics processing
capabilities, especially if the computer isn’t designed for intensive graphics
processing with a separate processor dedicated to that purpose. Malware can
also cause freezes.
Shut down a problematic program. If the
keyboard or mouse is responsive, start troubleshooting by pressing CTRLALT-
DELETE. Enter the Task Manager and end the program you believe may have caused
the freeze. Look for a program labeled “Not Responding” as a possible
culprit. In many cases the last program you attempted to open will have caused
the problem. In any event, only stop programs (not individual processes) unless
you understand the consequences. Stopping the problematic application will
often solve the problem.
Perform a cold shutdown. If the keyboard or mouse is not responsive, or
if it is not possible to stop a problematic program from running, perform a
hard shutdown. Hold down the power button for a few seconds until your laptop
turns off. When you start up the Laptop again, chances are that everything will
run smoothly.
Make sure software is up-to-date. If your Laptop freezes every time you open a
specific program, then check that you have installed all updates or
patches that the program might need. Also, opening an older version of a
program can cause your Laptop to freeze because it may be incompatible with
other programs or your OS.
4. Inability to Shut Down
The inability to turn off your Laptop is often caused by a
software error rather than a hardware issue. A
program may be unable to close, and because it continues to run,
Windows can’t close down properly. Software (including OS) updates have been
known to cause shutdown problems, as well.
Update or repair the software. Open the Task Manager and shut down unresponsive
programs or any programs that are running in the background. Then, one at a
time, open whatever programs you shut down and make sure there are no updates
available. Also make sure that there are no updates available for your Windows
OS by visiting windowsupdate.microsoft.com.
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