How to Know if Motherboard is Dead?

It isn’t enjoyable when your computer won’t boot up. It may not be turning on for several reasons. A “dead Motherboard” is one of them, not the worst but certainly not the best. But how can you know whether a motherboard is dead or still functioning, but something else is causing the problem? Most individuals don’t know how to know if motherboard is dead, except for a few PC whizzes. Therefore, if you are likewise perplexed, it’s okay, and we’ll assist you in finding out if your motherboard is dead or not.

Like a clock without hands, a dead motherboard is entirely worthless. Therefore, you need to swap it out for a functional one to make your pc work again. The worst part is that you have to pay a lot of money to replace the dead motherboard with a new one because motherboards are relatively pricey. When your computer behaves poorly, it might be challenging to determine whether the issue results from a dead motherboard or some other component failure. Read this until the end to get your query answered. 

How to Know if Motherboard is Dead?

You are aware of what can go wrong or die on a motherboard. But what if your computer has a defective or dead motherboard? You will experience these symptoms if your CPU has a faulty motherboard. Make sure to go through them thoroughly since these symptoms will guide you to take the necessary steps to resolve your issue. And it will surely help in the diagnosing part, later discussed in this article, to help you find your error and finally fix it.

Does the monitor show the name of the motherboard?

The manufacturer’s name cannot be seen on the monitor due to the dead motherboard. In other words, the Power-On Self-Test (POST) procedure could not be completed by the board. And it is unable to load your computer’s basic BIOS functionality. When this happens, then it means that your motherboard is dead. Since if a motherboard works properly, you should be able to see the brand’s logo at the beginning of the booting process. So, ensure you have this right before moving on to the subsequent symptoms.

Physical deterioration on the board

You should examine the physical state of your motherboard to see if your computer is unreliable or won’t power on at all. You might consider any black or brownish stains on your board or the explosion of capacitors as evidence that the motherboard has been damaged. Burnout on a motherboard is a problem that develops after the motherboard has been in use for a while. Capacitors, short circuit connections, etc., could all blame for the explosion. Burnout usually happens beyond the board’s lifespan.

Blue Screen Of Death

The Blue Screen Of Death is the most unwelcome issue on a computer. A faulty motherboard may be to blame if this issue occurs with your computer. In fact, there are countless reasons why a computer could experience blue screen issues. Prioritize resolving the issue depending on the stop code warning displayed on the blue screen first. But if the motherboard is the cause of the stop codes and it cannot be resolved, you must replace your motherboard. Especially when “Bad system configures” appears in the stop code.

Your PC restarts on its own

Your PC will occasionally restart itself without warning. When using your computer at work, it isn’t excellent to have to look at it. Usually, your pc freezes at first, and then there is a random restart which might cause you to lose your work. There are numerous causes for the automatic restart, including the Blue Screen, an inadequate power supply, etc. All these can lead to significant issues, including poor circuit flow or short circuits on the motherboard. The computer itself restarts automatically to prevent damage.

PC Crashing

A computer’s defective motherboard might cause a PC to freeze. The motherboard and PSU are two components that you can suspect. PSU is essential in resolving the freezing issue with computers. But occasionally, motherboards are also to blame for this problem. Suppose your power supply unit (PSU) is certain to supply a high-wattage power supply. In that case, the motherboard is where the issue lies. A motherboard might cause freezing for the following reasons:

1. Misfunctions are caused by dust on the board.
2. The temperature on the motherboard approaches its maximum functioning range.
3. The connections between the circuits were messed up somewhere on the board.

Hardware not being recognized

Any touchable PC components, such as a computer mouse or flash drive, are considered hardware. An error notice stating that the hardware is illegible or not recognized will appear when this problem occurs. The plugin won’t work or be accessible to you. Now, there are two reasons why this might happen. The first one is that the hardware has a problem. A malfunctioning motherboard is the cause of the second one. To rule out the potential of any hardware issues, you can plug the hardware into another computer.

Slowing Down Of The PC

The distinction between slowing down and freezing is clear. While freezing causes your computer screen to pause, slowing down causes everything to move more slowly. Programs load more slowly, and keystrokes aren’t detected as quickly as they should be when typing. This does not indicate that your motherboard is beginning to fail, though. It simply signifies that your motherboard is not functioning at its best. It will still work, but you must also replace your hardware to eliminate any potential future faults.

What are the Diagnostic Steps?

Step 1: Listen for a Brief Beep

If nothing appears on your monitor and you don’t hear a little beep, that may be a clue that your motherboard has failed. The brief sound indicates that the computer’s power-on self-test was successful. The “POST beep” is another name for this sound informally used. The POST is the computer’s method of ensuring that hardware connections and system prerequisites are present before the system powers on. If neither a beep nor a display is present, a dead motherboard is most often the cause. 

Step 2: Power up your computer while removing the RAM or any external video card

In this phase, we will attempt to rule out a memory or video card issue. If a motherboard determines that no RAM is installed, it will often emit a beep code resembling the POST beep. However, in contrast to the POST beep, the RAM problem beep code is distinguished by prolonged and repetitive sounds. Therefore, if you hear this kind of beep after turning on your motherboard, we can infer that the motherboard is not broken and the issue is with the RAM instead. 

Step 3: If there are other slots, reset the RAM in those slots

If no RAM is inserted, the majority of boards do not beep. If possible, try to reset the RAM stick in other memory slots to rule out a RAM-related flaw. This eliminates the risk of a RAM stick or RAM slot fault even more. You should try using an extra, compatible RAM stick on your motherboard if you have one available to completely rule out memory-related problems. Performing this will ensure that there is no problem with your RAMS, so you will be able to quickly move on to the other diagnostic steps.

Step 4: Try a different power source

There are times when the power supply in your computer appears to be usually working, but the contrary is actually true. It’s not always the case that your power supply sends the required voltage to your motherboard, even if the power supply fan, CPU fan, and power LED lights are all running. Work to obtain a spare power supply if you have one or know someone who does, then test it on your motherboard. Once you have tried this and still didn’t find the error, move on to the next step.

Step 5: Clear the CMOS

We are rapidly running out of options at this point. In difficult circumstances, do desperate things. This is a last-ditch effort. The BIOS settings for earlier motherboards are typically stored in the CMOS, or complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor, component of the motherboard. Modern computers no longer use CMOS because they frequently have their own non-volatile memory to save BIOS settings. Nevertheless, whether a current or vintage board, CMOS is still regarded as a practical choice for addressing motherboard boot-up issues.

Step 6: Try connecting your RAM, CPU, and power supply to a motherboard with a similar design

You have taken every precaution to rule out a dead motherboard issue. Sadly, the motherboard may seem to be the only problem in this situation. This final step can be the hammer that puts an end to your situation. The only reliable way to determine if your motherboard has finally succumbed to the death harbinger is to migrate all of the necessary hardware associated with it to another working motherboard and successfully start up with the new configuration. This should definitely work for you.

Conclusion

The motherboard’s condition is the first thing you should examine whenever a PC issue arises. I believe the details on this page will assist you in determining your motherboard’s condition. Doing this will ultimately make you look for the condition of other components enabling you to diagnose the problem at hand really quickly. But once you have identified that your motherboard is dead, then make sure to verify that all of your PC’s components are compatible before upgrading the motherboard.

Suppose you have followed all of the above instructions, and the motherboard still won’t come on or respond. In that case, unfortunately, the motherboard is probably dead. However, the motherboard manufacturer will refund your money or may even send you another board if your motherboard is DOA (Dead on Arrival) after you’ve already purchased it. You could easily claim your warranty if you have already studied our article: how to know if the motherboard is dead. We hope that you found the answer to your query in this article.