Computer Update · 4:20am Jan 8th, 2021
Hey readers! Max here with a quick update on things!
So, this is being written from my computer. And it may be that the source of the problem has been found. Perhaps. Two problems, really.
One was that my thermal paste on the CPU, that critical component responsible for transferring heat to the fans, was dry as a bone. Which means part of the problem may have been that the CPU was overheating. Now that it’s been cleaned and new paste applied, a system check of everything swears it’s all okay. Mem-check went fine too.
Save in one place. My D drive. Yes, it would appear that the D drive, about 15 years old, is failing me. To the point that Windows cannot even repair it and advised when I tried that due to the inability to do so, system instability could result.
So yeah … that seems to be the other culprit. As a result, I’ve moved all valued items off of it to another drive (F), including my music collection (and have set my player to find the library there. I’ve cleared programs using the drive, and already ordered a replacement. Now I just need to wait.
Oh, and during my attempt to copy some stuff off of the drive, the computer crashed again. Which seems … telling, if I do say so myself.
I’ll try and do some work tomorrow, and with luck, there won’t be any issues. If there are well … sands, I don’t know. This should be it. I’ll tiptoe around that drive until the replacement arrives, at which point I’ll open the case up and swap them out. In the end it cost me about $116, but the new replacement is the same size and an SSD (the other option was half the price for the same thing, or the price I paid for 2 TB but old-school SSD. I went for a future-proof.
With luck, this will stop the issue, and things will return to normal. I’ll keep you posted. Being a Better Writer Monday if all goes well.
Hooray for a relatively inexpensive fix! And for not losing all that data.
5431303
As one friend of mine put it "You might be paranoid, but it keeps paying off."
Lt. Piebald would be pleased.
If you haven't already, verify that your fans are still working. Often if thermal compound is dried out enough to be worthless, it was being put at higher than typical temperature for an extended duration.
5431307
CPU fans and case fans were working. I cleared out some dust, and made sure everything passed the test. It's a lot quieter now. The paste drying was likely a consequence of how dry it is where I live.
Check out Crystal Diskinfo
https://crystalmark.info/en/software/crystaldiskinfo/
It provides info on the status of your drives in your system.
Even USB drives.
This way you can start moving stuff off the drive before things go south.
It's free.
You have a disk drive that's fifteen years old?
Amazing.
5431305
Sorry, but who or what is Lt. Piebald?
5431807
Lt. Piebald, who indeed is as irrational as his namesake, is a character in the fantastic and oft-recommended Sci-Fi webcomic Schlock Mercenary (now concluded). As a demolitions specialist, his paranoia makes everyone else about equally nervous.
Why yes, I do recommend reading all of it.