Keeping your computer working optimally can be quite difficult considering the multitude of hardware parts involved. The likelihood of failure can increase when you also take into account the way all those components generate heat. Certain parts such as moving ones can be more vulnerable to failure. Fixing a broken part is harder than taking good precautions to avoid that kind of situation.
With the help of PC hardware tests and diagnostic tools, you will be able to keep one step ahead of the danger of computer failure. If you ensure that your computer’s essential parts are in proper working condition, it’s safe to say that you can reduce the risk of a serious hardware issue. Focus on the components most prone to breaking such as hard disk drives, fans, and CPUs. Here’s how to run diagnostics on the latest versions of Windows:
1. Navigate to Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot
In this section, you can find multiple options referring to all kinds of potential issues to experience on your PC. Whether something’s wrong with the keyboard, network connection, or some Windows features such as searching, you can troubleshoot them all here. Choose the right option to test it for errors and obtain quick solutions.
2. Run Windows Memory Diagnostic
This is a built-in tool in Windows that can identify and fix problems with your RAM. If you suspect that your system performs worse than it used to or has frequent crashes, the RAM needs to be checked to see whether it’s close to failing. Simply look for “Windows Memory Diagnostic” on the search bar.
Keep in mind that you will have to restart the PC to detect any RAM issues. This is why it’s recommended to close all other apps and finish your work before running this diagnostics tool. Results of the test appear after the second restart once the verifying process is finished. If you don’t see any results, there’s also the option to check with the Event Viewer that can be accessed by pressing the Win+X key combination. Go to Windows Logs > System on the left section of this tool.
3. Analyze system performance
Performance Monitor is another handy tool to run some hardware tests on your PC and detect any system issues. It’s a built-in program that’s found easily by searching for its name in the search bar. Once you’ve run the tool, you will be able to access various data collecting features and see live performance graphs of your system. For a quick report of all the hardware, select Reports > System > System Diagnostics > [Your PC] on the left side of the program.
4. Check for drive errors
Scanning your local drives for errors could be a solution if you’re worried about the health of your computer system. Go to a specific drive such as Local Disk (C:) in the “This PC” section. Right-click it and choose “Properties”. On the little window that will pop up select the “Tools” section. You have a couple of options here. Click on “Check” in the “Error Checking” category. After you activate this function, the system scans and fixes any errors found on the drive.