The Internet has become one of the most useful tools that people can take advantage of. We’ve even begun to reach a point where artificial intelligence can handle daily tasks like turning on the air conditioning for us. Unfortunately, there are few things more frustrating than when a computer isn’t functioning the way that it’s supposed to. This is especially true if you’re in the middle of a project for work or school – where you might be left searching “how to fix a computer.”

But, there are steps you can take to recognize common problems and figure out a solution on your own.

Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about how to fix a computer on your own.

Strange Noises

While it may startle you at first, it’s actually not too uncommon for people to hear add noises coming from their machines. Typically, the sound is some form of clicking, grinding, or whirring.

Unfortunately, computers that exhibit this sort of behavior could be a sign of hardware failure. In particular, your fans and rotary hard drive components are likely damaged or malfunctioning.

How to Fix It

Open up your machine and take a look inside. It’s likely that your cooling fans have simply become worn over time.

Fortunately, all you need is replacement parts and a screwdriver to make the swap yourself.

If you aren’t able to pinpoint the noise or can deduce that it isn’t the fans, you may need to contact a professional. Unless you know exactly what you’re replacing, you may further damage your machine.

Slow Performance

Over time, your computer may become ‘congested’ with background processes that have been running for weeks (or even months).

Assuming that your machine’s slowness isn’t a result of a malware infection or physical damage, you’ll be able to quickly resolve this on your own.

How to Fix It

Open up your task manager to browse what’s using your RAM and CPU resources.

Scan through your processes and applications and close down anything you aren’t using. If you notice an unfamiliar program or one that won’t let you close it, keep this in mind.

Frequent Freezing

It’s relatively hard to keep your cool when your computer freezes in the middle of a game, school assignment, or work project. Even if you’re just browsing the Internet, nobody enjoys the process of hard resetting their machine to deal with a freeze.

Since computers run so many complex processes, it’s not impossible for a glitch or error to cause a freeze every now and then. Constant freezes, though, are a different story.

How to Fix It

Make note of how much of your computer’s memory you’re using. The closer you get to your hard drive’s maximum capacity, the slower your machine may run.

But, malware could also be the culprit. For example, your computer could be part of a botnet without you even being aware of it, which could result in significant slowdowns or freezing.

So, it’s important that you update your antivirus software and immediately run a thorough scan of your system’s files. If malware is the issue, chances are that you’ll be able to resolve it through this method.

Poor Quality or Glitched Screen Resolution

This issue is relatively uncommon, but it can cause panic when it occurs.

If your computer’s resolution has changed on its own or doesn’t display properly, it’s likely a problem that stems from your machine’s graphics card. This is, of course, assuming that your erroneous display wasn’t the result of damage to your monitor.

How to Fix It

You’ll be glad to hear that graphics card issues are often resolved by updating your graphics card driver. This relatively simple process can be made even easier if you know the model and brand of the card that’s installed.

You’ll simply need to visit the maker’s site and download the latest driver.

If this doesn’t resolve the problem and you have a particularly old card, it may not function properly with newer versions of your operating system. So, you might need to replace the card itself if this scenario is true.

The Infamous Blue Screen of Death

This the technology version of the Grim Reaper knocking on your front door.

First, you’ll be in the middle of your typical activities. Then, your entire screen will turn blue and display an error (or a few) before you have to restart your machine.

Anything you didn’t save is likely lost, and there’s a good chance you won’t be able to recover it since this event often signifies system or hardware failure.

As with any error, though, there’s always a chance it could have a benign cause.

How to Fix It

This screen will display the errors (in the form of STOP codes) that occurred at the time of the crash. Surprisingly, you’re able to simply look them up online to see what caused them.

These will appear in hexadecimal format and look something like “0x00000001”.

Once you research the code, you can begin to learn more about what caused that specific scenario and how to resolve it from there.

Understanding How to Fix a Computer Can Seem Difficult

But it doesn’t have to be.

With the above information about how to fix a computer in mind, you’ll be well on your way to getting things back up and running as quickly as possible.

Want to learn more about keeping your machine safe? This article has plenty of useful info. If you rather get the information directly from the professionals, give them a call. You can get their contact information here