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Question

Problems with PC (after moving?)

Sep 14, 2017 7:58AM PDT

Hello,
I built a computer a few years ago for work (simple things, microsoft word, etc), listening to music, films and League of Legends. I think it has never worked perfectly (long boot times, high cpu usage, turning on during the night) but it was enough for what I needed to do.
2 weeks ago I moved it about 25 km from one house to another, by car. After this, the first time I played league of legends the pc turned off after about 10 minutes in game. This would have no warning, no "turning off", screen, just power directly off. It would then try to restart and turn off after a few seconds. It could power on again if it stayed off for a while, but the problem would repeat, even while doing simpler tasks (but League did make it happen faster). The first time it happened, it happened simultaneously with a TINY accidental knock on the right side of the computer with my foot. I thought it was a problem with the GPU overheating so I opened the case and took some dust out, alot of dust was trapped in the fan. A quick test showed that the problem didn't repeat but I would have some fps drops while playing (nothing too bad but noticeable).
I have now moved to a different country and sent the computer in a box via courier. It had a 4 day journey and despite my best efforts in protecting and covering it with clothes and bedclothes, upon opening the box I noticed that the case had taken some damage on the front panel. I booted it up and it seemed ok until I tried playing a game. The FPS is constanly very low and unplayable. The computer struggles even with the simplest of tasks.

Here is a UserBenchmark. Windows 10 is currently running on it.
UserBenchmarks: Game 12%, Desk 13%, Work 12%
CPU: Intel Core i3-4130 - 4.5%
GPU: AMD HD 7750 - 9.5%
HDD: Seagate ST3200822AS 200GB - 29.2%
RAM: Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 C9 1x4GB - 8.9%
MBD: MSI H97M-E35 (MS-7846)

What should I do? Do you think it is because of the various movements and how can I check? Like I said, it has never been perfect but it seems to have deteriorated all together. Thank you for any help and suggestions you may have.

Discussion is locked

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Answer
Start with
Sep 14, 2017 8:31AM PDT

Get a small brush and a can of compressed air.

Open up the case and give the innards a good cleaning.

Fans and heatsinks nice and clean.

Give the psu a few shots of air from both directions.

Verify the cpu hsf is firmly attached.

Reseat all the plugs.

Power it up and watch the fans make sure they all spin nice and free.

Leave the side panel off and test.

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will update
Sep 14, 2017 10:11AM PDT

I will buy those tomorrow and update. Thank you!

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Answer
EDIT
Sep 14, 2017 10:12AM PDT

Should probably add that the problem is definitely not with league of legends because I have tried other games (heroes of the storm) and the fps is also off when I do the benchmark.

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the thing is
Sep 14, 2017 11:36AM PDT

when you move the computer, sometimes it will get knocked around so cards and cables could get knocked loose. the same with dust, sometimes dust will move around and landing on card, fans or whatever and cause issues. as a previous post stated, you need to open the case and make sure everything is seated and plugged in properly and its dust free.

generally speaking, damage on the front panel will not cause any issues unless it goes into the drives. Now if it occurred where the harddrive is, you may also want to run a harddrive diagnostic utility (or smart test) and make sure it is running properly.

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Update (fixed! I think)
Sep 15, 2017 5:18AM PDT

So I opened the case to clean it and the CPU fan had come off. Put it back on and gave everything a good clean and everything is going smoothly so far.

Thank you all for your help! If I don't post again it means everything is fine.

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PSU/MBD problem
Sep 21, 2017 4:27AM PDT

Hi all,
since it's kind of related I won't start a new topic.
Any slight knock or even vibration (stepping near it, closing the drawer on the desk etc) can cause it to instantly shut down. It's the power supply's connector to the motherboard (the largest connector coming out of the PSU, attached to the motherboard on the JPWR1 socket). Anything as slight as a touch on that socket or on the wires going to it can cause it to shut down, and moving it again can start it again. Any suggestions? The PSU is a 500W EVGA 80 plus bronze. The socket involved says 20+4P

I'm giving all the information I can, sorry if it's irrelevant/not enough, I built my computer with the help of more expert friends to save money but really don't know much about them. Thank you!

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Plug
Sep 21, 2017 4:55AM PDT

Reseat that connector 3 or 4 times on the mobo....test