I'm not exactly sure what is wrong. I occasionally had slight problems with the monitor not detecting my PC starting up--had to unplug the HDMI and plug it back in for the monitor to turn on. I mention this as I'm not sure if this is associated with a larger problem. Within the past few weeks, I've had problems with Windows 7 (64 bit home version). I was planning on upgrading to Windows 10 eventually, just procrastinating. Luckily, I did back up all of the files I wanted prior to my PC crashing.
So, back to my problem. Windows 7 splash screen started to freeze--the spinning wheel was not spinning. I had no response. I had to power the PC off/on in order for Windows to boot. I believe Windows also started freezing on shutdown. Then, it (windows) finally failed. I run a dual boot with Ubuntu. I rarely use Ubuntu, but started using it after Windows failed. My Grub loader (I think that's what its called--its been about eight years since I've installed the dual OS) does not appear. I got the orange/red screen with no options to select a drive to load from, it just loaded into Ubuntu. So, while in Ubuntu, I was trouble shooting some problems I've had with updates. I FINALLY got the updates to work (I had this problem for a few years...something with the texcommon files). While updating, I received a warning message that power from my UPS was running low and that the system was shutting down. I have no idea why I received that message. There was no power outage during this process, so I shouldn't have been getting power from the back up battery on my UPS. I hit the on/off button on my UPS thinking this was the button to light up my display--it wasn't. The power shut off. Now, I cannot do anything on my PC. I have a bootable Ubuntu CD, but I cannot access my bios to boot from the CD. Ubuntu loads only to the background image--there are no icons, and I cannot do anything other than move my mouse across the screen. I think I can access my BIOS if I reset it, but I haven't tried yet. I'm probably just going to update to Windows 10, but have a few questions. I'm not sure if my problems have arisen from a corrupt OS, or from hardware. I have an older system. I only play a few games--mainly older games like Bioshock 1 & 2 (I don't get sick of playing those games). I recently got Doom 2016 (yes, it's old, but newer than Bioshock). Most other PC stuff is YouTube, social media, or email. I did recently upgrade my video card (Gigabyte 5600xt), and I added a TP Link wi-fi/blue tooth PCI-E adapter (which apparently only has Windows 10 drivers). I'll list the specs of my PC below (if they aren't listed on my profile):
Asrock Z77 Extreme 4 mobo
Intel 3570k
G Skill Sniper series DDR3 1600 (2x8gb)
Samsung evo 860 500gb
Seagate Barracuda 1tb hd
Cougar GX1050 psu
Corsair h60 cooler
Gigabyte 5600xt gpu
Corsair Carbide 500r case
Bit Defender Total Security
Most of my equipment was purchased in 2012. I did update to the Samsung 860 about 4 years ago, and the RAM is probably 6 years old. Corsair H60 is about two years old. Obviously, the GPU is new--previously used a Sapphire Radeon 7950 until this year. I'm going to put Windows 10 on a new Crucial 1tb ssd. I'll probably use the Samsung for extra space if I get any more games. Also going to add a new Seagate 2tb hd for back ups. I already own all of this, so I'm just going to use it. I am considering buying a new power supply due to the problems I've had (the Cougar PSU is now eight years old--I bought it due to the price which was $129 at the time). I do remember, years ago, that some power supplies did not work with Ivy Bridge processor (or, maybe it was Haswell). Is this still the case? What PSU should/can I use with my current configuration?
So, back to my problem. Windows 7 splash screen started to freeze--the spinning wheel was not spinning. I had no response. I had to power the PC off/on in order for Windows to boot. I believe Windows also started freezing on shutdown. Then, it (windows) finally failed. I run a dual boot with Ubuntu. I rarely use Ubuntu, but started using it after Windows failed. My Grub loader (I think that's what its called--its been about eight years since I've installed the dual OS) does not appear. I got the orange/red screen with no options to select a drive to load from, it just loaded into Ubuntu. So, while in Ubuntu, I was trouble shooting some problems I've had with updates. I FINALLY got the updates to work (I had this problem for a few years...something with the texcommon files). While updating, I received a warning message that power from my UPS was running low and that the system was shutting down. I have no idea why I received that message. There was no power outage during this process, so I shouldn't have been getting power from the back up battery on my UPS. I hit the on/off button on my UPS thinking this was the button to light up my display--it wasn't. The power shut off. Now, I cannot do anything on my PC. I have a bootable Ubuntu CD, but I cannot access my bios to boot from the CD. Ubuntu loads only to the background image--there are no icons, and I cannot do anything other than move my mouse across the screen. I think I can access my BIOS if I reset it, but I haven't tried yet. I'm probably just going to update to Windows 10, but have a few questions. I'm not sure if my problems have arisen from a corrupt OS, or from hardware. I have an older system. I only play a few games--mainly older games like Bioshock 1 & 2 (I don't get sick of playing those games). I recently got Doom 2016 (yes, it's old, but newer than Bioshock). Most other PC stuff is YouTube, social media, or email. I did recently upgrade my video card (Gigabyte 5600xt), and I added a TP Link wi-fi/blue tooth PCI-E adapter (which apparently only has Windows 10 drivers). I'll list the specs of my PC below (if they aren't listed on my profile):
Asrock Z77 Extreme 4 mobo
Intel 3570k
G Skill Sniper series DDR3 1600 (2x8gb)
Samsung evo 860 500gb
Seagate Barracuda 1tb hd
Cougar GX1050 psu
Corsair h60 cooler
Gigabyte 5600xt gpu
Corsair Carbide 500r case
Bit Defender Total Security
Most of my equipment was purchased in 2012. I did update to the Samsung 860 about 4 years ago, and the RAM is probably 6 years old. Corsair H60 is about two years old. Obviously, the GPU is new--previously used a Sapphire Radeon 7950 until this year. I'm going to put Windows 10 on a new Crucial 1tb ssd. I'll probably use the Samsung for extra space if I get any more games. Also going to add a new Seagate 2tb hd for back ups. I already own all of this, so I'm just going to use it. I am considering buying a new power supply due to the problems I've had (the Cougar PSU is now eight years old--I bought it due to the price which was $129 at the time). I do remember, years ago, that some power supplies did not work with Ivy Bridge processor (or, maybe it was Haswell). Is this still the case? What PSU should/can I use with my current configuration?
Last edited: