If this is actually critical, here’s my standard advice: don't try to fix it yourself. You'll just end up making things worse (even just poking around can mess up data integrity), so take it to a pro. You can just pull the drive out of your PC and ship it via FedEx marked as fragile—it isn't that expensive. Being without your computer for a few days is a small price to pay if those Pictures actually matter to you...
Otherwise, those "smart" Libraries are basically designed for users who have zero clue where they're saving stuff; they just scan every folder they find for Pictures, Video, or whatever else. I've always hated them for that exact reason—it's way too easy to lose track of where you actually are. I'll stick to my own organization method...
You definitely don't need to drop cash on a new laptop just yet. You didn't mention which model you have or how old it is, but I'll tell you this: it’s probably not the battery. Batteries rarely just die out of nowhere like that—usually, they give you some warning first. Besides, for a battery to fail that abruptly, the machine would likely have to be several years old already.
It’s most likely your power adapter. It doesn't even have to be completely dead; sometimes the internal wiring just snaps from being bent too much, which happens all the time. Even if it is totally fried, a replacement shouldn't break the bank. Just a heads-up though: watch out when you're buying one. Some laptops require their specific proprietary chargers because of the built-in control chips. I'm not saying you have to buy the official brand-name version—those things are highway robbery—but the smartest move is to bring your laptop into the store and ask them to test a charger there first to make sure it actually works.
For now, I'd suggest checking if there's a Chipotle nearby to hang out in while you figure this out, but once you let me know the laptop brand, we can go from there...
🤷 chkdsk usually flags some bad sectors on whatever CrystalDiskInfo is pointing out... So, what's the deal—is it running on AC power now with the battery pulled? I'm actually curious to see how this plays out. Please give me an update once you have one... 😬
Uffff... This is going to be a headache to figure out. Until someone who actually knows their way around a minidump takes a look, I can only ask: have you noticed if this happens while it's on battery or plugged into the wall? And if it's happening on AC power, does the thing even have a battery in it?
Also, did you try running a disk check using the built-in chkdsk tool in Windows?
Exactly. How old is your laptop? If it's an older model, there’s a good chance dust has built up on the heatsink, which kills the cooling efficiency. If that's the case, you should probably take it to a local repair shop to get it cleaned out. Usually, the fan starts getting noisy before it completely dies, but you can test it yourself—try blowing a little smoke near the vent to see if there's actually any airflow and how strong it is.
Also, make sure your vents aren't constantly blocked and that there's enough room underneath the laptop for air to circulate. You could pick up one of those cooling pads; they aren't expensive and they actually help. Even the cheapest ones will drop the temp by at least a degree or two.
But honestly, the most important thing is knowing if it's actually overheating. It's standard practice to install some free monitoring software to track temperatures so you can judge whether it's hitting dangerous levels based on the manufacturer's specs. Just feeling if it's hot to the touch isn't a reliable way to measure it. Plus, you have to factor in that it's been brutally hot lately; the ambient temperature is likely at least ten degrees higher than usual, which is definitely going to push your laptop's temps up...
Front is intake. Rear and top are exhaust. You can literally feel the airflow if you put your hand near it, so you'll know which way it's pushing. Plus, every fan has two arrows molded right into the plastic—one for rotation direction and one for airflow. Just take a closer look.
The Superflower setup pulls air from under the PC and vents it out the back...
You seem pretty distracted lately. It’s not like you’re just needing a coffee break—are you on something else, or are you just trying to reply to posts while you're out on a date? 🤣
Eric Hayes72 said:But what on earth triggered this sudden shift in logic?
So it's just a "you" problem now? Not them? Look, it’s bad quality—whether it's the chips, the soldering, or the control boards. Usually, overheating is the real killer here, and there isn't much you can do about it if the component quality and design are junk. Luckily, they're pretty cheap to replace these days...
So what's the issue here? You just didn't like the answer from the local utility provider, so now you're looking for a different one? Alvin already told you it's the fuse, and trust me, he actually knows his stuff...
Why is everyone attacking the Arctic Cooling Freezer so hard? It's a solid cooler if you're just looking to swap out a crappy stock heatsink, but I wouldn't count on hitting massive overclocking numbers with it. Plus, once you crank the fan speeds up, it isn't exactly silent either...
Anyone who actually had the chance to test the Freezer against a decent aftermarket cooler is going to tell you the exact same thing...
Motherboards with an M.2 slot for an M.2 Solid State Drive have been around forever, but this one actually features two M.2 connectors—one for the Solid State Drive and another for a Wi-Fi card:
"First, make sure the 840 Pro is 256 GB, not 250 GB. The Pro uses a different type of NAND. The Pro's MLC NAND is older but faster. The regular 840 and the Evo use TLC, which is newer and cheaper to manufacture. Also, the Pro's MLC NAND is supposed to last way longer. One article estimates that MLC's expected lifespan is 60 years versus 19 years for TLC. Honestly, if you aren't planning on using the SSD for more than a decade, it's trivial. Depending on how close the prices are, the Pro is the better move. If the Evo 840 is significantly cheaper, it’s still a solid choice; I own a regular 250 GB 840 and it's very fast. If you can find a regular 830, grab that—it also uses MLC. The difference between The evo and regular is that The evo only uses 2 "bits per cell" while the regular uses 3 bpc. This makes The evo faster."