Audio & Sound

Audio crackling or distortion Audio cutting out intermittently Audio driver not detected in OS Headphone or line-out jack not working No audio output from any device Onboard audio device missing in BIOS or Device Manager Static, hiss, or electrical noise on output USB audio interface not detected or unstable Volume control not responding in OS Wrong audio device selected or keeps changing

BIOS & Firmware

BIOS not saving settings after reboot BIOS update failed or corrupted Boot device not detected in BIOS Incorrect CPU or RAM detected in BIOS No POST beeps or diagnostic LEDs Secure Boot or TPM configuration issues System stuck on BIOS splash screen UEFI / Legacy boot mode problems Wrong PCIe or GPU configuration in BIOS Wrong time or date after power loss

Cooling & Thermal

Case running unusually hot at idle CPU temperatures too high under load GPU temperatures too high under load Hot spots around VRM or power delivery Overheating shutdowns or thermal throttling Poor airflow or blocked vents Rack or room cooling insufficient for workload Thermal paste degraded or improperly applied Unbalanced temperatures between multiple GPUs Unusual fan ramping or thermal behaviour

CPU & Processor

CPU not detected or wrong CPU shown CPU overheating under normal workload CPU throttling or stuck at low frequency Frequent crashes under CPU-heavy workloads High CPU usage at idle with no clear cause Incorrect core count or threads reported Multi-CPU system not using all processors Random freezes during CPU benchmarks Unusual CPU error logs or machine check errors Unsupported or mismatched CPU installed

Drive Bays & Storage

Drive bay or caddy damaged or missing Drives intermittently disconnecting under load High disk usage with low workload NVMe drive not detected or unstable RAID array degraded or rebuilding frequently Slow read or write speeds compared to expected Storage errors or SMART warnings Storage full or capacity reporting incorrectly Sudden drive failure or clicking noises Unreliable hot-swap or removable bays

Fans & Airflow

Case fans not spinning or intermittent Fan noise unusually loud or grinding Fan speeds not responding to load Front intake or rear exhaust blocked or restricted GPU fans not spinning or stuck at one speed Incorrect fan direction or airflow pattern Loose or vibrating fan mounts No fan control options in BIOS or software One or more fan headers not working Severe dust build-up affecting airflow

GPU & Graphics

Artifacts or visual corruption under load Black screen or no signal from GPU Driver crashes or GPU resets during workloads GPU not detected or missing in OS GPU overheating or thermal throttling Multi-GPU setup not using all GPUs NVLink or multi-GPU bridge issues PCIe lane speed reduced (x16 showing as x8/x4) Random crashes during rendering or AI workloads Severe GPU sag or loose GPU mounting

Memory (RAM)

ECC errors or memory error logs Incorrect RAM capacity detected Memory not running at rated speed One or more DIMM slots not working Random crashes under memory-heavy workloads System fails to boot with all RAM installed System only stable with reduced RAM installed Unusual beeps or codes indicating RAM issues Very slow performance with large datasets Wrong RAM type or configuration installed

Motherboard & Chipset

Bent or damaged motherboard connectors Chipset or VRM overheating Diagnostic LEDs or codes indicating board fault Intermittent power-on or random power loss No POST even with minimal components PCIe slots not working or unstable Physical damage or burn marks on board Random USB or I/O disconnects traced to board Unsupported CPU or RAM for this board Wrong board installed for this chassis or PSU

Network & Connectivity

Ethernet port not working or no link light Frequent network dropouts under load Network speed limited (100Mbps instead of 1Gbps/10Gbps) No network adapters detected in OS Problems with bonded or teamed NICs Remote access or management port not working Unstable connection to NAS or storage network Unusual packet loss or high latency locally WiFi or wireless card (if fitted) not working Wrong VLAN or network configuration causing issues

Ports & External I/O

Display outputs not working on certain ports Front USB ports not working or intermittent Physical damage to ports or connectors Rear USB ports not working or intermittent Thunderbolt or high-speed ports unstable Unreliable docking station or hub behaviour Unstable external storage via USB or Thunderbolt USB devices disconnecting under load USB power delivery not working as expected Wrong ports mapped or labelled incorrectly

Power Supply (PSU)

Clicking or buzzing noises from PSU Frequent power-off under GPU or CPU load Inadequate wattage for installed GPUs Loose or damaged power connectors to GPUs PSU fan not spinning or very loud Random reboots when all GPUs are active System only stable with fewer GPUs installed Unusual burning smell or heat from PSU area Voltage irregularities or brownouts affecting system Wrong or incompatible PSU fitted for this system

Software & Operating System

Application crashes during rendering or AI workloads Driver conflicts between GPU, chipset, or storage Frequent blue screen or kernel errors Licensing or activation issues with key software OS not recognising all GPUs or resources Performance much lower than expected for hardware Problems after OS update or driver update Software hangs or freezes under heavy load System slow to boot or log in Virtualisation or container workloads failing

System Behaviour & Stability

Black screen on boot with fans spinning Boot loop or repeated restarts Frequent freezes requiring hard reset Intermittent POST success or failure Random shutdowns with no error message System only stable at reduced workload Unexpected reboots during long jobs Unusual noises, smells, or behaviour under load Very slow response even after clean boot Won’t power on at all