helpWhat compunent did i kill
helpWhat compunent did i kill
Hi everyone, just wanted to share what happened. A few days ago I got a new AI system. After installing it, my PC powered on and I checked the hardware info and ran a CPU benchmark. The temperatures looked normal, with the hottest core reaching around 50°C. When I stopped the benchmark and took a break, the temps stayed the same, but my PC froze heavily. I restarted it and it got stuck at the BIOS setup screen, then shut down completely. Since then, it doesn’t start up properly. I have an MSI motherboard and the CPU EzDebug LED stays on white. Anyone think I’ve damaged a component? I don’t have any way to test further. Thanks in advance and have a great day!
The surface around the heatsink mounting screw holes is worrying. It seems traces may have been damaged by some wear. Could you provide a better view of those areas? (Adjust your phone distance and use the zoom feature instead of getting too close.) Phone cameras can only capture items very near the lens.
Edited February 11, 2024 by Needfuldoer
Agreed with this. The CPU looks fine, the socket doesn't have any bent pins that I can see, but the board itself looks like someone way overtightened a CPU cooler mount. Maybe installed it incorrectly then overtightened it. A modern cooler mount's standoffs are most likely going to have plastic or rubber of some kind at the base of the pegs to keep the mount from digging into the board like that. The more I think about it, the more likely it is. The behavior after you (OP) tried bringing it back up could be shorting, and if there were metal screws digging into the traces, that could cause a short to happen. I had something similar happen with an AIO shorting years ago. My money is on an incorrect installation that caused shorting. If that's the case, you probably need a new mobo.
The obstacles on the left side clearly damage the traces. On the right side, the scratches aren't as deep, but the upper right area might be affected too. The lower right spot is possible, even though it's the smallest. I’d attempt to reinstall the GPU and power on without the cooler in place. You won’t stay this way long—just check if it boots and if the debug indicator turns off within 30 seconds. Another option is to place a cooler directly on top of the CPU without fastening it, if that suits you better. If it starts up, your setup seems functional. For an i3-10100F, the cooling is sufficient and there’s no metal touching the board. If it fails to boot or the CPU indicator stays on, the board is likely beyond repair and you’ll need to return it for replacement. Your CPU appears to be in good shape. These issues can be challenging, but they’re not impossible to resolve.
I attempted to power it on without the cooler, but the CPU didn’t heat up, there’s no post signal, and the CPU indicator stays off.
Sadly, yes. Those marks seem strong enough to cut or break connections. (Those pins should have had plastic spacers beneath them. Or ideally, the board shouldn't have been built with vital traces near a screw hole.) Upon closer inspection, you might be able to gently remove any debris causing the shorts. (Use a clean pencil eraser to smooth them out while traces run.) If you try that and the board powers up, consider buying a lottery ticket.
I'd have to say it's from letting the standoffs spin while tightening the mounts, that letting them "Grind" through the board's PCB coating. It's possible to use some flat nylon washers and it still work without further shorting (No guarantees of course) BUT in this case a board replacement is the smart move because you really don't know what damage may already be present in the board's circuitry from it. NEVER let things like a mounting standoff spin around against the board's PCB during the process of torquing things down or this is what you'll get. The only thing that should be turning/spinning are the screws to the cooler itself, not what mounts to the board itself once things are in place. If it makes contact with the board's PCB surface, don't let it spin/turn while torquing things down or your new board will give a repeat performance of this problem.
Consider a cooler that doesn't rely on design ideas from 2008, especially since many boards came with small cardboard washers to prevent screws from behaving unexpectedly.