It's unclear if any additional parts are affected.
It's unclear if any additional parts are affected.
So my computer stopped working and I tried some fixes. I found out the hard drive was the issue and it also caused the power supply unit to fail because all other parts were fine. To confirm, I moved the hard drive into my mom's PC and turned it on. Everything started up but then smoke came from the hard drive, so I removed it. After that, I checked if her computer would boot up—it wouldn’t. When I pressed the power button, there was no response. The monitor showed no display adapter, even though it was connected, which means everything else should have worked if the PSU was good. My concern is whether all components are dead or just the PSU. Please help me—I’m worried about losing everything on the hard drive.
Working with a standard 120V power supply and a standard hard drive. The system runs on a typical desktop build, likely using a prebuilt model such as the Dell XPS 15 or HP Pavilion series from the same manufacturer. Computer specifications include an Intel i5 processor, 16GB RAM, and an SSD with 512GB capacity. If the power supply fails, it could affect all components, though a solid PSU offers some protection. A malfunction on the DC side might still cause damage, but it’s best to confirm component safety.
Check the protection features of your power supply, which often require a full unplug for a short period before resetting. Avoid just flipping the switch; instead, disconnect the cable and wait a few seconds. A basic hard drive is probably not enough to damage it, but a fault might create a voltage spike between 5v and 12v, triggering the PSU to shut down.