My PC has displayed a black screen twice after being left running for a while. The most recent time, I left it unattended while getting food. When I returned, the computer was still powered on, but the monitor was black and neither the keyboard nor mouse could wake it. After restarting with the power button, the screen was still black and the keyboard lights did not come on. The only fix was unplugging the PC from power for about 60 seconds, then starting it again. My hard drive health has dropped to 75% within about 120 days and it reports 16 bad sectors, so I'm concerned the drive may be failing. Could the DisplayPort cable be responsible, or is this more likely a power supply or another hardware problem?
2 Answers
The fact that the PC only works after being disconnected from power points more toward a power or hardware-state problem than just a DisplayPort cable. A UPS with battery-backed outlets for both the PC and monitor can help rule out unstable electrical power. If the issue continues, testing or replacing the power supply would be reasonable, especially if it is older or low quality.
The drive showing 16 bad sectors and only 75% health is a serious warning sign. Replace or clone it as soon as possible, and make sure any important files are backed up first. A failing drive may not directly cause every black-screen symptom, but it should be dealt with before troubleshooting anything else.
Could the power supply really be failing if this only started recently? I didn’t have the problem with my previous graphics card, and everything seemed fine until yesterday.