A few days ago, I noticed flickering and strange graphical artifacts while watching a video. The next day, the computer crashed, and ever since then the monitor has shown no signal. The PC sounds like it is booting normally, with all fans spinning and the usual front-panel lights, but nothing appears on the display. It is an older system from around 2012, so a hardware failure seems possible.
I have already tried powering it off and on, resetting the CMOS by removing the motherboard battery, reseating the RAM and graphics card, using a different display cable, trying another port on the graphics card, and connecting the monitor to the motherboard's video outputs. I also confirmed that the monitor and cable work with another device. I am not sure whether my CPU has integrated graphics, though it is an older Intel Core i7.
I plan to test the graphics card in another computer, but I would like to know what else I can do to narrow down the problem. Could the GPU have failed, or might the motherboard, CPU, or RAM be responsible? Is malware a realistic possibility here?
3 Answers
The flickering and graphical artifacts followed by a complete loss of video are strong signs that the graphics card has failed. Testing it in another working PC should confirm that. Given the system’s age, replacing the card with an inexpensive compatible model may be the simplest fix if it fails the test.
Check the exact CPU model as well. Many Intel i5 and i7 processors from around 2012 include integrated HD Graphics, unless the model has a suffix that disables it, such as F. If the graphics card is removed and the motherboard output still gives no signal, that points more toward a motherboard, CPU, RAM, or power issue rather than the discrete GPU alone. Malware is very unlikely to cause this kind of persistent no-signal failure after a crash; the earlier visual artifacts make a hardware problem much more plausible.
This may be failing before it completes POST, so it is worth testing the basic hardware separately. Remove the graphics card completely before using the motherboard video outputs; leaving the card installed can make the system keep routing video through it. Try one RAM stick at a time in every slot, waiting a couple of minutes after each change, and disconnect unnecessary USB devices, expansion cards, and storage drives.
You can also tap the power button repeatedly after switching the PC on. If it eventually shuts down from the taps, the system may be completing POST and the problem is more likely related to video output or the GPU. If it never responds, the motherboard, CPU, or memory could be preventing POST. Since both RAM sticks failing simultaneously is less likely, the motherboard or CPU would become more suspect after the other tests.
Thanks! I’ll try the one-stick memory tests and remove the graphics card before checking the motherboard ports. Should I leave each configuration running for about two minutes after powering it on?