I upgraded from a Ryzen 5 5600 to a Ryzen 7 7700X and installed an ASUS TUF B850-E WiFi motherboard. The computer worked normally for a couple of days, and it was running smoothly while I played Fortnite today. After closing the game, Steam would no longer open, and Task Manager showed 0% usage for the CPU, GPU, and both drives. Other files and games also refuse to open, although my web browser still works normally. I have not updated the BIOS yet. Could this be caused by the motherboard and CPU change, Windows, drivers, or cooling?
3 Answers
Start by updating the motherboard BIOS and installing the latest chipset and motherboard drivers. A major platform change can leave Windows with conflicting drivers or other software problems, especially when moving from AM4 to AM5.
A clean Windows installation is probably the best next step. Reusing an existing installation after replacing both the CPU and motherboard can cause unusual issues, even if everything works normally for a few days. Back up your important files first, then reinstall Windows and the current motherboard drivers.
Also check the cooling and temperatures. The Ryzen 7 7700X can run fairly hot, so make sure the cooler is mounted correctly, the fan is spinning, and the CPU isn’t throttling or overheating. A Peerless Assassin 120 SE is generally a capable cooler for it, so verify temperatures before assuming it needs to be replaced.
I’m using a Peerless Assassin 120 SE and had heard it was a good cooler for this processor, but I’ll check the temperatures and mounting just in case.
I’ll try a fresh install when I can. It’s just strange that the system worked perfectly for a couple of days before suddenly refusing to open most programs.