This troubleshooting page will help to diagnose problems that may occur while using the System 76 Serval WS laptop.
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The hard drive malfunctions and stored information cannot be accessed.
A virus, human error, or a software malfunction can cause a logical hard drive crash. Error messages such as “file not found” may repeatedly pop up on the screen when the computer boots. One option is to reinstall the OS (operating system). In addition a recovery software program may be needed to solve this problem.
If there is a clicking, grinding or whirring sound coming from the laptop, then the malfunction is more likely on the hard drive itself. The best solution is to remove the hard drive and put it into a different system. A data recovery system will retrieve important information from the drive. You may also need to replace the hard drive.
Laptop repeatedly shuts off or needs to be charged very frequently.
The energy that powers the backlight to illuminate pixels on the laptop’s screen is one of the biggest causes for battery drainage. To extend the battery life, you can lower the display’s brightness or use auto-brightness features.
Running too many programs when not needed will waste battery power. Disable wifi or bluetooth, and put device on airplane mode when you are working offline in place without internet access. You should also unplug any hardware devices such as USB flash drives, phone chargers, or a wireless mouse receiver, when they are not in current use. Lastly, put the laptop on battery saver mode to preserve battery life.
Batteries are built to last about 500 cycles. Once it is confirmed the battery is not efficient, you should purchase a new battery. See this battery replacement guide.
Laptop simply fails to boot or turn on; no sign of life.
If your battery is not charged or isn’t connected correctly if at all, the laptop will not turn on. To check if the battery is connected correctly, disconnect the battery and reconnect it to assure the connection is complete. If the battery is dead a simple solution is to charge the battery and try again. If the battery does not hold charge then a replacement is needed.
RAM or a hard drive that is not connected correctly will prevent the laptop from powering on because the boot instructions will not be accessible. Checking that the connections of these components are complete or simply unplugging and reconnecting them would likely solve this issue.
HDMI connection fails and does not display audiovisuals onto the main monitor.
The picture would not be transported to an external monitor if the drivers for the onboard video card are not up to date. A web search would be able to determine what version of the drivers are most recent, currently installed drivers can be located among the “devices” page in the operating system. Downloading the latest driver, deleting the old driver, and installing the most recent would solve this problem.
If the HDMI cord you are using has been cut, bent out of shape or fits too tight, it is likely that the data will not be transported correctly. This would result in a distorted or blank picture on the connected monitor. A reliable test to determine if your cable is damaged is to plug it into a device that is known to work correctly, if the issues in the picture persist over more than one device it is safe to assume the cable is the problem.
Laptop slows down, freezes, reboots sporadically, or displays a BSOD (Blue Screen of Death).
The RAM- Random Access Memory is a short-term storage that hold programs running when computer is in current use. When you are running multiple programs, the computer will use part of the hard drive or “virtual memory” to store access memory. This may cause it to slow down. You should restart the PC which will clean up processes running in the background that is eating up the RAM and reset all the running programs. Also, you should uninstall any applications or software that you do not need to create more space.
RAM does wear out over time due to overheating, power surges, and magnetic interference. You can run a software program that will check/ diagnose the RAM, but if that is not successful, the problem may be physical. It may simply be due to the fact that it is worn out and needs to be replaced. Check out this RAM replacement guide.
The laptop itself it noticeably hot, fan runs constantly and makes loud whirring noises, screen displays lines, random error messages, BSOD, and laptop abruptly shuts down.
When you use your laptop for multiple hours at a time, your laptop may overheat. When you use your laptop for long periods of time, you should turn it off to give it a rest and cool down. Also, the battery may be overheating due to the laptop being charged while in use. In addition, you can also get a program that will monitor the temperature. When the damage is beyond repair, the laptop will need a new cooling fan. You can find a fan replacement guide here.
Excessive dust stuck in the vents and/or fan will cause lack of airflow, possibly causing the laptop to over heat. To remove a build up of dust in the fans or vents, use a can of compressed air to carefully blow off the dust particles.
You should elevate your laptop to allow airflow underneath the battery and fan to keep it significantly cooler. You can also buy a cooling mat or use a hard surface to rest your laptop on. Do not use any soft surfaces such as pillows, quilts, sofas, or blankets.
