You don’t have to know a lot about computers to detect a hardware problem in the making. All you have to do is be alert to the signs. In some cases, it’s as easy as just listening to your computer. That’s right. Listen to your computer every day. Learn the normal sound it makes. If that sound changes, it could mean trouble. For example, . You may be tempted just to ignore this sound, since it may seem fairly innocuous. Any such sounds should make you immediately back up all of your important files. If the sound worsens, or is accompanied by errors such as “Cannot read to drive” or “Cannot write to drive” you should be on your way to a computer repair shop. Other clues to a dying hard disk are frequent computer crashes and the inability to read files you have saved.

The hard disk has both electronic and mechanical components and is one of the parts of the computer most likely to fail. Sometimes hard disks fail after years of use, but there have been many instances of hard disk failure in new computers. As a matter of fact, it is said that the most likely time for a hard disk failure is in the first several months in the life of a new computer. So you need to start listening to your computer and learning how it sounds just as soon as you get it home from the store.

A bad hard disk can be replaced fairly inexpensively, but remember when your hard drive fails all of your data is in jeopardy. Often the data cannot be accessed when the drive stops working. This is why backing up your computer files is so important.

Along with the hard disk, the computer fan is another common hardware component that can fail. Again, listening to the computer can often detect a problem with a fan. If your usually quiet computer suddenly starts to make a This should be a wake up call for a computer owner. The fan is the piece of hardware that keeps the CPU and other computer components cool. So if your fan stops working, it is essential that it be repaired immediately. If you suspect your fan has died, feel the computer case. When the fan fails, heat builds up, so you can often detect more heat than usual emanating from the computer case. While a fan is an inexpensive component, when excessive heat collects inside the computer it can fry the CPU, hard disk, motherboard, and other expensive parts of the computer. It is essential, therefore, to try to detect a computer fan failure before the heat causes other failures.

Listening to your computer can alert you to potential problems saving you time, money, and aggravation. So, don’t forget to keep your ears open.