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Can an Slowy Windows damage the computer?

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Last response: January 20, 2013 7:04 AM in Windows XP

andre2149

December 20, 2012 1:47:09 PM

Hi to all, this is my first post here, so i don't know if i am on the right spot, hope to he in the right one, so my big question is... i have an old pc (socket 939) with the windows XP install, a few weeks early, i was force to make an "system restore" because of an error of the antivirus, is not the first time that happens, but in other cases i have resole the problem, simply formating the system, but on this case time to format i don't have, but now i feel the computer slow, not that i use heavy programs, in fact just use to chat, music, internet and organize ducuments, photos in an external HDD, but never freezes up, simply slow than the normal, so here is my question, by the system or Windows being to slow, damage some way the computer? or corrupt any file that i stored? in advance thank's for your help.

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cl-scott

December 20, 2012 6:50:36 PM

As a general rule, no, this isn't possible. A slightly longer answer is that it depends on why the unit is slow. If, for example, it's causing excessive HDD activity, that could shorten the lifespan of the HDD.

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Reply to cl-scott

Best solution

Chicano

December 21, 2012 9:06:17 AM

The obvious cause to me seems to be the same problem that caused the antivirus error... and that is a viral infection.. So, what you need to do is scan the system with an alternative antivirus since it's obvious you already scanned with the installed antivirus. So, either install another antivirus or do an online virus scan.

you may also need to disable System Restore previous to the scan to delete the restore points folder being that viruses can hide in that folder and restore themselves after you have deleted them with the antivirus. If the virus scan doesn't help, do an antimalware scan with Malwarebytes Anti Malware.

Also delete the startup programs from the startup; Start\Run\type: msconfig and press Enter, go to the Startup tab and uncheck all the processes except the one for the installed antirivus,

next in Start\Run, type: %temp% and press enter and next delete all the user account temporal files and folders.

Also in the Run process, type "Temp" no quotes and press Enter... (this opens the C:\WINDOWS\Temp folder) and next delete the system temporal files and folders stored in the folder.

And to clean leftover system logs, registry junk, etc., install & run CCleaner.

If all of these steps successfully performed don't help, the problem may be caused by deffective hardware: Losely installed RAM module, bad Power Supply, bad Hard Drive, overheating processor...

A concrete answer to your question is; If your computer is running a weak and deffective power supply, (one of the symptoms can be slow running Windows) that can lead to motherboard damage, and also cause bad Hard Drive sectors that can lead to corrupt information... so make sure this is not the case.

You can easily test a Power Supply with a DC voltmeter... the correct procedure and voltages for every PSU to motherboard connector pins is available with a search for: "Power Supply voltage pinout" or "How to test a Power Supply" One example: http://pinouts.ru/Power/atxpower_pinout.shtml