# Anyone ever have a malfunctioning computer "heal" itself somehow? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 8, 2018, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469 "2018-02-08T20:00:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/1 "2018-02-08T20:00:40Z")
OK, weirdness: the past couple of days, my laptop’s DVD drive has been having trouble playing DVDs; last night it stopped playing them completely. I took the laptop in to Computer Repair place in town to see if they could repair or replace the DVD drive, and they say it works for them! I did take a slight spill on the icy sidewalk while walking with the laptop in a case; maybe I jolted something that was stuck. Maybe it miraculously healed? Maybe it doesn’t like my taste in movies?? ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/2 "2018-02-08T20:10:16Z")
Rebooting often solves a ton of ambiguous computer problems. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/3 "2018-02-08T20:24:30Z")
Automatic downloads will often correct some problems. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/4 "2018-02-08T20:26:18Z")
It happens all the time. I work in IT and the joke at work is that I can fix things just by showing up. I even have a joke ritual where I “lay hands” on the offending computer and pray in front of the person that reported the problem. It works about half the time (OK, sometimes it is something really dumb and obvious like a loose cable but I don’t tell them that). A lot of them are convinced that I really do have magical powers. Many problems can be fixed by something really basic. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/5 "2018-02-08T20:38:47Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > It happens all the time. I work in IT and the joke at work is that I can fix things just by showing up. I even have a joke ritual where I “lay hands” on the offending computer and pray in front of the person that reported the problem. It works about half the time (OK, sometimes it is something really dumb and obvious like a loose cable but I don’t tell them that). A lot of them are convinced that I really do have magical powers. Many problems can be fixed by something really basic. This. When I arrive at a sorter that keeps throwing jams, it will often refuse to do so while I’m looking at it. My theory is that the machine is afraid that I’ll start taking parts off and not put all of them back. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/6 "2018-02-08T20:39:51Z")
Right now I’m waiting for my home laptop to heal itself after the last Windows 10 update bricked it. I’m not too optimistic though. ---
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/7 "2018-02-08T20:41:57Z")
Hmm. I did try rebooting several times, including shutting it down and removing and reinserting the battery. It’s not connected at all to the internet in any way, and the computer repair guys said they didn’t update anything on the laptop; they just tried to play DVDs and it worked. I’m really starting to wonder if the jolt of me falling did something. Like maybe there was a lot of dust built up internally and it got knocked loose? I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/8 "2018-02-08T21:39:14Z")
Not only the above, but I’ve seen cases of ICs healing themselves from defects. Plus I worked on one chip level bug that was very sporadic, and which caused the computer to reboot. I had data on one case where it failed, was sent back and not repaired because the repair people couldn’t find anything wrong, and then didn’t fail again for a year. Not only computers - our microwave control board has an issue, and it repairs itself for a while and then goes out again. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/9 "2018-02-08T22:21:12Z")
I _think_ this exact problem is happening to me. Desktop DVD stopped reading disks. It looked like it was working again yesterday but I didn’t have time to check. $20 OEM drive so it’s no big deal just a pain. > [@Shagnasty](#): > > It happens all the time. I work in IT and the joke at work is that I can fix things just by showing up. I even have a joke ritual where I “lay hands” on the offending computer and pray in front of the person that reported the problem. It works about half the time (OK, sometimes it is something really dumb and obvious like a loose cable but I don’t tell them that). A lot of them are convinced that I really do have magical powers. Many problems can be fixed by something really basic. I did this 3 times yesterday! “You restarted it? Let’s try one more time!” And I don’t even work in IT. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/10 "2018-02-09T00:03:10Z")
Yes, computer parts can indeed repair themselves, and I don’t mean a reboot. But _beware._ That doesn’t mean they are fixed, it just means they are working _now._ I bought a new stove a year ago. After installation, I noticed the LED display was missing some segments, so I ordered a replacement under warranty. I even took photos of the bad display in case someone challenged me. But before the replacement was delivered, I noticed the bad segments were gradually lighting up. After a few days, I cancelled the replacement delivery as pointless. A year later, the stove’s display is fine, but I’m still worried I made the wrong decision. A few weeks ago, I received a replacement Drobo (NAT) 8-unit box, to replace a DOA unit. The replacement wasn’t working reliably (wouldn’t copy files over the network consistently), but as I ran through Drobo tech’s suggested tests, it began working, increasing from 50% to 100% performance over a few days. Right now, it appears to be 100%. The bad thing about such “repairs” is they often are followed – years later after the warranty has run out :rolleyes: – by a failure that seems suspiciously like the original problem but is no longer covered. Which is why I advised a friend of mine who received a new PC, and the first time she turned it on, exhibited a “blue screen” hardware failure, to return the unit immediately. The tech dept wanted to run some remote tests first, but I vetoed that and insisted she return it as defective. No undamaged, brand-new computer should turn on with a blue screen error, _ever._ ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/11 "2018-02-09T00:07:05Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > …our microwave control board has an issue, and it repairs itself for a while and then goes out again. What we have here is a _failure to define_. Is it:[ul][_]A unit that stops working, then repairs itself, or[_]An intermittent failure?[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/12 "2018-02-09T01:01:40Z")
Plenty of times. Some times you just have to walk away. Clear your head and come back. You often discover a different approach. My old co-worker said I had ‘magic eyes’. He would ask for help, I would come over, ‘repeat’ what he was trying to do, and wala, it was ‘fixed’. ---
**Author:** ![Noelq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/noelq/32/16438_2.png) [@Noelq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noelq)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/13 "2018-02-09T01:27:17Z")
You’re forgetting the horrible, unspoken dark side of this. More than once… Swap parts, jiggle wires, power cycle, dust, update components, windows update, nothing… Then accidentally cut your finger on the case, or spike your finger on a pointy bit of the motherboard. BLAM! Runs fine. It demanded a blood sacrifice to continue. ---
**Author:** ![Dobbs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Dobbs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dobbs)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/14 "2018-02-09T02:33:15Z")
One lesson I’ve learned - problems that go away by themselves come back by themselves. I’d offer better than even odds that your problem will come back. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/15 "2018-02-09T04:38:09Z")
> [@Cuckoorex](#): > > OK, weirdness: the past couple of days, my laptop’s DVD drive has been having trouble playing DVDs; last night it stopped playing them completely. I took the laptop in to Computer Repair place in town to see if they could repair or replace the DVD drive, and they say it works for them! I did take a slight spill on the icy sidewalk while walking with the laptop in a case; maybe I jolted something that was stuck. Maybe it miraculously healed? Maybe it doesn’t like my taste in movies?? I’ve had trouble with DVDs and CDs. I was able to make it play CDs with an easy registry fix. But a couple of weeks ago, suddenly CDs would not play, AND my machine wouldn’t recognize my external drives! Then the machine wouldn’t boot! After much swearing and sweating, I was able to re-install Windows (10) from the recovery area on the internal HD, and that fixed the problem. The re-install option I chose saved all my user files. The main casualty: my Firefox bookmarks. Furthermore, at one point my machine stopped recognizing my TV (which I used as extended desktop to play videos). But a couple of months later my machine started recognizing it again! I guess things got corrupted here and there, finally resulting in my boot problem. My advice to you: make sure you have EVERYTHING backed up. If you’re not using a Microsoft browser, make sure you have the bookmarks and other settings backed up. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/16 "2018-02-09T07:40:20Z")
Yeah. Rebooting nearly always fixes everything. My speakers keep shuttling off. Reboot. As a chief engineer once told me about malfunctioning audio equipment, “First, give it a clout”. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/17 "2018-02-09T16:56:27Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Right now I’m waiting for my home laptop to heal itself after the last Windows 10 update bricked it. I’m not too optimistic though. Well hey what do you know, I actually got the desktop to come up this morning! I only needed to let it sit and spin on the “Getting Windows ready” screen for a day and a half. (Literally… It’s been stuck on that screen since Wednesday evening. I guess I just wasn’t being patient enough.) ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/18 "2018-02-09T17:03:11Z")
> [@Cuckoorex](#): > > I did take a slight spill on the icy sidewalk while walking with the laptop in a case; maybe I jolted something that was stuck. This is a distinct possibility. The DVD player is a mechanical device. The laser has to physically be moved along a track to read the data on the DVD. It’s very possible for the laser to get stuck for a variety of reasons–the track is not smooth, lubrication has failed, something is twisted, etc. If you bonked the laptop, it could be that things in the DVD got moved back into alignment. If it happens again, I wouldn’t recommend bonking the laptop to try to fix it as you may end up damaging something else. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/19 "2018-02-09T17:29:26Z")
> [@Cuckoorex](#): > > I’m really starting to wonder if the jolt of me falling did something. Like maybe there was a lot of dust built up internally and it got knocked loose? I don’t know. [The science behind percussive maintenance.](http://iheartintelligence.com/2015/05/16/science-behind-percussive-maintenance/) ---
**Author:** ![Jennshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Jennshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennshark)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469/20 "2018-02-09T17:30:02Z")
My older car has self-healing powers related to its computer/electronic systems. Sometimes it’s downright eerie, but I’ll take it. I had an Apple laptop (the “Clamshell”) that I could correct some running errors with a good smack. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-ever-have-a-malfunctioning-computer-heal-itself-somehow/808469.md?page=2)