Hi
My friend just replaced a memory stick in his computer , turned it on, there
was a burning smell and the computer stopped.
Hard to guess without looking at the system- but I suspect
the module was installed backwards (almost installed, it
won't fit due to keying but would go in far enough at one
end to cause damage).
So, the memory module and motherboard may be damaged.
My query is this, can he purchase a seperate power unit (he says that that
is where the smell is coming from, ir will he have to buy a complete tower
and swap ll the good stuff over?
If that caused the power supply to fail, the power supply
was either inadequate (or far more likely) a defective
design, as even if the module were installed backwards and
fried, even if the motherboard is also fried, a proper power
supply should've shut down gracefully, only needing to be
unplugged from AC for a couple minutes then it'd work again.
Examine the memory module, it's contacts. If any are even
slightly discolored, the board needs pulled and it's slot
contacts carefully examined - strong light and magnifying
glass may be necessary. If the contacts look burnt, go
ahead and throw away the board.
So you have 3 potentially damaged parts, one would have to
determine which are actually damaged. Since the smell is
reports as coming from the power supply, YES it can be
replaced instead of the whole case, assuming it is a
standard form-factor (and electrically, pin-compatible
standard).
However, consider a power supply- it's rear fan expells air
from other parts of the system. If the case were closed and
then turned on, any burning smell would be air sucked into
the power supply (if not a rear case exhaust fan) and blown
out the rear of the power supply. For this reason it could
be possible that the power supply didn't burn, only appeared
to as the smell came out of through normal exhaust flow
movement.
Google for pictures and measurements of power supplies. You
dont' mention the system specifics so you'll have to figure
out exactly what it is, the default/common being a standard
ATX, or mATX on a very small-cased system. Older OEM boxes
(like Dell or Gateway) were more likely to have non-standard
power supplies. For the most part, "older" means pre-1999
or older.
If friend is adept at using a multimeter, voltage readings
can be taken of the old power supply.
