You'll get a feel for this (# of digits, turns, and threads) after a while. Generally, I select options that will get the machine “breathing hard” for several minutes. SST uses various algorithms to calculate pi up to 128 million digits. Pmagic includes a program called System Stability Tester (System Tools > System Stability Tester). Unplug the cable and then click on the Network Icon in the tray at the bottom right of the screen (probably has a red "X" if you unplugged the network cable), and connect to a wireless network.įinally, it's stress test time. Plug in a network cable and test for functionality with a web browser. After selecting the appropriate drive, I look for red or pink shaded tabs indicating potential issues and perform the standard short and extended self tests. I then fire up GSmartControl (the Disk Health icon on the Desktop) to check the hard disk. Then I start a graphical temperature monitor (System Tools > Psensor) as I will be watching temps during the remaining procedures. Browse the hardware if you like, then click Save, and save the information to your flash drive as a text file (or alternate format if you prefer). In the “Start Menu” go to System Tools > LSHW, and refresh the list after it opens. Next, I'll generate a list of all of the current hardware (the linux kernel is very good at recognizing most hardware). Usually, the first thing I do is plug in a thumb drive and mount it (use the disk icon in the taskbar), so that I can store any reports or screenshots during the process. Next, its on to the bench and Parted Magic.īoot Pmagic via you preferred method, and you'll be presented with this desktop: I just wanted to give a quick overview to some of the features included with Pmagic, and how they can be used for hardware diagnostics and testing.Īfter I check in a computer from a customer, the first thing I do is give it a good cleaning, inside and out, followed by a thorough visual inspection (fan operation, capacitors bulging, cables secure, etc). When combined with PXE (see this excellent thread for more info), Pmagic becomes even better! Never fear though, if you don't currently have a PXE server, you can always boot from a CD or USB device, its just going to be a little slower to load into memory. I find it incredibly well suited for so many things (hardware testing and diagnosis, data recovery, cloning / imaging, disk partitioning.). This has become my tool of choice for many tasks. I'm sure many of you also use Parted Magic on a regular basis. This is by no means an exhaustive procedure, but I find that it provides a good foundation for testing and diagnosis, especially for smaller shops, or those operating with limited resources. I'm sure everyone has their own procedures and checklists, but I just wanted to share my experience using Parted Magic for this task. Testing hardware and performing hardware diagnostics is something that we all frequently do.
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