A Troubleshooting Tale: How a Rookie Mistake Can Derail a Well-Built PC

Building a custom PC can feel like an exhilarating achievement, but the joy can quickly turn to frustration when things go awry. Recently, I found myself in a bit of a pickle while trying to help my brother troubleshoot his newly assembled gaming rig. What started as a straightforward consultation turned into a five-hour deep dive into the world of tech problem-solving, and honestly, I felt a twinge of embarrassment by the end of it.

The Background

I had recently completed a successful PC build for my brother, complete with all the components necessary for smooth gaming. After setting up his rig, he packed it up and moved to a new location. It was there that the trouble began. He soon reported that his games would freeze on launch, and even more frustrating was that they refused to close despite attempts to force quit them from the Steam library. Given my confidence as a PC builder and knowledge enthusiast, I volunteered to help resolve the issue.

The Troubleshooting Process

Four hours in, after exhausting many potential solutions, I reached out to Steam support with a detailed inquiry. Here’s a rundown of the troubleshooting steps I had already taken:

1. Validated game files
2. Cleared the Steam download cache
3. Conducted a Windows system scan (no issues found)
4. Disabled overlays both in and out of Steam
5. Uninstalled and reinstalled the affected games
6. Reinstalled the Steam application
7. Adjusted firewall and antivirus settings
8. Disabled startup applications
9. Closed unnecessary background processes
10. Updated Windows
11. Updated chipset, graphics drivers, and motherboard BIOS

Despite all these efforts, I was left scratching my head, and the last resort—reinstalling Windows—loomed ominously on the horizon. I had combed through forums, including Reddit’s tech threads and Microsoft’s support pages, trying to find a solution.

The Revelation

Just when I was starting to feel defeated, I decided to take a step back and inspect the hardware. After five long hours of back-and-forth with the computer, I had an epiphany: maybe the issue was as simple as a hardware misconfiguration. As I prepared to reseat the RAM, I noticed something that made me burst out laughing: my brother had plugged the HDMI cable into his motherboard instead of the graphics card.

It was one of those