Hardware Diagnostics for Dell Laptops

I spoke to an I.T. guy the other day, we were trying to fix an XPS laptop for a client. He was at a loss but he thinks the computer was having a problem with the Hard Drive. I asked him if he'd already done a Hardware Diagnostics. It turned out that this guy, who's been working with computer for ten years, had no idea that DELL LAPTOPS had it's own diagnostics feature which is called the PRE-BOOT SYTEM ASSESSMENT (PSA). After running it, we proved that it was really the HDD. We got the error code 2000-0143. Fortunately the owner of the computer has backup for his files and the laptop was still under warranty. Dell agreed to replace the hard drive immediately right after we gave the error code. That saved us a lot of time on the phone. This is how we did it. How to run the PRE-BOOT SYTEM ASSESSMENT (PSA) 1. The computer must be turned off first. If you can't turn it off, just hold down the power button for a few seconds, the laptop is sure to turn off. 2. Now that it's off, hold down the FN KEY and Press the POWER BUTTON. Just Press the POWER BUTTON once while still holding down the FN KEY.

3. Let go of the buttons when you see the PRE-BOOT SYTEM ASSESSMENT (PSA) on the screen is already running. 4. Just wait for the diagnostics to finish. Answer the questions being asked on the screen, then write down any error message that comes up, then proceed with the remaining test. 5. If there is an error, that particular part that failed may need to be replaced. If all test passed, the issue your computer is having may not be a hardware issue. Consider doing an Operating System Re-installation if all test passed.