Here's how you can tackle complex hardware problems systematically.

Start by figuring out what is REALLY happening. Often people give themselves a huge roadblock by not identifying all symptoms. -"It's not working." NOT an acceptable definition of the problem. -Stopping after a single symptom & declare that's THE PROBLEM. Try as many functions as you can. What works; what doesn't. Imagine: Get in the car, & try to start the car. No click. No dash lights. DEAD BATTERY. I'll charge it in the morning a couple minutes before I'm off to work. In the morning you pop the hood & battery is gone. So much for a couple minutes. You found the problem. Or ONE of the problems. What else was taken? Never ID a problem from the first symptom. It's true that sometime it's that simple, but we all know that's the rare case.

Problem Identification The initial step in troubleshooting hardware issues involves identifying the problem with precision. To do this, it is important to clearly define and understand the hardware issue or malfunction. This entails gathering detailed information about symptoms, error messages, and pinpointing exactly when the problem occurs.

I call this a Problem Statement. For example, "In condition X, we expect behavior A, but we see behavior B." This defines the problem as a difference between expected behavior and observed behavior under a specific set of conditions. Be specific on the details for conditions and behaviors. Be prepared to add or remove details as needed, but keep a record of changes and the reasons for the changes. Once you have defined the conditions where you see the unexpected behavior, then you can make a plan to start varying conditions, one at a time if possible, so you can find the cause of the unexpected behavior.

Separate out your work. You don't need your top technicians working on basic questions like 'Is it plugged in'. Have them ready to jump on any major issues, while you have your newer staffers handle the basics.

Once you have established that the cables are plugged in, the input power is correct, no fuses are blown, then the fundamental things to check on a system that has CPUs, microcontrollers, or FPGAs, are: 1. Clocks 2. Power 3. Reset For clocks, check that they are present at the right time, they are on frequency, and meet voltage specs. Check for excess noise. An FFT can show you a lot of problems. For power, make sure the rails are present and within spec and that they come up in the correct order with the correct timing. For resets, make sure everything is in reset at the correct time, make sure that all conditions to release reset are met and that the resets are released at the correct times.

Start by figuring out what the main components are that are causing the issue. Did everything work until you swapped out a specific part? Did you upgrade something without checking compatibility? There are a handful of parts in a computer that can cause problems. It's important to know the function of each part to understand which one can be causing issues. No video? it could be the GPU. No power? It could be the Power Supply. PC not booting properly? it could be the hard drive When swapping out components, you will always want to note down whats happening and what parts are being swapped in order to backtrack if needed.

Before you swap out a power supply, use an oscilloscope to check the input and output voltage. Wiggle the cables to check for intermittents. If there is a fuse then make sure it isn't blown. Go back to the fundamentals to find what is not working before starting to change out parts.

Start by using any built-in software like Device Manager or Nvidia GeForce Experience (if you have an Nvidia card) Then search online for specific drivers to download and install. Intel has a really handy tool called "Intel Driver and Support Assistant"

Online communities are always a great place to get and give advice, try pages like Reddit and Facebook to start. Be sure to include as much information as you can when asking questions in order to get the best answers.