Can a motherboard fry a CPU?
I recently had a power surge, and my motherboard stopped working. I’m worried that the surge might have damaged my CPU too. I’ve heard that a bad motherboard can fry a CPU if there’s a problem with voltage regulation or a short circuit. Has anyone else experienced this? How can I tell if my CPU is still good, or should I just replace it? Any advice would be appreciated!
Definitely, it is possible that a power surge is capable of damaging both your CPU and motherboard. When it comes to Motherboards, they are more prone to such surges and if the voltage regulation modules (VRMs) got compromised, then such VRMs could provide the CPU with unstable or even destructive voltage instead.
Indications that your CPU could be faulty are:
No POST ( Power On Self Test): It is more likely there is a fault within the system instead of a normal boot if the computer does not power-on even or power-on self test fails and error codes are displayed instead.
Such issues are often the result of an invalid configuration or a failed attempt to change the options to make the system perform better. System crashes, hangs and more dramatically, blue screens of death could also be caused by CPU related problems.
If the computer turns on but noticeably is sluggish, slow to boot up or apps are running sluggishly, the problem is a fried CPU.
To test the CPU to see that it works, do the opposite, take it off the motherboard and install it on another one. This is done via the use of the old motherboard – with the CPU – and the replacement motherboard. The absence of such symptoms in another machine is confirmation of motherboard failure.
In the case where it is impossible for one to try the CPU with another PC, replacement of it may be necessary while bearing possible risks. This is because it may cost less to replace a broken CPU than what a damaged part of the CPU may cost in further damage to other parts of the computer.
To read more about the interaction of motherboards and CPUs you can read this article too: Can a CPU Fry a Motherboard?
