A desktop PC shutting down at random has a faint burning odor. During a visual inspection, you notice several cylindrical components on the system board have domed tops and slight brown residue leaking out. No other components show damage. Which corrective action will MOST likely resolve the instability?
Increase chassis fan speed through UEFI settings.
Re-seat and test all DIMMs in another memory slot.
Replace the motherboard with a known-good unit.
Flash the latest BIOS to improve voltage regulation.
The domed, leaking cylinders are electrolytic capacitors on the motherboard. Swollen or vented capacitors can no longer regulate voltage cleanly, leading to unstable power rails, random shutdowns, and possible overheating or odors. Because these parts are soldered to multilayer boards, field replacement is impractical; the recommended fix is to replace the entire motherboard. Reseating memory, updating the BIOS, or speeding up fans will not repair failed capacitors and therefore will not address the root cause.
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What are electrolytic capacitors and why do they fail?
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Why can’t failed capacitors on a motherboard be replaced easily?
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Why would updating BIOS or reseating memory not fix this issue?