How to Tell If Your Graphics Card Is Dying? 5 Signs Are Here!

The graphics card is an indispensable component of any computer since it is used to display your computer data on a monitor. If necessary, you can install a high-powered graphics card (also known as graphics processing unit – GPU) to offer more power to various programs, just like many small business owners.

However, a graphics card failure can cause visual distortions or make your PC unusable. But, it is necessary to figure out if the GPU is actually causing your issues before purchasing a new video card. In the following parts, we will show you how to check if graphics card is dead.

Signs of Dying Graphics Card

Shuttering

Shuttering is one of the common signs of a bad graphics card. If you experience this case, don’t jump to conclusions since a dying hard drive or bad RAM may also cause the same kind of behavior.

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But if you get shuttering along with warning signs, it is likely that the graphics card goes wrong. When playing a game, stuttering is typically noticeable and a high drop in frame rate usually occurs.

Screen Glitches

This symptom usually happens when you are watching a movie or playing a game. You may suddenly see weird shapes or colors appearing all over the computer screen. If you restart your computer, sometimes the screen may return to normal. But if the GPU is failing, the same problem will come back soon.

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Strange Artifacts

It is another common symptom of the dead graphics card and it is similar to screen glitches. Sometimes, artifacts start from small colored dots on the screen, to some weird lines and then patterns. Usually, strange artifacts appear when the GPU goes under load. If the PC is idle, you won’t see them but the GPU goes under load soon and then they also appear.

Fan Noise

Fan noise isn’t directly related to a dying GPU but it can be a cause behind the dead graphics card. But you should note that the fan noise is louder than normal. If the fan on the graphics card goes wrong, this means the GPU may be running hotter than it should.

Blue Screen of Death

You may be familiar with the blue screen of death errors that always happen for a range of reasons. You don’t know whether that be problems with hard drives, RAM, video cards or other parts. But if you perform some graphics-intensive tasks like playing games or watching movies, perhaps the blue screen indicates that your GPU is dying.

After knowing so much, you know how to tell if your graphics card is dying. If you encounter one of these signs, your GPU may be failing. But this doesn’t mean the graphics card is on its way out. So, you can do some things to fix the video card before buying a new one.

How to Troubleshoot

1. Update or Roll Back Your Graphics Card Driver

If the GPU driver is old, some problems may appear when you play games. If the graphics card is old, a newer driver may be harmful to the system stability. So, update the outdated driver. Or roll back the driver to an earlier date or install an older driver if you have recently updated the driver.

2. Cool GPU Down

As mentioned above, the graphics card may get bad due to overheating. If the issue only happens after rendering 3D graphics for a while or the GPU’s fan gets loud during rendering, you can check the temperature of the card.

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Or remove the card and use compressed air to clean the dust to combat overheating. Or use some tools like MSI Afterburner to regulate the fan and graphical output.

3. Check the Video Cable

If the cable that is used to connect your video card and the computer goes wrong, weird visual effects may appear. So, make sure that the cable properly is plugged in on both sides or you can replace the cable to have a try.

4. Make Sure the Card Is Seated Properly

To ensure the graphics card work efficiently, it should be plugged into the PCI slots. If it needs additional power plugs, make sure they are plugged in without wiggle room. Otherwise, the problems with GPU happen.

5. Replace the Video Card

After diagnosing the graphics card, if the card is really dead, you need to purchase a new one and replace the bad GPU.

The End

How to tell if your graphics card is dying? After reading this post, you clearly know if the GPU is dead by analyzing the symptom and diagnosing the card.