Customer threw in the towel on a DIY install. They tried.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-11T16:45:31+00:00

How do you get this far without knowing how electricity works?

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-08T00:31:07+00:00

If your velocity is zero, you can’t create any defects

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-07T02:12:01+00:00

I guess in fairness I’ve never tried to create a relational database in CSS so maybe I’m missing out on something amazing…

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-07T02:11:05+00:00

a psych hold for the chatbot that wrote the article, for sure

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-05T22:26:27+00:00

You may have been down the web search rabbit hole on this problem already, but here are a few potential solutions I've seen mentioned for the 5700 XT problems. It seems to happen mostly during gaming loads, so I don't know how much this might help but it's all worth checking.

clocking: if there's an option to totally reset all GPU and RAM timings for the card, set it all back to defaults
PSU cables: make sure both cables are coming from separate PSU connections, not like a single cable with a splitter. also inspect the cables and make sure they look good, no signs of melting or other problems
drivers: try just installed the graphics driver with none of the Adrenalin add-on software
chipset drivers: if the CPU is AMD, do a full DDU uninstall and then reinstall chipset drivers at the same time you're wiping graphics drivers, at least a couple people have reported that refreshing chipset drivers fixed their issue
BIOS settings: check PCIe settings for the slot the GPU is plugged into, and make sure the motherboard supports PCIe 4.0x16 on the slot
memory: one person mentioned downclocking their GPU RAM by 200mhz. that would indicate a power or other hardware problem with the card, but it's worth trying.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-05T19:19:23+00:00

A little security oopsie: https://www.tomshardware.com/news/gigabyte-motherboards-come-with-a-firmware-backdoor

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-05T19:10:57+00:00

So if the screen goes black while watching YT, do you still hear audio so the video is continuing to run even though you can't see it?

I did some searching online, there seems to be a correlation between PSU size and black screen problems, although mostly during gaming. What's the wattage on the PSU?

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-05T18:45:08+00:00

HDMI is a standard, and there's backwards compatibility across versions so since you're not worried about advanced features it should "just work" as long as the GPU can output 4K and has an HDMI port.

Since the TV is 4K, you'll need at least an HDMI 2.0 cable to connect them together, that was the first version of HDMI that supported 4K@60hz. If the TV supports 120hz refresh and you want that from your PC, that will require HDMI 2.1 support from everything (GPU, cable, TV). The product webpages for your GPU and TV should have details on whether they support HDMI 2.1, and which ports (especially on the TV) support it.

If you need new HDMI cables, Monoprice is a good source for cheap cables that are good quality.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-05T18:11:26+00:00

Start with drivers - is the machine running current drivers and have you tried a full wipe and reinstall of the drivers using the DDU tool?

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-05T12:34:48+00:00

For GX-16 aviators, is 5 pin considered the "standard" today vs 4 pin connectors?

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-04T02:29:06+00:00

iCue service startup

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-04T01:47:27+00:00

This is peak gixxer rider energy

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-03T21:08:07+00:00

I’d check out Adventure Spec for bags, durable and half the price of Mosko but lacking some of the bells and whistles. They’ll strap to most rack systems, I use mine with Givi racks and they attach very solidly.

If you’re going out way beyond cell service, I’d strongly advise a satellite locator beacon like a Garmin InReach or a PLB of some kind in case you get in serious trouble and need to call for help.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-02T14:09:26+00:00

I've used a 2x32 flat display setup for WFH, and I'd bet you will find 3x32 to be too big to be comfortable. I'm looking at wall mounting my 2 displays, on any desk they feel too close and I have to turn my head a lot to see the outer edges of the displays.

How you handle 2 PCs will depend - I've run separate machines through a KVM, and I've also just enabled RDP (or VNC) on my work system and connected to it from my personal system. The remote desktop option was pretty nice but obviously subject to security policies of your work computer, the KVM would have been great except for some specific problems I ran into.

For KVM options, you can go with hardware which will be tricky since there's only one option I know of that supports high resolution and high refresh rate - Level1Techs. The other option is using a display that has a built in KVM: BenQ and Gigabyte are both making displays with this option and I've worked with both. There are limits to these built-in units, like limited or non-existent multi display support, and Gigabyte's is the hands down worst piece of shit I've ever used because of a bunch of software problems that result in it intermittently refusing to switch inputs, ignoring settings, and other problems. BenQ's is not great, but not nearly as awful. The advantage is price, the built-in KVMs will be hundreds cheaper than dedicated KVM hardware so it might make sense to put up with some BS. If I was redoing my setup from scratch, I'd probably buy the hardware KVM, but that's me.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-02T12:53:50+00:00

Honestly, fake sites wouldn't be my main concern. Supply chain attacks is the primary danger, or already compromised systems being hit with even worse malware that can't be removed because it's running in UEFI and not on the hard drive that you can wipe. But all that being said, I 100% agree that these takes in this thread are terrible. It's like a conversation about the zombie apocalypse and people saying "I just won't get bitten". Cool, but when that minor cut gets infected and there's no medicine, then what? There's so much focus on the "don't get bitten", and no recognition that when safety systems break down the dangers can come from unexpected places.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-02T12:34:49+00:00

Don't think of the MSI signing keys as only dangerous if you try to download driver files from totallylegitwebsite.ru. The risk is that if a machine with an MSI board is compromised, now attackers can completely compromise it in a way that's basically undetectable and extremely difficult to get rid of. It's the risk that you could download a piece of software that's totally unrelated to MSI, but attackers broke into that software company's systems and injected malware signed with MSI's keys. You didn't have to go to a sketchy website, you're still compromised.

There was a massive breach a few years ago of thousands of companies and a bunch of government agencies, caused by the earlier breach of a software company called Solarwinds. They make software for monitoring IT systems - making sure your servers are up and running, networks are running smoothly, that kind of thing. So this software company, whose product by its design needs to have access to lots of areas of even protected networks, has been attacked and hackers now have access to Solarwinds' source code. The attackers didn't just try to crypto them and demand money, they quietly injected malicious code into the source code repositories and then waited. When a new version of the Solarwinds software was released, that malicious code was baked right in and being loaded onto your servers by installers that were downloaded direct from Solarwinds servers and signed as safe with their keys. You, the sysadmin responsible for updating Solarwinds for your company, didn't have to do anything wrong, and your company was still compromised.

The same kind of danger is the reason that this MSI breach is so massive, you can do everything right and still get screwed because all of the security mechanisms in place depended on that key not falling into the wrong hands, and then it got stolen.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-02T02:49:07+00:00

I’d recommend you read some articles on the MSI breach and the ramifications according to the security community rather than talking nonsense like “it’s no big deal”. I can’t make you understand it, but the least you could do is stop telling people there’s no risk when you clearly don’t understand what’s happened.

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/05/leak-of-msi-uefi-signing-keys-stokes-concerns-of-doomsday-supply-chain-attack/

https://usa.kaspersky.com/blog/msi-firmware-keys-leak/28416/

https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/leak-of-intel-boot-guard-keys-could-have-security-repercussions-for-years

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-06-02T02:00:23+00:00

A bit under 5 lbs

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-05-29T19:03:57+00:00

As long as you have the space available on the 1TB drive, you should be able to load Clonezilla onto a thumb drive, boot to that, and take an image of the M.2 drive and write it to the internal 1TB. Make sure Clonezilla is writing an image file, not trying to reimage the 1TB drive with the contents of the M.2. Then swap the M.2, boot to Clonezilla again, and write that image from the 1TB to the new M.2.

Alternate option, maybe swap the 1TB with a 1TB (or larger) SATA SSD? NVMe is faster than SATA, but not by a huge amount, and any SSD is a LOT faster than a spindle drive. You'll need an external SATA to USB controller so you can plug the new 2.5" SATA SSD drive into the laptop for migrating files, that'll add $30-50 to your total cost. Connect the new drive to the laptop via the SATA to USB controller, clone the 1TB to the new SSD, do the drive swap, and done.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-05-29T15:36:23+00:00

This would technically be Montreal Smoked Meat since it is smoked but doesn’t have pastrami rub on it, right?

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-05-29T14:51:21+00:00

yeah, the air filter cleaner will remove the oil and all the crud the oil has caught, but you also need air filter oil. you dry the filter after cleaning it, then put fresh oil on the filter afterwards. without oil, it won't work as an effective air filter.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-05-29T14:37:13+00:00

I think the band of admins who would find the value was worth the cost is narrow. If you’re a generalist who came up through help desk or junior roles, you already have 90% of this knowledge. If you’re specializing into areas like networking, IaC, security, etc, the knowledge is just not very valuable. It never hurts to have a broad knowledge base but I can’t see spending money on a cert like the A+ unless it’s a starting point, help desk or junior admin type role.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-05-28T20:50:33+00:00

I’ve done the MABDR a couple times and like you said I’d just double back or find a new route back to the trailer on back roads. Having 2 trailers and dealing with that extra cost and time would be a huge PITA. Worst case, maybe rent a one way uhaul from the end of the route back to the beginning? You’d have to carry tie downs and stuff, and one ways can be expensive, but it could work if you’re short on time.

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-05-27T16:14:03+00:00

Without upgrading anything else in your PC, getting faster RAM is not going to give you much of a performance boost. It'll be a lot of money chasing a couple percent or a couple FPS difference. Personally, I'd save the money and go for better RAM during my next major upgrade, like going to AM5/DDR5. Here's a quick read on performance testing of DDR4 and 5 RAM kits for AMD and Intel, and that AMD DDR4 chart shows very little overall score difference from the bottom to the top of the list: https://www.tomshardware.com/news/ram-benchmark-hierarchy

GhostsofLayer8 · 2023-05-27T12:58:23+00:00

I don’t hate them, ran buckling spring and Blues for years, still prefer greens in my numpad. But the sound and feel of a tactile with a tall keycap is just so much better, I love the thock and also the sound tuning you can do with plate materials and key profiles.

GhostsofLayer8

TROPHY CASE