How Long Does it Take to Fix a Computer?

The time it takes to fix a computer is variable. It could be 5 minutes or 5 hours or anything in between, even longer depending on the problem and what you want done.

Turn-around time also varies from shop to shop because of expertise, company policy and workload. It’s not unusual for the bigger companies with all their red-tape to take 2 – 3 weeks to repair what an independent computer shop can turn-around in 2 – 3 days. As for most computer problems that “qualify” to be repaired onsite, a seasoned technician can knock them out in 1 – 2 hours. So just what goes into the average computer repair?

The Average Computer Repair

First, a little story. A Tourist hit-and-ran our Company Van with his rental car a couple months ago. The damage wasn’t that bad, but the insurance adjuster said it would need to be in the shop for about 11 days. I know that the actual hands-on time will be less than 8 hours, but I can assure you they won’t be charging me hourly for 8 hrs per day for 11 days, or 88 hours. Without getting into all the play-by-play details during all the time our van will be in the shop, I doubt they’ll be charging me for the time the new paint takes to dry. Imagine getting paid to watch paint dry!

Computer repair involves necessary idle-time as well, where there is no actual hands-on work being done. Whether or not you are paying for each and every hour your computer is on the bench, or if it is just sitting there most of the time waiting for a scan to finish, it is time spent nevertheless, time that you have to wait for.

Most computer shops charge a flat rate for in-shop repairs and an hourly rate for onsite service. The reason it might take 2 -3 days in-shop compared to 1 – 2 hours onsite, is because you get a dedicated technician for onsite calls, whereas in-shop, a technician is expected to work on several computers simultaneously. There are also certain types of jobs we don’t recommend repairing onsite because of the extra time involved. While in-shop repairs do take longer, the trade-off is the flat rate fee to fix it.

When you aren’t on-the-clock for an hourly rate, time isn’t as critical when paying a fixed-flat rate, so we get to perform more work on your computer above and beyond the repair itself, such as Hard Drive surface scans, Defragmenting the Hard Drive and Windows Updates. If you were to pay a technician hourly to be present at your home or office to do this type of work, it could easily add $300 more to your bill. It’s no wonder this work often gets ignored, especially since it is boring, time-consuming work like watching paint dry.

Knowing this, if you have been solely relying on onsite service for your computer needs, some of this software maintenance has probably been ignored. If you don’t know how to perform this routine software maintenance yourself, I suggest taking your computer to the shop once in a while to get some of this boring, but necessary work done, even if your computer is “not” broke yet. Think of it like an oil change and tune-up for your car. Tune-ups cost less than repairs and may even prevent a failure.

If you need professional help with your computer … Call 676-1900

Hardware Problems

If your computer has a good old fashioned hardware failure, we can easily estimate how long it will take to replace the part. For hardware problems, it usually takes longer to get the part than to replace it, especially if we have to order it online. Most parts can be replaced in under an hour. But if it involves a Hard Drive replacement where we’ll need to reload the Windows Operating System, the time easily jumps to at least 3 hours.

If we have to order a part online, you will be absorbing the S & H, so if you are willing to pay for expedited shipping, you might be able to have the part within 2 days here in Hawaii, otherwise it usually takes about 5 – 10 days. Then we can continue the repair which might take another day or two.

Software Problems

If we have to reload the Windows Operating System, it takes a minimum of 3 hours to load the Windows & Drivers and to optimize the system. But then there are several rounds of Windows Updates to install, not to mention installing Programs and Security Software, which might add another 2 hours for a total of 5 hours if you want it done properly. I haven’t even mentioned how long it takes if you want your data backed-up and restored. Some customers have a massive amount of data which could take hours to transfer. If your Hard Drive was corrupt, it could take hours performing a preliminary surface scan before your data can even be backed-up, and even longer if we have to use Data Recovery software.

For software problems involving a virus infection or reloading Windows, it is possible to squeak by and do the absolute bare minimum in less than 2 hours, but you will have quite a bit of follow-on work to do after the Tech leaves. This work usually won’t get done when left to the customer, and you will probably have another problem sooner than you expect. That is why some jobs should be done in-shop. Sadly, many inexperienced mobile PC Techs do work this way and call the job done. At Gakidoo’s, we know the difference between washing a car, wash & wax, and going the extra mile with 2 coats of wax.

Multiple Problems

For computers that are infected and/or have severe Windows corruption; these are the most tedious and labor-intensive problems we deal with, especially if you have multiple problems such as hardware and software. Some problems mask other problems, requiring the top-level problem to be fixed first before the underlying problem reveals itself. These types of problems are not average and typically go beyond the repair estimate because the initial diagnostic will only reveal the immediate top-level problem. As frustrating as it is to get a call from the computer shop that there will be additional charges because we discovered another problem, just remember that we weren’t the ones that broke your computer.

Even Doctor’s take time to diagnose a medical condition only after multiple tests, consultations with a specialist, and more tests. Some tests will have to be invasive, and the treatment might have to be administered in stages depending on how the patient responds. While a computer is not human, there are similarities in the diagnostic process, and I’m sure many of you know that you don’t always get well on the first day after visiting the Doctor’s office.

Below is a summary of some of the things we typically might perform when repairing your computer.

Visual Inspection (15 minutes)

• Check Fans, Heatsinks, Fan Intakes & Exhaust for cleanliness and proper airflow
• Check for loose circuit cards, and cable connections
• Check connectors for missing or bent pins
• Check for corroded, discolored, damaged or burnt components

Manually Browse Hard Drive for: (30 minutes)

• Bad registry entries
• Duplicate files
• Viruses and Spyware
• Device Driver issues
• Warnings and Errors in Event Viewer logs
• Quarantined items in Antivirus & AntiSpyware programs

Run Various Scans (3 – 5 hrs+)

• Scan Hard Drive for errors (can take hours, and sometimes all day in severe cases)
• Scanning for viruses (can take 1 -2 hours)
• Scanning for spyware with several different programs depending how severe the infection is
• Above scans also include time for installing the scanning programs

Install Updates (1 – 2 hrs)

• Driver Updates
• Program Updates
• Windows Updates

Data Back-Up

When reloading Windows, either on the same or a new Hard Drive, we may have to back-up your data before we even start the repair. This can take 30 min or 3 hours depending how much data you have. Then again to restore the data back to the freshly loaded Hard Drive.

Research

Some problems require extensive online research to address specific or difficult problems. This can sometimes be a trial-and-error process.

My Little Tech Rant – Don’t Read this If You Think this Might Be About You

While we approach every computer repair with a disciplined 6 Step Troubleshooting method from diagnosis to repair, it is rarely an exact science, making it difficult to tell you exactly how long it will take to repair your computer. We find that most people’s computer problems didn’t just happen overnight either, that they evolved and got more complicated over time because the customer ignored the early signs of a problem. But, of course the customer will almost always say it worked perfectly right up until the moment it failed. In my humble opinion, this is rarely true, but all I can say about this is that the customer must have gotten used to all the existing problems and accepted the degraded performance as the new “perfect”.

When they finally do bring in their computer for repair, they think nothing of disclosing the “medical history” of the computer that led up to the failure that was finally bad enough for them to bring it in. So, I have to read minds (and computer logs), to find out later what probably happened. Finding out later sometimes leads us to underestimate the time and cost of the repair when we give you the initial quote to repair your computer. If you don’t care how much it costs and how long it takes then this is no big deal.

But the part that irritates me the most, is when a customer keeps calling for a play-by-play status update of the repair. This is fresh on my mind right now because I had a couple drop off a laptop recently that was pretty jacked-up. I told them it would take 3 business days to repair, but by the 2nd day, they had each called me 3 times with a barrage of questions for a total of 6 calls. As it was, it was repaired on time on the 3rd business day, but then they didn’t even come to pick it up when it was ready.

So What is My Point?

My point is this: What do you want to hear when calling for a status? Depending where we are in our troubleshooting, we can only say the problem is between here and there, that it is narrowed down to this, that or the other. But then they want to know how could that happen, and how much will this, that and the other thing cost? Then they start offering there own misguided advice like “Maybe the hard drive is full”. I literally hear that one almost everyday, and that is rarely, if ever the case. See my article about How to Check Free Space on Hard Drive for more info.

If the problem is hardware, I typically won’t look-up the cost of a part until I know specifically what part I need, so I can’t answer their question yet. Most repairs don’t need parts anyway. If I go against my better judgement and mention a ballpark figure, then they want to know their chances if that is the problem or not. Can I can find one cheaper, and how much longer will it take to repair, and on-and-on. All I know is that you can’t wish the problem to be this or that. What it is, is what it is. I just fix it and you pay for it. I can’t spend my day getting involved in a drama. But I can truly say, please trust me, I have your best interest at heart and will do a good job for you. But let me get back to work and I will answer your questions later when I am finished.

The problem with them getting involved at this point is that I am not finished and yet they want to start directing my efforts away from the path I am on. This is only going to make things take longer, and then they are going to want to call again for another status update, which this couple did, first the husband then the wife. At this point, their own impatience starts eroding their confidence in our ability to do the job. While this is just in their head, it starts to cause tension. I finally had to get snippy with them and said words to the effect to just let me do my job, I will call you when it is ready, please stop interrupting me, it is just going to take longer. Anybody who knows me knows that political correctness is not a trait I practice. I just tell it how it is.

Anyway, over-anxious customers show-up from time to time and fortunately, most of my customers are not like this. Please don’t take this Tech Rant in a bad way. I only wrote it to vent a bit, to educate the customer, and to speak in behalf of all us PC Techs who feel the same way. Rest assured, your computer will be repaired soon .. and properly.

If you need professional help with your computer … Call 676-1900