Filesystem corruption - hard disk exploded!

[Ralf Mardorf]

On Thu, 27 Jun 2019 15:44:12 -0400, Little Girl wrote:
>You could have them test it or follow the instructions in compdoc's
>message for peering through the openings in the power supply to see
>if the capacitors inside the power supply are bulging.

This usually is due to voltage undersized capacitors used by a lot of
switching power supplies. FWIW the capacitor plague was 12 years ago,
believe me, nowadays it's more likely a voltage issue, an intended
predetermined breaking point, than bad produced capacitors.

However, to assume that a switching power supply will work sometimes
and won't work other times and that this will continue for a long time,
is unlikely, if the cause are the capacitors, since in this case very
soon the switching power supply completely stops working.

>Last, but not least, if the issue is the power supply and you end up
>replacing it, I would strongly recommend also replacing any parts that
>were affected by it.

Just replace the capacitors and use some intended for higher voltage
or, if you or nobody you know has got the skills to replace the
capacitors, buy a new power supply. Yes, it is possible that other
hardware is damaged, too and it's even possible that such damaged
hardware could damage a new power supply. It's possible, but it's far
from likely.