Is anyone using Pc Doctor? Is it worth it?

[Pc Fixed Right]

Just wondering if anyone is using Pc Doctor http://www.pc-doctor.com/ as part of their tools?

What are the pros? cons?

thanks

 

[MobileTechie]

I've not used the whole kit but I've seen it and apps like it on discs like Hirens etc. I've never been able to work out the point of them to be honest. Anything with a POST card looks pretty suspect to me seeing as they also appear to be uttlerly pointless 99% of the time.

E.g. I see them do video checks by putting coloured stripes on the screen and so on and I wonder exactly what sort of vid problem that is ever going to find.

The basic kit is just that testing app plus some loopback devices: RJ45, serial, parallel, and audio ports.....I guess the RJ45 might be useful if it actually tests networking? When am

Maybe I'm missing out but it seems to me that you don't just get PCs given to you with no symptoms that you have to test. And that being given, I don't get how these things are going to help me do my job.

 

[Crgky127]

Waste of time unless you are dealing with a company that requires PC Doctor error codes for warranty stuff.

 

[J-Bob]

I LOVE my PC-Doctor kit (7.5), I find myself using it pretty often.

I can use remotely on a computer drive, while the computer is on, or boot from the device and run any of the tests.

It make's fantastic reports that can be printed for the customer (or any manufacturers that want printed proof of the results) that make it pretty easy to show them what's wrong with their hardware.

It tests the HD, RAM, CPU, MOBO, Video Card, does system stress tests, and several other operations as well.
(granted, the CPU and MOBO tests aren't terribly expansive, but I haven't found anything else that tests them any better)

It is definitely worth the price, and once you have it you'll find yourself using it more and more.

I got it cheaper than listed on the website, because I told them I couldn't afford the full price do to "financial situations". (which was true, my shop was just starting up at the time) They sold it to me at a small discount so they could sell it to me right away.

If anyone has any questions about how PC-Doctor works, feel free to PM me!

PS:
One example of how I like to use PC-Doctor:
if I'm working on a virus-removal for a client and I get a feeling that their HD may be unhealthy- I hit it with PC-Doctor and if it turns out it's dropping sectors I inform the client and 70% of the time they'll either buy and external HD from me or pay me to image their data to another HD.
(yeah, I know there's other utilities out there for testing HDs, but PC-Doctor is a big-name company and it's what I have)

 

[Pc Fixed Right]

is there a limit to the number of machines that can be tested at any given moment? or can you only test 1 machine at a time?

 

[Martyn]

I use it and as said it does great reports. Everything is in the one package that you need. You can only test one computer at a time. You need the usb dongle in to use with the cd.

 

[MobileTechie]

Other than producing nice reports, what does it do? I.e. what does it find that a standard disk and memory test won't find? Or does it do something else useful?

 

[Martyn]

I'm not saying it does anything more than a lot of other programs. It probably isn't worth the money but as I say I have it and it can be customised via an inbuilt script to run the tests your want exactly as you want so would free up some time. The reports also can include your logo. I create a pdf from it with a pdf writer. It can run from the usb within Windows or you can run it from the boot cd outside Windows. It's expensive for what it is.

 

[MobileTechie]

So do you run it on incoming PCs to see what is wrong or before you send them out to prove they are now working?

I'm trying to work out how they fit into the job.

Does it save you time/effort in some tasks and if so which ones?

 

[Martyn]

So do you run it on incoming PCs to see what is wrong or before you send them out to prove they are now working?

I'm trying to work out how they fit into the job.

Does it save you time/effort in some tasks and if so which ones?

That was my original idea behind getting it. I was going to put it on my website(might still do) i.e. 'we use industry standard software and all machines through our workshop have a full, documented hardware test'

I haven't done it yet but might still do.

 

[Fixedathome.com]

I think it is well worth the money (It isn't that expensive anyway). Yes there are other bits of software that do the same or similar jobs but the benefit of this is that it is all under one roof so to speak. You can create custom scripts to run multiple tests as well. My main use is as part of my PC Healthcheck service. Every PC that comes in for a Healthcheck goes through the same set of hardware diagnostics so it keeps the testing consistent and as mentioned elsewhere it create very good branded reports of the tests.

I also run basic hardware tests on any PC that comes in even if the problem it is in for isn't hardware related

Also worth a mention is the POST/Diagnostic card. It works the same as any other cheapo POST card with regards to error codes but the feature that stands out for me is the voltage reading on it. You attach a daughter board to it and it has a button to cycle through the various voltages on a digital readout. This is great for checking voltages in real time under load.

PC Doctor should be looked at as an addition to your toolkit, not as your only means of diagnosing faults though.

 

[MobileTechie]

So on the machines you run it on that aren't necessarily in for h/w faults - what sort of faults has it found?

 

[Fixedathome.com]

So on the machines you run it on that aren't necessarily in for h/w faults - what sort of faults has it found?

I've had it find memory faults, hard drive faults and faulty graphics cards amongst other things. I'm not saying I wouldn't have found these faults anyway but it's good to have a bit of structure.

 

[MobileTechie]

What sort of faults do you get with a graphics card that it finds?

 

[Fixedathome.com]

What sort of faults do you get with a graphics card that it finds?

Video memory faults and Shader faults are the ones I've had it fail on if I recall correctly. There are several more tests that it performs though. It does a very good video card stress test similar to 3d mark. I've also had it pick up Hardware Acceleration being disabled several times.

 

[MobileTechie]

OK cool, thanks.

I'd like a professional testing system but trying to work out if it's really worth paying for one.

 

[Fixedathome.com]

OK cool, thanks.

I'd like a professional testing system but trying to work out if it's really worth paying for one.

If you plan on using it in a similar way to me then I don't think you will be disappointed. I use it pretty much everyday and it has more than paid for itself through my healthcheck service.

 

[slaphappyprince]

I hate to bump, but rather than starting a new thread...

Is there any way to use it on more than one computer at a time?

 

[Fixedathome.com]

I hate to bump, but rather than starting a new thread...

Is there any way to use it on more than one computer at a time?

In windows no, not unless you purchase an extra usb key. In dos mode yes. You can run one session using the USB key and another using cd and parallel port tester. Unfortunately most modern pcs lack a parallel port...

 

[slaphappyprince]

In windows no, not unless you purchase an extra usb key. In dos mode yes. You can run one session using the USB key and another using cd and parallel port tester. Unfortunately most modern pcs lack a parallel port...

Where could one find extra USB keys? I was looking on their site and on google but couldn't find any...