Conflicts are usually the result of a upgrade or change to the configuration of hardware or software of a PC. It pretty much follows these simple rules.

1.      A new piece of hardware and/or software has been added to the system. 

2.      Trouble starts after a piece of hardware and/or software has been added to the system. 

3.      The system was working fine before the hardware and/or software was added. 

If all three of these factors are true, chances are very good that you are faced with a hardware or software conflict. Unlike most other types of PC problems that tend to be specific to the faulty subassembly, conflicts usually manifest themselves as much more general and perplexing problems. The following symptoms are typical of serious hardware or software conflicts.

·         The system locks up during initialization. 

·         The system locks up on a particular application. 

·         The system locks up randomly or without warning regardless of the application. 

·         The device that was added might not function (even though it seems properly configured) 

·         The system might not crash but a device or application that was working previously no longer seems to function.

The fastest way of overcoming conflict is to remove the hardware or software which resulted in the conflict. In other words if you installed board X and board Y ceases to function, board X is probably conflicting with the system. Removing board X should restore board Y to normal operation. The same holds true for software.