I answered a tech question about some one working on a computer for another person. He was trying to clean out a virus, spyware, malware etc.
I said I now give two hours tops on fixing/ cleaning a computer for friends. Because for friends I do it at a much lower rate if not free. Free depends on how good a friend they are!
If the person tells me that they do not care how long it takes, they just want thier computer back, I tell them it may not be worth it because some virus/ Trojans change files and programs.
I give all computers two hours if I can not restore it to a normal condition I tell them that.
I give them the choice to take it to a store and let them contact the stores in the area. Most of the time the stores will tell them it will be four to six weeks before they can even let them know if they can fix the computer.
I let them know that I will try to save any data that I can and reinstall thier software.
How long do you give a computer repair job? Even if you are being paid to do it?