Computer won't boot.

2008-07-22 02:36:44

#1

mr.hrundi: Wurstwassereis; +68|6706|Germany

Hello dear people of bf2s's tech forums, I have a problem with my computer.

When I pressed the power button today, it first made all the normal sounds (fans start to spin and so on) but there was nothing more. The bios-beep was missing. I waited for about 15 minutes and then switched it off again because nothing more happened.

The screen stays black the whole time (for a few seconds the message "no cable plugged in or no signal" shows up), I can't even access the bios menu.

The specs of the computer are:

MSI mainboard
AMD 64 3200+
2 GB RAM (4x512)
Geforce 7600
300GB western digital HD

That was just from my memory, I can take a closer look if needed.

Now, can anyone help me? I really have no clue what's wrong.

2008-07-22 02:39:16

#2

max: Vela Incident; +1,652|6836|NYC / Hamburg

trying a bios reset is a good place to start

_{once upon a midnight dreary, while i pron surfed, weak and weary, over many a strange and spurious site of ' hot xxx galore'. While i clicked my fav'rite bookmark, suddenly there came a warning, and my heart was filled with mourning, mourning for my dear amour, " 'Tis not possible!", i muttered, " give me back my free hardcore!"..... quoth the server, 404.}

2008-07-22 03:58:06

#3

mr.hrundi: Wurstwassereis; +68|6706|Germany

max wrote:
trying a bios reset is a good place to start

That worked. Thank you very much!

2008-07-28 03:22:09

#4

mr.hrundi: Wurstwassereis; +68|6706|Germany

Sorry for the bump, but I keep running into the same problem every day. When I first posted this, it worked for about 1 and a half days after I did was max told me to do. Then my computer got stuck in windows after running for about 2 hours. Nothing did move anymore for 2 minutes, then it crashed and left me with a black screen. The CPU and PSU fans were still running, the HD wasn't.
When I tried to boot then again, I had the same problem as in the beginning again. So I once again unplugged all the cables, took out the battery and waited. It's been going on like that for the last few days.
How can I fix it?

2008-07-28 03:33:18

#5

Mavik: Member; +22|6045|Germany

Hello, my fellow Kraut! ;o)

So the battery trick still works but it keeps happening again and again?

Hm, maybe flash a new version of the BIOS from the manufacturer?
Try a new battery?

2008-07-28 03:40:45

#6

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6465|Winland

When was the last time you did a proper undusting of your computer? Seeing how it's a bit old, dust could have collected everywhere. Buy a couple of cans of compressed air, and blow out all fans and every PCB you see.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-07-28 04:00:08

#7

mr.hrundi: Wurstwassereis; +68|6706|Germany

Mavik wrote:
So the battery trick still works but it keeps happening again and again?

Yep, exactly.

Mavik wrote:
Hm, maybe flash a new version of the BIOS from the manufacturer?
Try a new battery?

I'll try the BIOS update first. Thanks.

Freezer7Pro wrote:
When was the last time you did a proper undusting of your computer? Seeing how it's a bit old, dust could have collected everywhere. Buy a couple of cans of compressed air, and blow out all fans and every PCB you see.

This probably isn't the problem. On side of my computer is open all the time because I'm too cheap to buy some proper fans. It looks clean inside there.

2008-07-28 04:12:02

#8

Aries_37: arrivederci frog; +368|6843|London

Try a new battery?

2008-07-28 04:36:32

#9

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6465|Winland

mr.hrundi wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
When was the last time you did a proper undusting of your computer? Seeing how it's a bit old, dust could have collected everywhere. Buy a couple of cans of compressed air, and blow out all fans and every PCB you see.
This probably isn't the problem. On side of my computer is open all the time because I'm too cheap to buy some proper fans. It looks clean inside there.

If you have one side open, only more dust gets in.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-07-28 08:56:31

#10

SonderKommando: Eat, Lift, Grow, Repeat....; +564|6928|The darkside of Denver

Freezer7Pro wrote:
mr.hrundi wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
When was the last time you did a proper undusting of your computer? Seeing how it's a bit old, dust could have collected everywhere. Buy a couple of cans of compressed air, and blow out all fans and every PCB you see.
This probably isn't the problem. On side of my computer is open all the time because I'm too cheap to buy some proper fans. It looks clean inside there.
If you have one side open, only more dust gets in.

LOL fo sho. not to mention small meddling animals that will burrow and make nests.

2008-07-28 09:04:17

#11

']['error.V2: Om nom nom nom; +48|6082

<SS>SonderKommando wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
mr.hrundi wrote:
This probably isn't the problem. On side of my computer is open all the time because I'm too cheap to buy some proper fans. It looks clean inside there.
If you have one side open, only more dust gets in.
LOL fo sho. not to mention small meddling animals that will burrow and make nests.

yeah I once saw an pic and article of a guy where bees had made a nest inside his PC while he was away for a weekend . It wasn't very big but there was actualy a hive in there . I have to find that article again .

Last edited by ']['error.V2 (2008-07-28 09:05:20)

2008-07-29 04:28:32

#12

mr.hrundi: Wurstwassereis; +68|6706|Germany

Hehe, that guy was probably wondering why his fans were so loud when the PC was turned off.

Now seriously, I was taking a closer look inside and it's rather clean. There is also only little dust in that metal stuff on top of the processor, and I've never had more than a spider's web in my room, so I don't think there is a nest or something in there.

When I now want to turn my computer on I have to take out the battery for over 2 hours, and when I wanted to flash the BIOS, there was a message while booting from that floppy disc that it was recommended to stop the process if you didn't know what you were doing, so that's what I did, because I had absolutely no clue.

I'll now probably the guy who built that computer, and either he can fix it or I'll just buy a new one, which I was planning to do anyways because mine is over 3 years old now.

Thanks for all the help.

2008-07-29 05:23:36

#13

jamiet757: Member; +138|6890

Well you should flash the BIOS anyways, it is not that hard. It can cause problems if it is not done correctly, but that is what everyone recommended that you do.

Just follow the instructions on the screen and you should be fine.

2008-07-29 08:52:34

#14

mr.hrundi: Wurstwassereis; +68|6706|Germany

Okay, final update of the whole story: We tried about everything, switching the GPU, the PSU, unplugging RAM and various drives, and sometimes we got it to boot, but that was completely random. When it worked one time we flashed the bios, but that didn't change anything. It still would boot or not boot randomly. That's when we said it had to be the mainboard.

Long story short, there probably is a loose contact on the mainboard, and the movement from taking out the battery or switching the cards sometimes made the contact work again and sometimes it didn't. I can now say that I am probably the only person on this world whose computer only works because he has a peice of rubber behind his mainboard. That's what he pushed between case and mainboard and now it works again. We'll see for how long.

Once again, thanks for all your help.

BF2S Forums Computer won't boot.

max wrote:

Mavik wrote:

Mavik wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

mr.hrundi wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

mr.hrundi wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

<SS>SonderKommando wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

mr.hrundi wrote:

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