On some systems, it's the closest to the CPU or back of the case, and on others it's the furthest from the CPU or back of the case. Remove all but one stick of RAM, but make sure the lowest numbered slot is still populated. Otherwise if the discrete video card is the only video adapter in the system, you must leave it in place. If you have onboard video, even remove any discrete video adapters and connect your monitor to the onboard video. Taking note of where things connect, disconnect the CD drive and hard drive from the motherboard and power supply. If only the power supply fan is running, that gives you an idea of where the problem is. It's also a good time to check to be sure that all the fans are spinning when the power is on. You would be surprised how often simply cleaning the dust from a PC fixes serious issues. Otherwise, blow any and all dust out of the case, preferably outside.Īt this point you could try connecting the PC again to see if the problems are fixed. If you get a very acrid scent in your nose - which can only be described as 'that burning electronics smell that sticks with you for days and you never forget' - things are very bad. Shut down the PC, disconnect all the cables and pop the case open. Here's the basic troubleshooting I go through in such a case, and they are an effort to narrow down where the problem resides. There are countless reasons this could be happening. The symptoms you're describing indicate the system is probably not completing the POST (power-on self-test). It's possible it's just the connections have loosened (not hugely likely, but worth trying). Try cleaning the physical machine (you can do this with compressed air, such as canned air, or an air compressor on a pressure less than 60psi) and reseating all the power connections (especially if you moved the computer recently). If more than one drive cables are bad, or if the motherboard cable is bad, then the power supply is bad and will need replaced. If the bad cable is to the drives, then you might be able to use a different cable (remember to check it!). If any are out of the accepted ranges, then at least the cable is going bad. You can do this by pulling the power cables that go to your hard drive and motherboard and check the ends against the standard values (which you can pull up on the Internet). If you have a voltmeter, you can check the voltage output of the power supply. Keep in mind, that even if there aren't any popped capacitors, the motherboard could still be bad. If the motherboard is bad, there's not much point in trying to just replace it, you're better off buying a new computer. If any of them are rounded (these are known as "popped capacitors"), then your motherboard is bad. Open your tower and look at the capacitors (the cylindars that stick up off the motherboard with metal tops). There are a few things you can do to verify this: Have you moved the tower before the problems started?įrom what you have provided, though, I'd venture to guess that the motherboard fried somewhere and somehow, or the power supply is about dead.When was the last time you cleaned out the physical computer?.Have you noticed any odd smells coming from the computer?.Did you hear any kinds of popping sounds before the computer went bad?.Have you noticed your computer's clock changing to a time that it shouldn't be? If you can access the BIOS settings, is the time it shows correct?.Has there been any thunderstorms or electrical glitches (regardless of cause) prior to your computer issues?.If so, how far does it get? What happens when it gets to that point? What is the last thing it does?.Does anything come up on your screen (such as either the motherboard's splash page, or the BIOS status information)?.It would be helpful if you could answer some questions. The information you've provided is helpful, but still a little incomplete for helping diagnose your problem.
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