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Thread ID: 118451	2011-06-05 04:07:00	Help. PC not working.	DuckGoQuack (16407)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
1207013	2011-06-08 01:03:00	"nothing displayed on the screen" this has nothing to do with a cmos batt you dont even need a CMOS batt to get the thing running. This is more of a fail before POST You really need to test with a GOOD power supply, good RAM. Its most likely a faulty power supply, or dead motherboard.	1101 (13337)
1207014	2011-06-08 01:17:00	Yes it is true that you don't need a battery for a board to run... BUT my own personal experience on multiple computers has shown that the presence of a dead or run-down BIOS battery can cause very very weird problems that will have you thinking your motherboard is seriously faulty. Never underestimate the capability for a flat BIOS battery to cause havoc.	Agent_24 (57)
1207015	2011-06-08 01:46:00	Faulty devices connected to a board can prevent it POSTing which is why I suggested disconnecting the hard drive, BIOS can absolutely cause the same thing so it's worth a look. These can be tested at little or no cost. Without spare parts there is nothing much else you can do so there is not much point suggesting swapping things around - you could end up replacing the pc one part at a time looking for the fault. To me it seems logical to try the easy things first and if that fails take it to the experts. Unless you are prepared to start buying parts based on "might be", "probably is", "most likely" causes or can borrow bits from someone (at the risk of damaging them). Yeah it could be the RAM, or the Motherboard, or the CPU, or the PSU, or the hard drive, or the fuse for the power point.....	dugimodo (138)
1207016	2011-06-08 03:02:00	Not too sure if this'll add to the muddle, but I'd thought I'd share my experiences. Once upon a time (not due to a power cut however) the computer I was using crashed while I was using it (common enough occurrence with a Micro$ux operating system) and so I powered off with the power button (it's a Dell Dimension 5100). I rebooted and it did exactly what you said (boot up but no screen output, the 4 lights on the front (this is a Dell so it tells you where it is in POST) weren't doing what they normally did and the CD/DVD drive started spinning for no apparent reason.) I plugged in new RAM and it worked a treat.	mookster1 (15854)
1207017	2011-06-10 07:15:00	Thanks for your help guys. It is not the mains socket, i have two sticks of ram so i will try those. I will try unplugging everything else as well. A store will charge me 100 bucks to look at it, so i think i will just upgrade to this: pricespy.co.nz I can reuse everything else and is a big upgrade. Will try my luck at unlocking cores.	DuckGoQuack (16407)
1207018	2011-06-10 07:28:00	Asrock? I wouldn't.	pctek (84)
1207019	2011-06-10 08:15:00	Thanks for your help guys . It is not the mains socket, i have two sticks of ram so i will try those . I will try unplugging everything else as well . A store will charge me 100 bucks to look at it, so i think i will just upgrade to this: . co . nz/mypage . php?a=PCGamer&k=32388 . " target="_blank">pricespy . co . nz I can reuse everything else and is a big upgrade . Will try my luck at unlocking cores . Have you checked the battery? Check the voltage if you have a voltmeter, should show 3 . 0-3 . 2v for a good one . If you don't have a voltmeter you could test it with an LED . If you don't have one spare, use one from your PC case . Unplug the LED from the motherboard then put something conductive in the socket terminals . Solid core wire or sewing needles\pins are a good choice . Then hold it onto the battery terminals (remove battery from motherboard first) and see if the LED lights . If it doesn't, try reversing the connections . If the LED lights brightly, the battery is OK . If not, try powering up the PC with the battery removed from the board . You may need to reset the BIOS using the reset jumper on the board . It is usually near the battery and marked CLEAR_CMOS or CLR_RTC or similar . It will be a set of 3 pins with a jumper cap on two of the pins . Swap it so it's on the other end, then move it back again . Some boards also have a button on the board to clear the BIOS settings . Alternatively, you can get a new battery from most shops - model is CR2032 .	Agent_24 (57)
1207020	2011-06-10 11:27:00	If you don't have a voltmeter you could test it with an LED . If you don't have one spare, use one from your PC case . Unplug the LED from the motherboard then put something conductive in the socket terminals . If the LED lights brightly, the battery is OK . That is not a reliable indicator, most LEDs will light brightly on 1 . 5 volts, and 3 volts without a series resistor will probably pop it, Lithium batteries can supply a lot of current for their size . If the computer clock was keeping good time then the battery is probably OK, and in my (limited) experience MBs will hold CMOS data and keep good time down to about 1 . 75 volts or so . That is when I change them . Cheers Billy 8-{)	Billy T (70)
1207021	2011-06-11 00:17:00	I've always found it to be a pretty good test, While I guess brightness is subjective especially if you have nothing to compare it to, a flat one should be quite obvious. (especially if you compare to the LED in normal operation) I also agree you could blow the LED on a fresh battery, I guess I should have said to do it only briefly. I do not think it a great cause for concern though - I have only ever blown 1 LED in my life, and that wasn't on a BIOS battery.	Agent_24 (57)
1207022	2011-06-17 06:00:00	I played around with the cmos battery and reset jumpers and suddenly it worked . I turned it off then on and then it would not work . I did the same as before and after about 30min i got to work again . Then my computer froze so i turned it of . Then i could not get it to work again after hours of playing around with it . The only luck i got was starting up with the cmos reset jumper in reset position . Then i got one short beep, followed by long short short continuously . The bios is phoenix made .	DuckGoQuack (16407)
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