PC Problems

[yellowbadger52]

Ok so there was a power outtage in my area last night and my girlfriends computer stopped working. It would not turn on at all. So i brought it back to my place and tried hooking my power supply to it to see if that was the problem. After connecting it and everything i turned it on only to find out that it would not get past the HP screen that comes up when you first turn it on. Anyone have any suggestions as to what might be wrong and what i should do. Also let me add that the computer is 8+ years old so that might be a factor as well? idk??

 

[SixSicSix]

Did you remember to plug in the hard drive? lol

 

[Stinky Wizzleteats]

try clearing the cmos, if that doesnt work try making sure that everything is seated properly.

 

[yellowbadger52]

Yes i plugged in the hard drive. I looked for a battery but could not find one? is there a button or a switch possibly to reset cmos?

 

[TipsyHitman]

What's the computer model, and without any other knowledge off the issue my guess is the windows partition got messed up, stuck in a boot cycle, might have to reinstall.

 

[bigbaddabooma]

Yes i plugged in the hard drive. I looked for a battery but could not find one? is there a button or a switch possibly to reset cmos?

lot of old rigs didnt have batts..you have to set a jumper to reset cmos

 

[Stinky Wizzleteats]

Yes i plugged in the hard drive. I looked for a battery but could not find one? is there a button or a switch possibly to reset cmos?

you need to look up the manual for the computer or motherboard if you can see the model of that & there will be a page that will detail how to clear the cmos. Its usually just a jumper setting & is pretty easy to do, the hard part will be digging up the manual for an 8yo computer, heh

 

[yellowbadger52]

you need to look up the manual for the computer or motherboard if you can see the model of that & there will be a page that will detail how to clear the cmos. Its usually just a jumper setting & is pretty easy to do, the hard part will be digging up the manual for an 8yo computer, heh

Yea lol i posted on another website as well to see what other people thought and so far i have the thought that if the resetting the cmos wont work the motherboard is shot and i will be building her parents a new pc.

 

[Techdre]

Do you know if there is a key that will remove that HP logo during boot. Some motherboards give you the option to press Tab to see the BIOS loading. If you can see where the BIOS stops loading, that may give you a better ideal of the problem.

 

[yellowbadger52]

I dont think so. I looked at the screen and it didnt say anything besides like HP and i think some copyright info. Ill check it tomorrow and post back. Im hoping to find a cmos jumper though.

 

[ScrappyDoo]

To get into the BIOS, try one of these keys:

* F1
* F2
* DEL
* ESC
* F10

Next, try replacing the battery that's in the PC located on the motherboard. It's probably a CR2032 but could be something else.

If you still have problems, since you are willing to delve into the guts of a PC, take her hard drive and try it in another known good PC. If it boots up, the outage may have fried some more of the guts in her PC.

Often, when there's an outage, it's actually a series of spikes and brownouts that cause a fluctuation in power across a line. This is NOT protected by a standard surge protector which protects against the "instantaneous" increase of voltage caused by a spike.

Imagine your PC was plugged into an outlet controlled by a light switch on the wall. Would you ever flip the switch back and forth half a dozen times in a few seconds? No, of course not. A standard surge protector doesn't protect against that.

Hopefully, this is just a setting that needs to be cleared. But it might be worse than that.

 

[.[BORN]2kill]

Sometimes you can hit the esc key while a logo is on and it remove it.

Did you reseat the processor?

 

[yellowbadger52]

Well i havent taken anything out yet. I will try checking the hard drive to see if it works. What would reseating the processor do? Its been in the same spot for 8+ years.

 

[yellowbadger52]

Well I checked the hard drive and it would not boot in my pc. Im not sure now. Im thinking maybe the psu fried several components inside the pc.

 

[.[BORN]2kill]

Well I checked the hard drive and it would not boot in my pc. Im not sure now. Im thinking maybe the psu fried several components inside the pc.

Yup. Most likely your MOBO and / Or CPU.

It is common practice to reseat everything if possible regardless of how long it has been in place.

 

[yellowbadger52]

Well ill have to give it a try when i get a chance. I have to goto work soon and i dont have time to figure out how to get the heatsink off.

Any opinions on what to do if this doesnt work? Right now im considering just building them a new pc. I can get a decent rig together for about $300 and just reuse the mouse, monitor, and keyboard.

 

[.[BORN]2kill]

If you are going to build a new one I would consider this: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...EM1812BY&cm_mmc=Email-_-Main-_-WEM1812_-Compo

 

[Deimos]

When the power went back on it could have fried some parts

 

[yellowbadger52]

wow thats a sweet deal right there i mite have to pass it on to her parents and see what they think. I think her stepdad wants to buy a laptop for some reason? Idk why cuz he wont take it anywhere.