All of a sudden several weeks ago my old pc decided it wouldn`t boot anymore.
It`s not a new machine but has been quite useable up to now and i really don`t have the time to spend tinkering with it like i used to.
When i turn on the power the monitor goes straight into standby and the hdd light and power light both come on for a while then both go off, there`s no sign of the usual noises coming from the hdd as it tries to boot and i must confess to not remembering which way round the floppy cable goes as last time i messed with it i left it out, i have tried both ways though and either get no light on the floppy drive or one thats on all the time. Ive tried a spare hdd and the same happens (the jumper settings are correct) i noticed that the bios battery was old so i replaced that with a new one and it was only out of the holder for about 5 seconds but it still won`t boot ( i did boot it with my foot for a couple of yards though :D )
I suspect either graphics card or motherboard and originally the monitor but have now ruled out the monitor as i borrowed a spare to try and it was the same. There are no beeps coming from it and so i assume its not carrying out the POST and i can`t access the bios as there is no display. Opinions please.

Originally posted by dial
All of a sudden several weeks ago my old pc decided it wouldn`t boot anymore.
It`s not a new machine but has been quite useable up to now and i really don`t have the time to spend tinkering with it like i used to.
When i turn on the power the monitor goes straight into standby and the hdd light and power light both come on for a while then both go off, there`s no sign of the usual noises coming from the hdd as it tries to boot and i must confess to not remembering which way round the floppy cable goes as last time i messed with it i left it out, i have tried both ways though and either get no light on the floppy drive or one thats on all the time. Ive tried a spare hdd and the same happens (the jumper settings are correct) i noticed that the bios battery was old so i replaced that with a new one and it was only out of the holder for about 5 seconds but it still won`t boot ( i did boot it with my foot for a couple of yards though :D )
I suspect either graphics card or motherboard and originally the monitor but have now ruled out the monitor as i borrowed a spare to try and it was the same. There are no beeps coming from it and so i assume its not carrying out the POST and i can`t access the bios as there is no display. Opinions please.

try some more memory in it, ive had that problem, not booting, no post beeps twice lately, in mine i tried the memory sticks seperately and found out one was working, one wasnt and the one that wasnt was stopping the other from not working too, put more working memory in and all was fine
not saying its that but if you can try some off a mate it may work

ta! i`ll try that tomorrow hopefully, it`d be nice if it was something so simple it`s so old i automatically assumed it would be something big!

If it's not carrying out POST it's unlikely to be the graphics card or the memory.

The power supply might have died and even though it's turning on it could be putting the wrong voltage through the machine.

Try unplugging everything and taking all cards out (even mouse & keyboard). Leave just the graphics card plugged in.

Turn her on and if your still getting the same problem it's likely to be either CPU, MB or PSU.

First of all check the BIOS battery. I've come across many older machines which will power on but not boot up if the battery is dead.

Originally posted by alchresearch
First of all check the BIOS battery. I've come across many older machines which will power on but not boot up if the battery is dead.

If the BIOS battery was dead the POST screen would still be displayed. However the BIOS settings would need re-configuring if the default settings were not enough for it to function.

I have taken all the ram out and i`ll start putting it back in and trying one stick at a time to see if it makes a difference, there are 3 sticks in it and to get to each one i have to take out the graphics card to get to it so it`s going to be a bit time consuming, i`ll get back to you all as soon as i`ve tried it and let you know how i get on

Originally posted by alchresearch
First of all check the BIOS battery. I've come across many older machines which will power on but not boot up if the battery is dead.

thatll just lose all the settings and time etc, doesnt stop the puter booting, post beep etc.

it could be the power supply, but solving that is a hard job, id try the memory first.

on my cisco course we were instructed to check the little things first :)
before you take it to bits lol

Originally posted by J-Blaze
If the BIOS battery was dead the POST screen would still be displayed. However the BIOS settings would need re-configuring if the default settings were not enough for it to function.

Not necessarily. I can't remember exactly which board it was, I think it may have been an Intel BX type, but if the battery is dead it will not power up.

i`ve just tried all the ram in different slots, stick at a time and in various combinations and the results were the same with one exeption, when i had just the 128mb stick in on its own i did get one long and 2 short beeps out of the wretched machine, trouble is after trying this several times more i cannot replicate what it just did, it won`t be long before i`m bald at this rate! Any one who understands the beeps please feel free to reply. I did manage to find out the mobo details a few years back when i flashed the bios to accept a larger hdd but i can`t remember them now and i do seem to remember it wasn`t a well know board. :help:

If you can tell me the type of BIOS you are using I can tell you what the POST beeps mean.

it`s award bios, i seem to remember version 4.5 but that could either be the old version or the new version after i flashed it

oo i just found a floppy it`s now version 560

just tried to boot it up with no cards except the graphics card and no keyboard or mouse but still exactly the same:cry:

Originally posted by dial
.....i did get one long and 2 short beeps out of the wretched machine



That's the code for video failure in AMI BIOSs

Details @ http://www.bioscentral.com/beepcodes/amibeep.htm.

thanks, i`ll call someone and see if i can borrow a card to try, i`ve had enough of it now so i`ll leave it in bits until i can try a different one.

The graphics card in this pc is a nvidia riva tnt2 card which is no longer for sale, the question now is can i just buy any 4xagp card and shove it in or are there any limits? The pc is mainly going to be used for internet and has been used in the past for running cctv which i would like the option of using again should the need arise.

I have a GeForce 4MX sat here that a friend is selling if you are still in need of one?

Any AGP card will work fine.

Sounds like the card you need is Mastercard, or is it Visa!

Originally posted by J-Blaze
I have a GeForce 4MX sat here that a friend is selling if you are still in need of one?

That could well be a possibility as i can`t get hold of the person who was gonna lend me one for several days as he is off work. I might just go and buy a cheapie and hope it is that, How much are ya asking?

right here`s an update, nice shiny new graphics card now installed-lousy machine still the same.
On one of the several times i tried to boot it i did get as far as the first screen telling me to press del to enter the bios but no keys would respond on the keyboard.
Any ideas anyone? I think i might just satisfy myself by booting it all around the house then dumping it!!