Computer turns on, but nothing works?

[bfr]

After being away from my home and my computer for about a week and a half, I came back yesterday and tried to turn my computer on. The lights for the computer case turn on, the fans turn on, but nothing else seems to work. The monitor, even though it is on, stays blank with the orange standby light, as if the computer were still off. I don't hear any beep codes, even though the speakers are on (the blue light on one of the speakers is on). The keyboard's lights don't come on and the CD/DVD drive won't open either. Everything is securely plugged in as far as I can tell (I even opened up the case and everything inside it seems to be plugged in), and the power cables are plugged into a surge suppressor power box, or whatever it's called.

I searched online and found that unplugging the power cable and holding the power button for a minute could help reset any electricity in the components and could possible help. I also found that taking out the RAM modules and putting them back in might help. Neither of those worked, though.

Any ideas?

[JoeYoung]

A friend had this happen to him before. He unplugged the power and removed the motherboard battery for a few hours that night, leaving whatever leftover charge bleed out. This worked in his case.

Dunno what the problem is, though. You can try the above, but there's no guarantee.

[magicdanw]

This...exact...thing...just...happened...to...me! WTF!!! Actually, it was to my mom's computer, but w/e. I'm pretty sure that the power supply is bad, and a replacement is only $30 (for a Dell proprietary one too!), so I've already ordered one. Best of luck with your computer, bfr!

[DigiTan]

You had it too?!!? What is this? Contagious?

[Newbie]

[benryves]

You say the lights come on; which lights? Several motherboards report failure with lights, rather than beep codes. If the lights aren't shown on the case, they may be on the motherboard itself.

[bfr]

metagross111: OK, I think I'll try that tonight too if it still isn't working by then.

magicdanw: Yeah, there could be something wrong with the power supply unit. I may try a different one if nothing else works.

Newbie: I tried all valid combinations of RAM modules in slots, and none worked. :(

benryves: I don't see any lights that are on directly on the motherboard. The only lights coming from inside/on the case are the case lights and the ethernet cable port light, if that's what you mean.

Thanks for all of the help so far.

[Newbie]

Try your monitor on another computer to see if it still works. If so, maybe there is an issue with the video card. If you hear no beeps its hard to tell what it might be. You don't need speakers though to hear the beeps.

[Galandros]

[bfr]

I tried using another working monitor on the computer and it still didn't work (it was easier than using the broken computer's monitor with a different computer), and messing with the cables...

Uh, while I was typing my reply here and my reply to the thread at Cemetech...

[NETWizz]

Okay... What you have here is a no POST situation

Your sytem will not complete the Power On Self Test (POST). Generally, there are beep codes or status lights that tell you what may be the problem.


If there is power lights on the computer, i.e. network power light, or power indicatior light, you know the system is getting power. If when you turn it on, the fans spin but the computer never comes to life it means one of a few things.

One, it means the processor is dead (unlikely). The system will not beep.

Bad Power supply could cause the problem too.. Try another.

___________________

Minimal setup troubleshooting':

Power Supply, 1 Stick of RAM, Processor/Heatsink Mounted, Integrated Video (or video card if no Integrated video), keyboard, No drives, no expansion cards, nothing connected to USB....not even a mouse. Only output device is a monitor, and the only input is a keybaord. You are you even trying to get the system to boot into Windows; instead, you will be satisfied if you get stuff on the screen.

Teh system should POST and let you enter system setup/CMOS Setup/BIOS Setup. If it fails, you have a bad motherboard or power supply. You may wish to check for bulging capacitors. It is unlikely to be a bad processor, but this is one probelm that could prevent a POST and even the motherboard beeps.

Usually, if RAM is bad, your system should beep or work when you remove some ram.

Statistically, your motherboard is most likely to be bad than anything else, and your power supply is the second most likley culprit.

[magicdanw]

I got a new power supply and the computer didn't change. I figure there's a good chance it's the motherboard, and its more worthwhile for my mom to just get a new computer than buy a new motherboard that might help. Better luck to you!

[+ZERO+]

There's several things you can try:

1. Reset the the BIOS by removing the CMOS battery
2. Try another Power Supply
3. Try booting bare bones (processor, power supply, ram, integrated graphics, hard drive) only


Something is making POST fail. Once you find what is making POST fail you will be able to replace and move on.