PC does not start?any advice

ViciousClone

ViciousClone

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Hi guys

Well my friend asked me to look at his computer that doesnt want to start anymore

As i understand it..He was away the whole weekend and turned everything off at the plug ..When he switched the system back on this morning it didnt start

Instead it kep starting and turning off..repeating that cycle over and over..

So i checked it myself ,unplugged everything and plugged all back in..And yes same thing it starts for 1sec showing nothing on the screen and just dies..and puts itself back on again..repeating it over and over..

He does have a GPU..took that out but same thing happens ..

Any advice whats going on?!
 
How far does it get before turning off?
Does the MB or GPU have power indication LEDs?

My first action would be to remove the cmos battery with the pc unplugged to reset the bios. If that didn't fix it, I would just reseat all the ram, reseat cpu and replace all cables. That has worked for me plenty of times after a long holiday.

Just hope it wasn't struck.
 
bromster said:
How far does it get before turning off?
Does the MB or GPU have power indication LEDs?

My first action would be to remove the cmos battery with the pc unplugged to reset the bios. If that didn't fix it, I would just reseat all the ram, reseat cpu and replace all cables. That has worked for me plenty of times after a long holiday.

Just hope it wasn't struck.
Click to expand...

sadly no LED indication lights..

i have removed the CMOS to reset nothing..

it comes on and in a split second it turns itself of again and turns it on again..over and over .

Is it possible for a power supply to do something like this if it cant supply enough power?

any advice would help
 
Yep, sounds like power supply. I saw this exact thing about a week ago. It would start and go for like 3 seconds, then shut down...repeat...

If the power switch was turned off, left for a minute then turned on it would sometimes boot up to the windows screen but then the quick on/off cycle would happen again.
 
Flanders said:
Yep, sounds like power supply. I saw this exact thing about a week ago. It would start and go for like 3 seconds, then shut down...repeat...

If the power switch was turned off, left for a minute then turned on it would sometimes boot up to the windows screen but then the quick on/off cycle would happen again.
Click to expand...

When he was on the phone explaining whats going on he did say"oh wait there it goes" but shortly after blank screen and restarted
 
What beeps is it making? Over heating is also a possibility.
 
Might just be the power switch on the case is sticking in the contacted position. Normally the switch makes a momentary contact when you switch on.

You can open up the box, disconnect the power switch header from the motherboard, then short the 2 power switch pins momentarily (1 second or so.) See if that works.
 
InvisibleJim said:
Might just be the power switch on the case is sticking in the contacted position. Normally the switch makes a momentary contact when you switch on.

You can open up the box, disconnect the power switch header from the motherboard, then short the 2 power switch pins momentarily (1 second or so.) See if that works.
Click to expand...

tried..same thing restarts :(
 
Unplug the power cables from VGA card and all other drives
 
Here is a few things you can also try:

- Remove one ram from the slots at a time and see if it could be the RAM.
- Remove the power cable, and press and hold the power button for a minute or two.
- Remove the stiffy drive (if one is present)
- Remove the CD/DVD Writer / ROM if one is present.
 
djbrendan said:
None hardly comes on..like i said it powers on for half a second and restarts..repeating this action over and over
Click to expand...

Ah, its that quick. Its probably not this but just make sure the cpu fan is sitting tight, i tend to agree with everyone else though, sounds like a power problem.
 
Oky so i don't think it's the power supply anymore

i has 3 tested on this system..eventually it comes on now but then i need to change my BIOS settings cause i reseted the CMOS

now i get in the BIOS..then after 2mins it all freezes in the bios ?..

then i restart and the problem starts again..it keeps on restarting..after a few hours im able to boot in into BIOS again..but freezes everytime??
 
Can you check the Temps in the BIOS when it decides to go that far again? Just keep that open until it freezes. If that is not the case, I'll put my money on a faulty mobo. Also, what's the specs of the Mobo, CPU, PSU, and RAM?
 
EmileS said:
Can you check the Temps in the BIOS when it decides to go that far again? Just keep that open until it freezes. If that is not the case, I'll put my money on a faulty mobo. Also, what's the specs of the Mobo, CPU, PSU, and RAM?
Click to expand...

it reaches 25 Celsius ,well that's what i can see before it freezes up..

Specs..ill get that to you in 15mins
 
oky what i could get from him over the phone is the following,plus what i could see in the case

Asrock H61-VS
Core i3 2120
Transcend 4GB DDR3
GT440 GPU
 
djbrendan said:
None hardly comes on..like i said it powers on for half a second and restarts..repeating this action over and over
Click to expand...

If the wall plug was off, but still plugged in, the system would have been exposed to lightening or other such.

It is possible that though the PSU "comes on", it has been damaged just enough so it can't provide sufficient current to the PC board.

Replace PSU and then test that all other components still function
 
djbrendan said:
Oky so i don't think it's the power supply anymore

i has 3 tested on this system..eventually it comes on now but then i need to change my BIOS settings cause i reseted the CMOS

now i get in the BIOS..then after 2mins it all freezes in the bios ?..

then i restart and the problem starts again..it keeps on restarting..after a few hours im able to boot in into BIOS again..but freezes everytime??
Click to expand...

Like i said tested 3 PSU's..thing is their all 350w so not sure if their underpowered
 
djbrendan said:
Like i said tested 3 PSU's..thing is their all 350w so not sure if their underpowered
Click to expand...

Not under powered all of a sudden, especially if you have disconnected the graphics card.
 
Unhappy438 said:
Not under powered all of a sudden, especially if you have disconnected the graphics card.
Click to expand...

hmm true..Problem seems to be Motherboard !

Still searching though..oh smart he through he's mboard box away and this thing is under a year old :/
 
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