Bootup (POST) problem

[Lionel]

Hi All,

In the last few days I have been experiencing intermittent difficulties getting the PC to start from cold. (Windows 7 Home Premium desktop).

The power supply seems to fire up normally & then nothing happens. PS fans queten down to running mode, green light on the front stays lit, but no BIOS splash screen & Windows does not load.

I hesititate to suspect the SSD (Intel 720) because it seems to be a pre BIOS POST problem. We never get to the stage of loading the OS.

Once the computer does start(after several attempts), it works completely normally.

Anybody experienced this type of problem? The most likely thing to me seems to be a faulty RAM chip, though I don't get any beeps or error messages.

Any ideas?

Cheers,

Lionel

[FeatherWeightDriver]

Do you get any beeps from the onboard speaker and/or external speakers? These will tell you what's (not) going on.
Does your video card have a light on the back? Some have lights that are green when working and then different colours for other failures (like insufficient power)

Definitely check the ram and video card are connected and seated correctly. If the video card has an additional power lead check both ends of that too.

Also check the HDD connections - power and data.

Failing that pull the ram and try turning it on and see what happens.

I have had dodgy ram / ram seating that gave the same symptoms you describe. Pulling the ram at least got me to POST and then I could selectively put the ram back in to see if one of the sticks was on the blink.

Hope that helps... good luck!

[turbopsi]

I had the same thing happen recently. One of the ram modules needed to be re-seated.

[Roverlord off road spares]

Dirt and dust can cause this, I have in the past removed Ram and other components and used Compressed air to blow it all clean. And I'm not talking compressed air from a pressure pack, I use the nozzle on a hose from a compressor. Not recommended, but it certainly does a good job;)

[sheerluck]

Dirt and dust can cause this, I have in the past removed Ram and other components and used Compressed air to blow it all clean. And I'm not talking compressed air from a pressure pack, I use the nozzle on a hose from a compressor. Not recommended, but it certainly does a good job;)

Only problem with using the compressor is that it isn't dehumidified air. The amount of water that you may find in the bottom of the compressor makes it a less than perfect tool to use.

[p38arover]

I recently had a similar problem with my Win 7 desktop. I found that unplugging my external USB HDD enabled the computer to continue booting.

It wasn't a once off. It was repeatable.

[Lionel]

Thanks for the help, people.

I pulled the RAM & cleaned the slots with spray-on CRC contact cleaner, & also the RAM contacts.

Checked the POST without RAM - result 3 beeps, which seems normal.

Replaced the RAM & everything booted up normally, but I won't know for a few days whether this has solved the problem, as it was intermittent, though easily repeatable.

Will keep you posted.

Cheers,

Lionel