Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Here's what's happening with this Dell desktop Inspiron 531.
This happens once in a while (like once a week or once in two weeks).
I turn on the pc and the power light comes on, but it does not start..... nothing.... monitor screen remains black. I turn the pc off and then on and the same thing.... power light on but nothing happens. After doing this 3 or 4 times I take the tower and sit it on it's side so that it's laying flat on it's side on the desk. I turn on the power button and it starts.
Then very slowly, while it's still on, I sit the tower back upright and it stays running. It will work fine after that for a week or two until the same thing happens and I have to go through the same drill.
This has been going on for about 2 or 3 months. Any thoughts on what to look for? Thanks!!
LOL! You have just discovered the old Pacer computer trick. Pacer was a proprietary system for selling tickets in movie theatres. Sometimes the main computer and CPU would not work properly. The "fix" was to lift it six inches and drop it on the desk. That would work for a few months, and then you would tell the user to turn it on its side.
The culprit was connections inside that corroded or loosened over time. The sudden jarring would allow those to re-establish.
With your computer, you could have that, or a stuck disk drive that releases with a sudden shock, or bad fans and a cooling system that won't allow a boot unless they are operating. In the old days, there were POST beeps to indicate the nature of the problem.
Open computer, clean heat sinks and fans and use a single drop of machine oil on bearings. Remove and reinsert all edge connectors. Verify hard drive movement and no clicks of death.
LOL! You have just discovered the old Pacer computer trick. Pacer was a proprietary system for selling tickets in movie theatres. Sometimes the main computer and CPU would not work properly. The "fix" was to lift it six inches and drop it on the desk. That would work for a few months, and then you would tell the user to turn it on its side.
The culprit was connections inside that corroded or loosened over time. The sudden jarring would allow those to re-establish.
With your computer, you could have that, or a stuck disk drive that releases with a sudden shock, or bad fans and a cooling system that won't allow a boot unless they are operating. In the old days, there were POST beeps to indicate the nature of the problem.
Open computer, clean heat sinks and fans and use a single drop of machine oil on bearings. Remove and reinsert all edge connectors. Verify hard drive movement and no clicks of death.
Thanks Harry. I think there are some faint beeps in there when it happens and I power on. Just looked up the beep codes in the computer manual. Will listen closely next time for exact # of beeps when it fails the start up.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
