Machine died

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If a machine died whilst someone was working on it...

...then wouldn't boot up...

...you tried a new kettle lead and that didn't work...

no life at all. Actually, there was life for a split second with the new kettle lead...then died again...

what would you do next?

Cheers

 

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Depends on who 'I' was.

If a user - call the IT department (or the shop).

If an engineer then I'd get out the PSU tester to check the PSU first. If that appeared to be good I'd then disconnect most load on the motherboard and try again.

Harry.

 

Remove everything from the computer that it doesn't need to boot up - e.g. any additional PCI cards, secondary CD drives etc.

Then boot it.

If it still won't boot then remove the most important parts of the machine one by one and test them in a secondary rig. (Check all the important bits - HDD, CPU, MOBO etc)

As you said it had no life what-so-ever then it's most probably related to the motherboard/psu. Open up the case, does the Motherboard have any lights on it? Do the PSU fans spin when you connect the power?

Give us a run-down and we'll happily help

Qs

 

Cool - thanks!

...no - no fans - nothing.

*Funnily enough, a PC of exactly the same spec and built around the same week (3 years ago) did the same about a week and a half ago. That one (from a week and a half ago) responds in that the fans are working, but motherboard appears dead - no memory beep when you remove the memory etc...*

...anyway, going back to the one in question, will have a go tomorrow when my manager is back in to cover the other bits, then report back!

Cheers in advance!

L

 

Cheers. Will give it a go tomorrow when there's two of us.

Will probably be around here a lot as in my last roles, duties have been mainly software troubleshooting / administration...but as the majority of machines in the new place are a fair bit older than before, there seem to be more hardware issues...which is actually starting to become quite fun

 

If these are older machines then look at the capacitors on the motherboard. If the tops are bulging then the motherboard is a writeoff.

More info and pics here.

Harry.

 

First and foremost... I'd Google up what the heck a "kettle lead" is.

 

What do you plug your kettle in with, does it not have the same three pin connector as a PC power lead?
(ok, most kettles don't have the same connector any more, but quite a few jug ones still do)

 

First... I haven't used a kettle in years. Second... no, they don't have the same connector.

"Perhaps you'd like to try our new kettle with USB attachment... Very stylish... or perhaps this nice coffeemaker with CAT5 capability, hmmmm?"

 

Or the three seconds to the boil number

http://stuffem.wordpress.com/2007/06/09/eco-kettle-that-makes-a-3-second-cuppa/

 

I certainly wouldnt say the motherboard was a write off, I repair those all the time at work, ifs its a machine that is perfectly good or has a slightly perculiar motherboard mount design then I fix them (which is all of them at work=DELL). for £2-3 worth of components and about 30 minutes of my time one, you have one perfectly working motherboard again.

The caps problem normally presents itself in a machine that wont boot up (it will switch on but no bios will display). if you then switch it off and on a couple of times and then it works you can bet your bottom sterling currency that its the caps that have gone.

 

Well in my experience the PSU is the most likely thing to have failed.. you should keep a few spare PSUs around as it's quicker to just hook another one up than to test the o/p voltages.

As for the leaky capacitor MOBO issue, that can cause a number of symptoms, but usually related to instability, intermittent (spontaneous re-boots) and failing to boot.. not usually totally dead. And you need to be fairly adept with a soldering iron to attempt a repair, as removing the original capacitors, isn't for the inexperienced.

 

Kettle lead is technically wrong, what the PC mains lead connector is actually called is an IEC C13 / C14 connector but who's going to remember that! Kettle lead is more 'user friendly'.

 

Here in Merica, we just say "power cord".

 

surely that could "lead" to confusion, does he mean 3 pin lead or figure 8 lead!? kettle leads are a good desciption here in the UK as historically all kettles have only had one type of lead (although mostly they are now all built into the base), kettle leads have been powering computers,marshall amps and kettles (which cryptically enough powers the engineers to fix said amps and computers,I cant fix anything without screwdriver in one hand and nice hot steaming cuppa in the other!) although im sure it wont be too long before "kettle lead" gets lost in the mists of time.

 

IMHP It's a mains lead.. simple as that

 

What is a figure 8 lead? All desktop computers use the same type of power cord here.

 

He hee! Lol. A few people over here use that expression and it's just stuck with me - not the correct terminology, but then is "power cord"?

You should start using the word - have people think you're crazy over there too!

 

Look at buying a new kettle?

Sorry, couldn't resist.

I'd start with looking at the PSU.

 

Lol...well...it's to go with that coffee cup holder...you know...the one at the top of the tower that pops out when you press that little button


Started with the PSU - a spare one we had didn't work on the machine....but the spare one and the one that belongs to the machine powered up a different machine fine...

...does any of that make sense??!? One of those brain-overload days today lol.