computer not booting

[voltagirl]

I have windows 98.When I try to boot up my pc I can't hear any beep sound or whatsoever.The light that denotes that the computer is reading the hard disk wont even lit up.I only have a power light on.The fan on the motherboard is working.I tried to connect my monitor on the other CPU and the monitor works fine. What's wrong?

[MrLinus]

Could be almost anything. What was the last thing you did when you shut it down? Did you remove any parts or reseat anything?

BIOS Beep Code

[voltagirl]

I did not.All i can remember was I downloaded yahoo messenger update and that's where the problem started happening.

[MrLinus]

So, step-by-step. You downloaded and installed Yahoo Messenger. Then you shut down the machine. And just rebooted it now, only to find it doesn't work? (yes?)


When was the last time the computer was cleaned out? (as in get all them evil dust bunnies out). My first instinct is overheating (sometimes caused by shorts in fans, blockages of fans by evil dust bunnies, etc.). After that would be a check with a boot disk to see if the system boots up from A:. You may need to disconnect the hard drive to see if this is successful (perhaps the HD died -- how old is it?)

[voltagirl]

Yeah..after downloading the update i rebooted the pc and it wont do it.Maybe it's a hardrive problem.I'm going to do that..disconnect and reconnect it.Thanks.

[Und3ertak3r]

If no HDD Light.. and no POST BEEP..

Failure can be any of the following

PSU - one supply rail missing 3.3, or 12V in your case
Memory- some (not all) memory failures will cause this symptom
CPU - a CPU failure
Motherboard - BIOS BAttery Failure
or just plain old dead Mobo

I recommend following MsM's advice first.. clean out the dust first.. check that the fans are free moving
If it continues with the same symptom we start elliminating probable causes.. attempt to restart the machine at each step: I recommend turning off power while working inside..this is to protect some of the parts..
We are looking for the system getting to the POST Screen

1/ Remove ALL IDE devices.. that is disconect the Power and Data cables from the HDD's and Optical Drives

2/If the machine is over 18mths of age (being win98 says it is likley to be a lot older), check and replace the CMOS/BIOS Battery-this is normaly a CR2032 3v button cell..if it's voltage is below 3v.. replace

3/ Remove all PCI cards (except the video if it is PCI Video) a lbad card will lock the PCI buss and give similar problems

the steps after this involve reseating memory replacement of memory and reading the voltages from the PSU.. and looking for specific problems on the mobo.. what I have covered should be a 90% chance of your problem..

*** something tells me that checking the CMOS Battery would be my first test.. just fits ***

cheers

[Ghost_25inf]

I'm going to place my money on CPU, Just for the fact that you didnt get a post. Doesnt sound to me to be software related, and RAM, HD, Video, and Sound card will produce a beep code. Had same problem with a server once and it turned out to be the CPU. So check it.

[Ghost_25inf]

Originally posted here by FanacooL
Normally this beep comes when RAM is making something fishy.

Read his post again. He said he didnt get any beeps.

[Und3ertak3r]

Read his post again

Some thing tells me that that your guess at the gender of voltagirl may be in error..

[jin29_neci]

check your power supply, at the back see if the fan is rotating try to fell if there's an air ventalating outside. Then if it is good, try to use a ohmmeter check for 5V & 12 V. If it is in good condition. Try to see if your fan is still in good condition. If it is still running, check your BIOS configuration- you might forgot to configure your BIOS settings properly. Try to see if your HD is detected by your bios.
Ill wait for your POST to see more possible troubleshhooting guides.