Computer Won't Turn On.

[icedwarrior]

Hey guys,

So this morning, my old computer was able to be turned on, and was working fine. Tonight, however, it will not turn on properly. I plugged everything in (everything was unplugged beforehand), and the fans seemed to be working twice as hard, and it beeps once about every seven seconds (well, it beeped once every seven seconds four times in a row (when I held the power button until it shut off).

I've had an issue with it "overheating" about six months ago (I use that word, because I think that's what the culprit was. At one point, I could turn the computer on, start up WoW, and the computer would freeze after approximately 10 minutes in...I would have to turn the computer off, back on, and it would happen over and over. I "solved" this by removing the cover of the side of the computer case off, and it worked fine for at least the past six months.) This is an old computer (I would estimate...seven years old?), and it was a per-built computer (I upgraded the RAM from 1 gig to 3, and the graphics card ( a cheap $50 one))...

Any ideas on what the culprit is? Again, I assume it's overheating, but I have very little knowledge of the parts and how they operate. If overheating is indeed the culprit, what would be the way to correct it? I'm broke, and even if I wasn't, it's so old that I'd be hesitant to upgrade it. If you need more information, tell me. Thanks in advance!

[Martinussen]

Sounds like what happened to my computer. My PSU died. Which means the big box that supplies the entire computer cant give power.
My fans would start too, and the sometimes a little random beebs every few seconds came too.

A method to check if the PSU died was to find a specific cable and sticking a piece of metal into one hole and connect it to another. if the psu started it wasn't dead. i can see if i can find a video of it.

found one.

[Fitzgerald77]

If i remember correctly, when the tower starts to beep it is trying to tell you what is wrong with it.

I remember this happened with one of my older computers and the manufacturers site told me that these beeps were giving me a message as to why the computer is malfunctioning. There would be a certain pattern of beeps for every specific problem as well, so you would have to pay attention to how long the beeping is, how fast the beeping is.... Shit like that lol.

Hope this helps in some way

[icedwarrior]

-snip-

Hmm, interesting. Well, the first thing I did was clean it via canned air, didn't help. =(

At the end of the video, I see "this can be dangerous. I'm not responsible for any injuries or damage."...that doesn't sound too good. Is there something I should be avoiding?

And the two wires, what makes them able to turn the computer on if you change them? And if it does turn on with the cables in the new position, do I leave them there, like that?

Edit: Found an article on my computer manufacturer's website, http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/d...cname=bph07107 . That said, it wasn't that descriptive, and "NOTE:Not all codes are shown."... as I said, it beeps not particularly loud, and the same volume / timing each time... so...according to the link, which would be my problem? (I have an HP desktop computer.)

[Martinussen]

Well i think he means if you zap yourself or break the parts the computer, but aslong as you dont touch the paperclip while the zap zap is going through and if you're gentle i strongly doubt anything will happen.

Also you dont switch anything around. You only connect those to cables. the green and the black one. which black one i dont know though. i tried them all and iirc i got no different results. But this is not the only video or guide with pictures around the internet.

[Dedweight]

If i remember correctly, when the tower starts to beep it is trying to tell you what is wrong with it.

You would be correct but in the OP's case the PSU is likely the culprit, I've had similar issues with my own in the past(had to replace it when my system acted the same).

And the two wires, what makes them able to turn the computer on if you change them?

It's basically the positive and negative(ground) leads on the unit, shorting the two simply completes the circuit allowing it to power on much like a light switch on your wall. If you do follow those steps and it does power on(though I'd be surprised it did) simply reverse the steps to turn it off and remove the paperclip or whatever metal object you used to short the two wires.

That said if you have any Mom and Pop repair shops in the area they might be willing to test the PSU for free(I know PSU testers aren't the best way to test but it's a start at least).

[Shinoashi]

how many beeps are you getting during post (power on self test)? you can most of the time determine the main cause of your system not fully booting

[icedwarrior]

how many beeps are you getting during post (power on self test)? you can most of the time determine the main cause of your system not fully booting

As I stated in the OP:

and it beeps once about every seven seconds (well, it beeped once every seven seconds four times in a row (when I held the power button until it shut off).

That said, how do you distinguish if it's a "loud beep", etc? When it beeps, it makes the same noise / volume each time. Gonna try the video in a moment (but a little apprehensive about doing so....lol).

[Cilraaz]

That said, how do you distinguish if it's a "loud beep", etc? When it beeps, it makes the same noise / volume each time. Gonna try the video in a moment (but a little apprehensive about doing so....lol).

The beep codes aren't volume sensitive. They're length sensitive. Does it go "beep" or "beeeeeeeeep"? A short beep should last a quarter to half a second. A long beep should last about a full second to a second and a half.

[icedwarrior]

The beep codes aren't volume sensitive. They're length sensitive. Does it go "beep" or "beeeeeeeeep"? A short beep should last a quarter to half a second. A long beep should last about a full second to a second and a half.

Okay, so it does a "long beep" (1 second to 1 second and a half) each time, once every ~ 7 seconds. Looking at the HP website for the specific diagnosis right now. Will edit in a moment.

Edit: welp, according to http://pcsupport.about.com/od/fixthe...beep-codes.htm ,

"1 High Pitched Beep (Repeating)
A single, repeating, high pitched beeping sound means that the CPU is overheating. You'll need to figure out why the CPU is getting too hot before this Award beep code will go away.

Important: Turn your computer off immediately if you hear this beep code. The longer your CPU is running hot, the higher the chance that you'll permanently damage this expensive part of your system."

seems to fit the best of the options. My desktop is http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/p...roduct=3214105 . Guess the next step is to do the video. *gulp*

[Deleted]

Is the cpu fan connected and working? Some systems would do a single beep when CPU fan was not connected.

[icedwarrior]

Is the cpu fan connected and working? Some systems would do a single beep when CPU fan was not connected.

I'll just be honest here, I know basically nothing when it comes to the hardware aspect of the computer. I took a picture of the inside of my computer: http://i.imgur.com/MrZoe.jpg ...does everything look okay?

And, please, if you're going to use terminology, describe what you're talking about, I don't know a cpu fan from...well anything. Lol.

[Shinoashi]

see now your beep question is a lot more definitive. before it wasnt very clear and now you're giving me an answer that i can actually help you with

i've always just built my systems, so i'm not entirely familiar with HP, do you have an idea of what bios your current system is running?

system tools > system information will tell you which bios your computer is running.

[Deleted]

I'll just be honest here, I know basically nothing when it comes to the hardware aspect of the computer. I took a picture of the inside of my computer: http://i.imgur.com/MrZoe.jpg ...does everything look okay?

And, please, if you're going to use terminology, describe what you're talking about, I don't know a cpu fan from...well anything. Lol.

It's the one with Asus sticker on it, does it spin when you try turning the system on?

[icedwarrior]

It's the one with Asus sticker on it, does it spin when you try turning the system on?

Yes, both fans spin (and make at least twice as much noise as normal).

see now your beep question is a lot more definitive. before it wasnt very clear and now you're giving me an answer that i can actually help you with

i've always just built my systems, so i'm not entirely familiar with HP, do you have an idea of what bios your current system is running?

system tools > system information will tell you which bios your computer is running.

Well, I can't go to system tools > system information because it won't turn on, silly.

Here is the link to the desktop (general information):
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/p...roduct=3214105

And I believe it's an "AwardBIOS".

[rigoremortis]

the longer beeps generally mean that it is an issue with one of two things.....the cpu is overheating, or the psu is dieing. my guess, basing on it being 7 years old as you say, is prolly the psu (power supply) on its last leg. ie best case scenario, just replace the power supply (40-50 bucks for a generic one to replace ur current), and worst case scenario the cpu (the chip that runs the show) is overheating due to it being old or the fans being clogged, in which case you can try cleaning the thing and praying....or go buy urself a new PC, hehe ;p