When I turn ony my computer, I get the some text during the POST, but it won't go any further after that. It says:


Main Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) XP 2500+
Memory Testing: 1048576K OK

Memory Mode: Dual Channel
DRAM Clock For DDR 400


That's as far as it goes.

Also it says Press DEL to enter SETUP, but no matter how many times I press it, nothing happens. I have no clue what could be causing this, and I was hoping maybe this info would give some clues.

Try removing all but one stick of memory and try again. Try one stick at a time in different slots. Make sure to turn the power off at the wall first.

Can also try resetting your bios.

Try removing all but one stick of memory and try again. Try one stick at a time in different slots. Make sure to turn the power off at the wall first.

Can also try resetting your bios.

Ok. I removed one stick of RAM, and the same thing happened (Except it said Memory Testing: 524288K OK, as would be expected). I then moved the stick of ram to the other slot, with the same results. I then repeated the process with the other stick. Same thing.

I noticed the floppy disk drive was making some funny noises so I unplugged it and cleared the CMOS. Now I get this right after what it was previously giving me:


Primary Master: Maxtor 6Y120P0 YAR41BW0
Primary Slave: None
Secondary Mater: None
Secondary Slave: None

Floppy disk(s) fail (40)
CMOS checksum error - Defaults loaded

I don't get it.. I shouldn't NEED a floppy drive. They're ancient.


Edit: It does say Press F1 to continue, or press DEL to enter setup. When I hit either of those buttons the screen just goes blank.

One more thing I just noticed. I thought that perhaps I had not taken the battery out for a long enough amount of time. I removed the battery for ~10 minutes and that did make the CMOS checksum error go away. However, I am still getting the Floppy Disk(s) fail (40) error, and I still cannot get into the BIOS to turn off the floppy drive.

So I guess the problem now is that when I hit delete to go into the bios, I get a blank screen...

Do all of your fans power up? I am wondering if the psu is dying, or if the bios is mashed.

Well I solved it, and it was a strange one.

The monitor I was using has been acting weird. I'm not sure the best way to describe the behavior. Basically it would work, then I would turn the computer off and fiddle around inside, then I would turn it back on and the monitor would not display anything. I found that if I waited about 5 minutes and THEN turned the monitor on it would work. It is making a weird high pitched sound for some reason. I should have known not to use a semi-working part, but I didn't have anything else, and I thought that I had found a good enough workaround.

So finally I swapped out the bad monitor for the one I am using right now to post on this forum. Strangely enough it worked. I could see the BIOS just fine. So it seems that for some reason, the monitor would only display the POST screen. No idea what would be the cause of that but I guess I've got to buy anew monitor :(

Even though your assistance did not necessarily solve the problem, it was still greatly appreciated!

At least you know the cause now :).

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.