Member Avatar for Rian

Hello
I am quite well with computers, but I have ran into a major problem that I've never encountered, and I have no idea how to fix it. I am in desperate need of help.

The problem:
With the computer being off, I press the on button. The screen does not come up, it stays black, however the tower is on, kinda, but I can tell that maybe 15 seconds after it is turned on it freezes because the green light isn't flickering anymore.

I have Windows Millennium Edition on a Compaq Presario with the video card Nvidia Vanta, probably 5-6 years old.

History/ How it got this way:
It had been randomly freezing, with no messages at all for no apparent reason, a few days ago. And i would just manually shut it off. It got to the point that I would have to turn the power on and off a few times within 20 seconds, just for it to boot up. A while after that it had escalated so badly that i would have to hit the power button on and off for about 7 minutes
just to boot up. But It has now gotten so bad that no matter how many times I switch it on and off it will not boot. Normally the like on the screen would turn from orange to green the same second i turned on the power. But now it will only stay at orange. So no I cannot even run it in BIOS or safe mode.

I hope that this is enough info, this is my first time posting. If you need more info just ask. I thank you for your time and I wish for your help.

-Rian-

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by BILL S

Dani AI

Generated

A short, practical diagnostic path that builds on and without repeating their exact suggestions.

Start by separating "no video / no POST" from software problems: failure to reach BIOS or get POST beeps generally means a hardware fault before Windows loads. The most useful checks are low-risk and ordered to narrow the fault quickly.

  • Confirm the monitor and cable actually work by connecting them to another working PC.
  • Fit a simple internal speaker (if not present) to read POST beeps; speaker/POST behavior is one of the fastest indicators of CPU/memory/mobo health.
  • Reduce the system to a true minimal boot (power, CPU, heatsink/fan, one stick of RAM, video). Leave drives and extras disconnected so POST diagnostics are obvious.
  • Do a careful visual inspection of the PSU and motherboard for bulging or leaking capacitors, scorch marks, or a burnt smell. Check that all fans and the CPU cooler spin when powered briefly.
  • If available, substitute a known-good PSU or test PSU rails with a proper PSU tester/multimeter (observe safety precautions around mains power). If the PSU voltages are unstable or absent, the PSU is the prime suspect.
  • Swap the video card (or try onboard video if present) or test the card in another system to isolate GPU failure. A card that prevents POST but shows no video is a common mid-case.

Interpretation notes: audible POST codes with no video usually point at the GPU; no POST and no beeps with fans running shifts suspicion to PSU or motherboard; visible capacitor damage strongly favors board or PSU replacement. Given the system age, replacing PSU and motherboard (or a low-cost replacement system) is often more cost-effective than prolonged component-level repair.

Safety note: always unplug mains and ground against static before working inside the case.

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Member Avatar for Rian

A freind said as a guess it may have something to do with not getting enough power or something. Is that a possibility? If so, how would I fix it?

Member Avatar for markdean

Does safe mode work? Lock ups can occur for many reasons, especially in the Win9x code base. If safe mode works, you can try disabling devices one at a time and see what happens. You either have a device that is going bad, a device driver that for some reason has become corrupted, or a conflict, software or hardware.

Member Avatar for BILL S

The eMachine T2482 does the same thing, the Standby monitor LED stays on, if the video from the PC is getting out, it should automatically 'wake' the monitor. To test the mobo-try like I was advised, and did....remove the memory and boot up, try a 250 to 350 watt PSU as well, if you have one you know works, monitor the fans on all areas of the PC
BILL

Member Avatar for markdean

if you remove the memory, all you will get is a bunch of beeps...not sure how that will test anything other than post.

Member Avatar for BILL S

What I was told (here in MN, CompUSA tech) was it is a sure-fire way to tell if your board may be fatally wounded, and to me that translates into too much cost to troubleshoot and repair vs. buying a replacement mobo that may even offer much better options
Bill

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