PC will not boot up

[Mom]

OK you clever lot, why wont my PC start? Was functioning as well as it normally does last night. Get up this morning and it is a no go. It was not turned off by us, but managed to turn itself off anyway. This morning it turns on, power is on, the fan is running and it is making a series of humming clicks and that is all.

I have a clients laptop home at the moment so have taken the liberty of plugging my modem into it so I can ask the question. So, come on one of you clever things, what is going on? If it is not a simple fix, we will be sans a PC for a while to come.

[The Everlasting]

Can you see anything on the screen?

I once had my RAM go bad,nothing would come up on the screen,then once my harddrive broke,would start up,but then stop as soon as it tried to read the drive...if your motherboard is gone,nothing will happen too.

[Mom]

Can you see anything on the screen?

I once had my RAM go bad,nothing would come up on the screen,then once my harddrive broke,would start up,but then stop as soon as it tried to read the drive...if your motherboard is gone,nothing will happen too.

No, nothing to see, it is efffectively turned off. All is quiet, sreen is blank. It seems it just does not want to start up is all.

[The Everlasting]

Oh it's possible your Power supply unit is gone then,but I'm just taking a guess.

[hayd3n]

unplug everything and plug it all back in somtimes it can be a driver update which has caused a issue

[riffer]

The clicking noise is most likely the power supply gone bung.

[vindy500]

Is It plugged in?

[Scotty595]

Try kick it. Im being totally serious here. I know quite a bit bout computers but when i get stuck I just kick it, not like over the top hole in the side kick, but enough force. 5/10 times this fixes it.

[The Everlasting]

Try kick it. Im being totally serious here. I know quite a bit bout computers but when i get stuck I just kick it, not like over the top hole in the side kick, but enough force. 5/10 times this fixes it.

Haha I used to kick my old computer,it ended up with fucked Ram and motherboard..:p

[Gareth123]

I know what happened! I am 100% sure that your computer has broken! Are you sure your screen is on?:bleh:

[Slyer]

I used to work at Tailormade Computers in Warkworth but thankfully I grew well out of that place. :bleh:
Did it make any beeping sounds when you turn it on?
Humming and clicks means your harddrive is kaput usually, there are very few moving parts in a computer - only fans, hard drives and your DVD drive.
Switch the PC off, open the case and unplug the power to the hard drive, then boot the PC and see if it makes the noise still and if you can see things on the screen.

Edit: Reading your later post, do you mean that at first it did turn on but now does not at all?

[Scotty595]

Haha I used to kick my old computer,it ended up with fucked Ram and motherboard..:p

I been kicking my computer for about 6 years and its still all good. But then again i do know how to replace parts if i need to. :p

[BoristheBiter]

sounds like the hard drive has gone.

ours did this a few years ago and i sent it to Computer specs in glenfield.
they saved about 3/4 of the drive and it worked for about a year before it died.

[Mom]

The clicking noise is most likely the power supply gone bung.

Second time this has happened. Very frustrating. I am picking that is what is wrong, but bum, bum, poohs and wees! The problem is I have little faith in the IT services available in this town.


I used to work at Tailormade Computers in Warkworth but thankfully I grew well out of that place. :bleh:
Did it make any beeping sounds when you turn it on?
Humming and clicks means your harddrive is kaput usually, there are very few moving parts in a computer - only fans, hard drives and your DVD drive.
Switch the PC off, open the case and unplug the power to the hard drive, then boot the PC and see if it makes the noise still and if you can see things on the screen.

Edit: Reading your later post, do you mean that at first it did turn on but now does not at all?
I am not taking my PC to bits for anyone. I am happy to pay someone to fix it for me. Tailormade, OK :yes: so you can relate to my issues with IT in this town then :D


sounds like the hard drive has gone

ours did this a few years ago and i sent it to Computer specs in glenfield.
they saved about 3/4 of the drive and it worked for about a year before it died.
How can the hard drive fail while it is sitting there doing nothing?

[SPman]

Try kick it. Im being totally serious here. . I threw mine out the door onto the lawn, once............seemed to do something - for me, anyway. It was very satisfying.
Mind you , I still had to fix it!

Try all the connections - particularly the ram modules - my old one went funny a month or 2 ago after it turned itself on, due to a power surge, then sat, idling away in the barn, for a week - sitting there, not booting up - checked all the connections and away it went, again. Mind you it was beeping...yours is clicking...as others said - prob. hard drive!

[SMOKEU]

This has happened to me before, it's usually the motherboard which is fucked that causes this problem.

[cs363]

Another vote for hard drive failure here, especially with the characteristic clicking....
I'd recommend a visit to the big smoke and drop it off with a reputable computer repair place, hopefully they can salvage some/all of your data as well as replacing the drive.

It's not uncommon Mom, especially if the PC is a few years old.

Best of luck with it, bloody frustrating things 'puters when they don't want to play nice.

[BoristheBiter]

How can the hard drive fail while it is sitting there doing nothing?

You said that it was not shut down so i was guessing that it was in sleep mode so it would have to restart/come out of sleep mode; so thats when the hard drive is running at full noise and is most likely when problems occur.

if it is just clicking not beeping then it does sound like the power supply but both problems do make simlar sounds.

[p.dath]

How can the hard drive fail while it is sitting there doing nothing?

I wouldn't call spinnng around 5,400 times every minute doing nothing ...

[Slyer]

I am not taking my PC to bits for anyone. I am happy to pay someone to fix it for me. Tailormade, OK :yes: so you can relate to my issues with IT in this town then :D
It's seriously two screws and a thing you can unplug. If you didn't want to do anything yourself why would you post here? :confused:

[steve_t]

If it was the hard drive, it would still POST, and you would still be able to access the BIOS. I'm going with power supply or motherboard too, however, the not coming out of sleep mode properly is also a good suggestion. Which version of Windows have u got? Win7 apparently has/had some issues with waking from sleep mode

[Monkeynz]

If worse comes to worse and you need to look at replacing your computer, don't go past an Apple, I will never go back to a PC now. Just awesome and so easy to navigate around. :banana:

[YellowDog]

If it was the hard drive, it would still POST, and you would still be able to access the BIOS. I'm going with power supply or motherboard too, however, the not coming out of sleep mode properly is also a good suggestion. Which version of Windows have u got? Win7 apparently has/had some issues with waking from sleep mode

Agreed:
If you are not even getting a system beep or ram boot then it is most likely the power supply. A very cheap and easy fix. It could also be the RAM (unlikely) or some dry solder on your mainboard (not good). From the information you have provided, it is unlikely to be your hard drive. If you don't have a local volunteer and you are heading down to Auckland North Shore I'd be happy to sort it out for you on a parts only basis.

Good luck.

[sosman]

I've had this issue (pic not posting ) a couple of times now on different systems & each time its been the ram that needed replacing

[Mom]

I've had this issue (pic not posting ) a couple of times now on different systems & each time its been the ram that needed replacing

I cant turn the computer on mate, it is off at the shop getting a new power supply.

[centaurus]

If you say you can hear the fans, that means it's not the power supply.
If nothing appears on the screen, that means it's not the disk either. If the disk was the cause, it would start showing numbers on the screen and then stop with the message that it can't find system disk or something similar.
If you hear multiple beeps when you turn on the pc, that means the it's the RAM (the memory) or the video card.
If you don't have any beeps, it it the CPU or the motherboard broken.
However, in some rare cases, it happens to be an imperfect contact on the motherboard that causes the problem, especially if you say this has happened before.

What I recommend is the following:
Remove the power cable, take the cover off and gently push all plugs on the motherboard and the RAM in the slots, making sure it is properly connected. Make sure you TOUCH THE METAL FRAME OF THE PC before touching anything inside to prevent an electrostatic discharge damaging your pc.
Sometimes excessive dust can create conductivity between two parts that should be separated or go inside contacts and degrade connections. if you see excessive dust, either blow it with compressed air or a pump or try cleaning it with the hoover (more tricky). However, remember - no touching any parts with the hoover hose and NO WIPING THE DUST with anything.

Edit:
One more remote posibility (considering you hear the clicks) is that the power supply is not powerfull enough to drive all the stuff and the disk is turning on and off. I've seen this happening when new components were installed of if the power supply was at the limit. In time, power supplies decrease in max output power. If this is the case, unplugging a few of the devices connected (like the CDROM or even the disk in the first stage) would see the pc come to life. This scenario however is not often encountered.

[Slyer]

If you say you can hear the fans, that means it's not the power supply.
If nothing appears on the screen, that means it's not the disk either. If the disk was the cause, it would start showing numbers on the screen and then stop with the message that it can't find system disk or something similar.
If you hear multiple beeps when you turn on the pc, that means the it's the RAM (the memory) or the video card.
If you don't have any beeps, it it the CPU or the motherboard broken.
However, in some rare cases, it happens to be an imperfect contact on the motherboard that causes the problem, especially if you say this has happened before.

What I recommend is the following:
Remove the power cable, take the cover off and gently push all plugs on the motherboard and the RAM in the slots, making sure it is properly connected. Make sure you TOUCH THE METAL FRAME OF THE PC before touching anything inside to prevent an electrostatic discharge damaging your pc.
Sometimes excessive dust can create conductivity between two parts that should be separated or go inside contacts and degrade connections. if you see excessive dust, either blow it with compressed air or a pump or try cleaning it with the hoover (more tricky). However, remember - no touching any parts with the hoover hose and NO WIPING THE DUST with anything.

Edit:
One more remote posibility (considering you hear the clicks) is that the power supply is not powerfull enough to drive all the stuff and the disk is turning on and off. I've seen this happening when new components were installed of if the power supply was at the limit. In time, power supplies decrease in max output power. If this is the case, unplugging a few of the devices connected (like the CDROM or even the disk in the first stage) would see the pc come to life. This scenario however is not often encountered.
She already said she doesn't want to touch the thing. :P

[Madmax]

power supply
blown cap probably
fan is on the 24 volt side so will still work

[davebullet]

If you say you can hear the fans, that means it's not the power supply.
If nothing appears on the screen, that means it's not the disk either. If the disk was the cause, it would start showing numbers on the screen and then stop with the message that it can't find system disk or something similar.
If you hear multiple beeps when you turn on the pc, that means the it's the RAM (the memory) or the video card.
If you don't have any beeps, it it the CPU or the motherboard broken.
However, in some rare cases, it happens to be an imperfect contact on the motherboard that causes the problem, especially if you say this has happened before.

What I recommend is the following:
Remove the power cable, take the cover off and gently push all plugs on the motherboard and the RAM in the slots, making sure it is properly connected. Make sure you TOUCH THE METAL FRAME OF THE PC before touching anything inside to prevent an electrostatic discharge damaging your pc.
Sometimes excessive dust can create conductivity between two parts that should be separated or go inside contacts and degrade connections. if you see excessive dust, either blow it with compressed air or a pump or try cleaning it with the hoover (more tricky). However, remember - no touching any parts with the hoover hose and NO WIPING THE DUST with anything.

Edit:
One more remote posibility (considering you hear the clicks) is that the power supply is not powerfull enough to drive all the stuff and the disk is turning on and off. I've seen this happening when new components were installed of if the power supply was at the limit. In time, power supplies decrease in max output power. If this is the case, unplugging a few of the devices connected (like the CDROM or even the disk in the first stage) would see the pc come to life. This scenario however is not often encountered.

centaurus is on the money.

You mentioned this has happened before? Did it fix itself / what did you do / get done?

How old is the thing?

I think it is worth popping the cover and just reseat everything (wobble the connectors, push down on things, vacuum all the crud out).

[R6_kid]

I think the problem is obviously user error.

[sosman]

If you say you can hear the fans, that means it's not the power supply.
If nothing appears on the screen, that means it's not the disk either. If the disk was the cause, it would start showing numbers on the screen and then stop with the message that it can't find system disk or something similar.
If you hear multiple beeps when you turn on the pc, that means the it's the RAM (the memory) or the video card.
If you don't have any beeps, it it the CPU or the motherboard broken.
However, in some rare cases, it happens to be an imperfect contact on the motherboard that causes the problem, especially if you say this has happened before.

What I recommend is the following:
Remove the power cable, take the cover off and gently push all plugs on the motherboard and the RAM in the slots, making sure it is properly connected. Make sure you TOUCH THE METAL FRAME OF THE PC before touching anything inside to prevent an electrostatic discharge damaging your pc.
Sometimes excessive dust can create conductivity between two parts that should be separated or go inside contacts and degrade connections. if you see excessive dust, either blow it with compressed air or a pump or try cleaning it with the hoover (more tricky). However, remember - no touching any parts with the hoover hose and NO WIPING THE DUST with anything.

Edit:
One more remote posibility (considering you hear the clicks) is that the power supply is not powerfull enough to drive all the stuff and the disk is turning on and off. I've seen this happening when new components were installed of if the power supply was at the limit. In time, power supplies decrease in max output power. If this is the case, unplugging a few of the devices connected (like the CDROM or even the disk in the first stage) would see the pc come to life. This scenario however is not often encountered.

yeah take that!.... what he said.....lol

[Mom]

If you say you can hear the fans, that means it's not the power supply.
Edit:
One more remote posibility (considering you hear the clicks) is that the power supply is not powerfull enough to drive all the stuff and the disk is turning on and off. I've seen this happening when new components were installed of if the power supply was at the limit. In time, power supplies decrease in max output power. If this is the case, unplugging a few of the devices connected (like the CDROM or even the disk in the first stage) would see the pc come to life. This scenario however is not often encountered.

Well now, the PC is home and operating once again. We are $160 odd poorer. The power supply has been replaced. Your edit really interests me. We replaced the power supply on this PC less than 2 years ago, then the thing simply refused to turn on at all. This time however it was actually running and went into sleep mode overnight. We did not turn it off. In the morning the fans were running, but nothing would wake the thing from sleep. I turned it off and then powered it up again and the fans started ok but the box just made a clicking noise, would not fire up the PC proper.

I went to pick it up today and got the boss man. He decided to re-test the faulty power supply on a dummy in the shop. It started it no worries! Hmmmmmm, he thinks they may have missdiagnosed the problem so attempts to start our box with the old power supply, the fans start, but nothing fires up.

So, can you attempt to tell me in really simple English, why the old power supply will start a dummy in his shop and not our PC?

[Ixion]

So, can you attempt to tell me in really simple English, why the old power supply will start a dummy in his shop and not our PC?

Well, sort of, like fit a moped motor into a Goldwing and see how far you get. Then fit the same motor into the moped.

[steve_t]

How many watts was the old PSU (power supply) rated for and how many is the new one?

[centaurus]

Ixion is right on the money. My guess is that the dummy pc he tested the power supply on, needs less power than your pc (older pc/less components installed, etc...).