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+---- Thread: There are FOUR lights (/showthread.php?tid=74927)
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There are FOUR lights - Agmen of Eladesor - 02-16-2012
Unfortunately, it's not like when Jean Luc says it...
Instead, I'm running into the four lights that come on the front of one of my desktops.
http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/syst...t.htm#wp1130520
According to their cheerful little documentation...
"If all four diagnostic lights stay on and the power button remains amber, a possible processor power or connection error has occurred."
I think that's their way of telling me that my desktop just took a complete crap and died.
I've reset the CMOS, put in a new battery, took the HDD into work and checked that (it's fine), changed out the power supply, and did the whole 'processor reset' thing - like that ever works. Since the computer hadn't actually been moved or had anything else done to it that would negatively affect it before my coming in one day and just seeing the screen locked - and then failing to reboot ...
Does anyone else on here have any other bright ideas, or should I simply proceed as I'm thinking - strip the carcass and pitch it?
EDIT: Failing to reboot means that I get NOTHING out of it - the fans come on just fine, the light on the mobo is on, and the HDD spins - but there's actually nothing ELSE going on. No noise that the HDD is actually being read. I get no output to the monitor at all.
There are FOUR lights - Hielor - 02-16-2012
Sounds like the CPU may be having issues. I assume you re-seated the CPU to make sure that it was properly set in the socket?
There are FOUR lights - Agmen of Eladesor - 02-16-2012
' Wrote:Sounds like the CPU may be having issues. I assume you re-seated the CPU to make sure that it was properly set in the socket?
' Wrote:did the whole 'processor reset' thing
Yeah, I did. That's why I really think it died internally, because there was so little heat sink compound on there to transfer heat from the CPU that it wasn't funny. You ever do an Xbox 360 X-clamp fix and how there is always a big gob of compound, and they say to spread just a little on it? I pulled the heat sink off, and just a little spot stayed on the CPU, and the rest went up to the heat sink - like it hadn't even actually been making contact.
I can't complain about lifespan - it was 9 years old.
There are FOUR lights - ryoken - 02-16-2012
Check your power supply? My comp did similar when my supply failed. A few beeps and whistles, but not enough power for anything else.
There are FOUR lights - Ogris - 02-16-2012
Screams "power supply". But you said you checked that.
Don't suppose you have a spare motherboard lying around?
There are FOUR lights - Mickk - 02-16-2012
Yep, sounds like your CPU has definately bought the farm.
However, 9 years is a heck of a good lifespan for a CPU!
Also.... DELL.
I haven't heard much about them, which means either they are a fairly reliable PC -OR- they are so crap that nobody talks about them.
From what I've just read, I'm thinking the former.
From what I've read so far, you have done everything possible to fix it, short of buying new bits.
I suggest you try to get hold of the same type of CPU and replace it, or of course you could go and buy a new PC, which is the way I would go as I can't see many 9 year old CPU's of the type you have still being around.
There are FOUR lights - ophidian - 02-16-2012
Man, I jumped into this topic when I saw the title Agmen:DThat episode of TNG was one of my favorites =).
"THERE ARE FOUR LIGHTS!" - battered and tired Picard.
Coming back to the topic, I agree with the rest, it sounds like your CPU has kicked the bucket. 9 years for a CPU is a good lifespan. I have a laptop like that, a Fujitsu Siemens, and it is still working in good shape, though I donated it to a friend in need lol.
There are FOUR lights - Canadianguy - 02-16-2012
' Wrote:Yep, sounds like your CPU has definately bought the farm.Replacing the CPU on a 9 y/o machine is not worth it IMHO, since the Mobo or something else might die not long after that change.
However, 9 years is a heck of a good lifespan for a CPU!
Also.... DELL.
I haven't heard much about them, which means either they are a fairly reliable PC -OR- they are so crap that nobody talks about them.
From what I've just read, I'm thinking the former.
From what I've read so far, you have done everything possible to fix it, short of buying new bits.
I suggest you try to get hold of the same type of CPU and replace it, or of course you could go and buy a new PC, which is the way I would go as I can't see many 9 year old CPU's of the type you have still being around.
Except when you go into more pricey stuff like workstations and gaming rigs, most company that build computers just put loads of cheap junk into their computers where the typical client for pre-built desktop won't immediatly see the difference, like the PSU and the mobo.
Building a new computer would be a much better idea, and with the current prices of hardware (well, except for HDDs), you can build something quite good for pretty damn cheap.
There are FOUR lights - Agmen of Eladesor - 02-17-2012
Yep.
Ah, well - all things considered it was a good run, but now I'll just watch and see what comes on sale fairly inexpensively over the next few months. Honestly, I'm too lazy to build a tower when under most conditions I can find a nice pre-built for $400 or so, and then all I need to do is pop a new PSU and decent graphics card in it. That's how I got the one that I use to run my laser - even if it was an HP, it still has a quad core processor, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, and a 1TB HDD. Picked it up at Office Depot for $279, I popped an inexpensive video card in it (free!) and a new power supply ($40 cost), put a 22" monitor on it (again, Office Depot, $119) - and it does everything I need it to do.
I still have my laptop upstairs, anyway.
There are FOUR lights - Canadianguy - 02-17-2012
' Wrote:Yep.I wonder how much per-built desktops are nowadays, with the HDD supply problems.
Ah, well - all things considered it was a good run, but now I'll just watch and see what comes on sale fairly inexpensively over the next few months. Honestly, I'm too lazy to build a tower when under most conditions I can find a nice pre-built for $400 or so, and then all I need to do is pop a new PSU and decent graphics card in it. That's how I got the one that I use to run my laser - even if it was an HP, it still has a quad core processor, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, and a 1TB HDD. Picked it up at Office Depot for $279, I popped an inexpensive video card in it (free!) and a new power supply ($40 cost), put a 22" monitor on it (again, Office Depot, $119) - and it does everything I need it to do.
I still have my laptop upstairs, anyway.
A 1TB HDD is currently about half the price of the HP desktop you just mentioned, and thats for low/med-end ones.