[realapp]

I was trying to plug in a Dell I bought for my parent's about 4 years ago (which they hardly ever used) and now it won't power on. The only info I have as far as it's use is that my sister said a couple of weeks ago she plugged it in for them and had to get a Windows code ( I'm guessing the authorization code) to get Windows to load. She said it loaded fine after that. Not sure why that would even happen.

All it does is is acts like it's trying to load, (keyboard light up and then about 5 seconds later it shuts down and then tries to start itself again)

It's a Dell Dimension 2350 running Windows XP. Any suggestions would be awesome!! Thanks!!

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Are you getting through the boot process into the Windows boot before the power recycles, or are you just sitting there watching the power flash on and off?

Are you getting any signals from the BIOS in the form of beeps?

My gut feeling is that your PSU has gone.

Edited by Joker1337, 12 July 2007 - 05:36 AM.

[Joker1337]

Are you getting through the boot process into the Windows boot before the power recycles, or are you just sitting there watching the power flash on and off?

Are you getting any signals from the BIOS in the form of beeps?

My gut feeling is that your PSU has gone.

Edited by Joker1337, 12 July 2007 - 05:36 AM.

[realapp]

No windows boot. Power just keeps going on and off. I'm not to technically literate, So you'll have to tell me what a PSU is. I'm guessing power supply? And what on earth might cause this if this computer has hardly ever been used. And how would I fix it. Cost? Any ideas? Thanks!

No beeps, just a quick 3-5 second power on, some lights and then off and on again.

Edited by realapp, 12 July 2007 - 01:15 PM.

[Joker1337]

The PSU is your power supply, yes. If you are not getting to the point where a video signal is being sent to your monitor and the power keeps recycling, this says to me that the motherboard, CPU fan, or the power supply has gone. Pop-open the case and make sure that the CPU fan spins at some point during the start-up. Otherwise, the power supplies have a tendancy to go more than motherboards do.

If you feel comfortable with this (on a scale of 1-10 in the hardware department; where 1 is plugging in a PCI card and 10 is installing a CPU with bent pins without proper ESD; this is a 4.5) I'd suggest going to Circuit City or some other retail outlet that will let you return the part and buying a power supply that is at least as big as your power supply (probably ~400W). You should be able to remove the power supply in your case (disconnecting a lot of wires, I'm afraid) and then install the new one (connecting everything you just disconnected back up.) As long as you remember to stay grounded by keeping one hand on the case and/or means of a grounding bracelet, this shouldn't take more than 20 minutes and will be reasonably safe. If the PC powers up to BIOS after a new PSU is installed, then viola. Otherwise, we may have something else on our hands.

Power supply picture for reference:

Edited by Joker1337, 13 July 2007 - 03:37 PM.

[realapp]

Well, strangely enough, after a couple of days of not messing with it, I took the cover off as you suggested and was listening for the fan and voila, XP loads perfectly fine. So, I'm wondering if maybe the fan is working part time or the ? I guess, I'll wait and see if it happens again. I am going to post a different topic with a log just to make sure everything is clean and install some precautions before I allow the kids to take over!

Any other suggestions?

I j ust noticed that when it loads it asks me "Which operating system do you want to run and then it gives XP as both and the same choices. My sister said she had to do something to get windows running a couple of weeks ago. This was never a choice before and I wouldn't think you would want 2 on there. Should I repost this question?

Thanks!

Edited by realapp, 14 July 2007 - 08:23 AM.

[macten]

Sounds like maybe your sister loaded XP on it a second time. I would use it for awhile and see what develops.

Edited by macten, 14 July 2007 - 05:06 PM.

[Joker1337]

If you're still reading this thread, congratz on getting it running.

If the symptoms develop again pop a note in here, eh?

And yes, it sounds like your sister re-installed XP completely so that there are two copies of it on your PC, although whether that means there are two copies of the OS on your hard drive or just two copies of it in your boot log, I'm not sure.