[valleyboy]

Hi All

 

Apologies if this is in the incorrect section, I'm not sure where to post it.

 

Per title, I have a somewhat dead Dell Dimension 2400 that looks as though it is either not booting or there is a graphics/driver issue. The machine is ancient. It was working fine but has not been turned on for about four years; now exhibiting the above issues.

 

I am not getting any signal to the monitor. I have replaced the VGA cable, no change. I do not have the original Dell recovery discs; I have tried to retrieve this from Dell's site but the service tag is not recognised.

 

I had intended to make a bootable USB recovery disc and fix it that way.  What are my options? Is there a workaround for installing a fresh install of everything without using the Dell recovery tool?

 

Note: There is a windows XP sticker on the machine with the serial code etc available. Also, the power indicator on the front of the machine lights up, all seems to power up ok.

 

Thanks!

Edited by valleyboy, 07 November 2019 - 03:48 PM.

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Hello valleyboy,


Do you have Dell Diagnostic Lights labeled A B C D on the rear of the computer ? They may help to identify the problem, as seen here,

https://www.pctechby...gnostic-lights/

[zep516]

Hello valleyboy,


Do you have Dell Diagnostic Lights labeled A B C D on the rear of the computer ? They may help to identify the problem, as seen here,

https://www.pctechby...gnostic-lights/

[valleyboy]

Hi Zep

Thanks very much for your reply.

Yes the diagnostic lights are on the back. From memory I think they were all orange. I will power it up before work and check. I'll come back here later.

Edited by valleyboy, 08 November 2019 - 12:23 AM.

[valleyboy]

Best Answer

Hey Zep..... Thanks a bunch for that advice! Turns out the first two lights were amber, the others green. So I pulled one of the memory modules out and now all is well. Thank you very much!

[zep516]

Well done !

Thank you.
zep