Computer wont boot up

[mayorredbeard]

I am troubleshooting my friends computer and have hit a block. Her computer will not start up. Let me list everything i have already done:

1. Tested the PSU by hitting the test button on it. Fans powered up, so its not the PSU
2. Reseated the CMOS battery so it would reset, still computer will not boot up.
3. I have reseated the RAM, and Video Card.
4. I have unplugged all the connections from the PSU to all the components and reconnected them.
5. I tried lifting the cables that go from the 'on-switch' to the motherboard and putting them in the same places. This did nothing.
6. Yes i made sure the power supply is turned on, plugged in, and i checked the surge protector. The outlet it is plugged into has power coming from it;.

What I have not done though is remove the cables that go from the on switch to the mobo at the 'on-switch' side. I'm delaying doing this since its in a tight and inconvenient spot and I want to eliminate all other possibilities first. The computer is a 6 year old gateway 500c cto. The green light on the motherboard lights up when the computer is plugged in.

Any ideas people?


Thanks in advance,
Mayor Red Beard

 

[esa193]

could be a lot of things
cpu burnt out
video card dried
ram went bad
hard drive died
powersupply might turn on but might have burnt out
does his mb have any led screens to bost codes

 

[freestyler105]

What happens when you hit the power button? Nothing at all? Do the fans at least spin up? Any beep codes?

 

[mayorredbeard]

On her last succesfull bootup she heard beeps before it crashed. After which it does not turn on, and does not give any beep signals.

When I press the power button absolutly nothing happens. No fans, no nothing. There is a green light on the motherboard.

As I said before I eliminated the PSU because when I hit the test button on it or short it, the fans start spinning. So the PSU is not dead.

I guess I should start creating a list of things it can't be.

- It's not the RAM as faulty ram produces a beep signal and computer would at least attempt to POST. But when I push the power button absolutlely nothing happens; no fans, no nothing.
- It's not the Video Card because this would also produce a beep signal and the computer would at least attempt to POST. But when I push the power button absolutely nothing happens; no fans, no nothing.
- It's not the PSU because when I hit the test button on the PSU the fan on the PSU spins up, and so does the heatsink and other fans.

Now if any of my above assumptions are incorrect, please someone let me know. And if one of the above assumptions are incorrect, please post a way I could eliminate that component as the culprit for the computer not turning on.

So I guess I'm left with the Harddrive, and CPU and Motherboard as potential problems. But correct me if I'm wrong, a dead or faulty HDD would produce a beep code, and so would a bad CPU. So it must be the motherboard, correct?

I saw a green light on the motherboard, but this only means that its getting power. Not necessarily that its functioning. It seems that this is the only component that fits the symptoms. Does this sound correct?

 

[esa193]

are all wires connected correctly and wires burnt out? if the hard drive was bad it would turn on
cpu could be dead.... if heat killed it but doubt it
there could be a chance its the psu even no it spins doesnt mean it didnt go bad
you never no...
or maybe something simple like the power connector died

 

[freestyler105]

It may be the motherboard, but it's unlikely.

99% of the time a computer's fans will at least spin up, something will happen. Which leads me to believe there's something wrong with the power button.

It's not the hard drive, the computer will still boot up without a hard drive. It could be the CPU though, but I doubt it.

 

[esa193]

ya maybe the power button is bad

 

[db4rt]

^ thats what I was thinking

 

[mayorredbeard]

I'd rather it be the motherboard then the power leads . At least I know how to fix that.

To fix a power button what would I do? I've run into lots of problems with computers, never a broken power button.

 

[Shadowmoose]

Most times a computer at least tries to start up. It could be that one of the screws is shorting on the motherboard, a way to test that is to take the mobo out of the case and try to turn it on. If the power button is bad a getto way to fix that is to wire the reset button to the power switch's connector pins. You could also make sure that the ram is set up in the right slots. My friends computer wouldn't start up until the two ram sticks were in corresponding slots. You can check documentation to see what the mobo wants.
There's a few ideas for yeah.