No POST or Boot up - Need thoughts

I have an IBM Pentium D - 3Ghz - 1024 Meg RAM - XPP SP3

Working fine until one day it would not start. There is no POST beep - no video, the HDD is not spinning (or at least there is no indication that it is) and the CPU fan seems to be spinning at a relatively slow speed.

Attempts at various solutions made:
Disconnected everything
Swapped the HDD
Swapped the PSU
changed the CMOS battery
removed the memory

Still no indication that anything is happening when the power button is depressed.

Any thoughts on where I might go from here gratefully accepted.
Thanks

 

ROM corrupted? Just a thought. :d

 

Define ROM please - I disconnected the DVD-ROM

 

The ROM i mean is the BIOS-ROM. It controls all the hardware, and the boot-up things. Even it is called bios-rom, some company able to upgrade the ROM (but I never do it, too risky:d). Well, long time ago (1990s), I changed the bios-rom with the same brand but newer version, it didnt boot at all, and nothing shown in the screen.

 

Thanks - I have to install a floppy to see if it will boot from a disk becasue it won't boot from a CD therefore I cannot flash the BIOS

 

Well if I were u, i would try to reset the bios first (it usually somewhere on motherboard via jumpers), because BIOS is also controlling the floppy disk. If that doesnt work it, either the BIOS is totally gone case, or the CPU is gone case, BIOS is cheap as long as you can find it the exact same one. In CPU case, u better buy a new motherboard . Although good BIOS supposed to detect the CPU, and give beeps when the CPU is broken (or not exist), but from my experience, sometimes BIOS just didnt do anything and showed nothing (at least in my PC at home now).

 

If the CPU fan has failed, the system won't start up. I suggest borrowing another CPU fan, sit it on top of the old one and test with that. It might be a three cable connector, I think there are 4-cable types around now, you would need to get the same type.

 

The process of changing the battery resets the BIOS. If able to reboot into the BIOS Setup Menu and reset the data and time, and ensure drives recognized properly, then the BIOS is not corrupt.

A spinning fan only indicates the presence of +12V. It does not indicate the +5 or +3.3V are good. Swapping in a known good supply points back to the motherboard, or CPU itself. Unfortunately, without risking damaging another CPU, it is hard to determine which?

BTW - ROM chips have NOT been used for the BIOS in about 15 or so years. Instead EEPROM chips are typically used because they are programmable. If they become corrupt, they can typically be reprogrammed. They can be replaced, but typically are not anymore because it is not a normal user task, so it typically costs less to simply replace the entire board.

It is my experience that if the actual EEPROM is destroyed, there's more damage somewhere - with ESD or power anomalies as the probable cause.

No it doesn't. It really does not "control" anything. It is what it says it is, a basic set of input and output instructions use to establish communications between SOME - not all - of the basic hardware components used for I/O. The BIOS itself knows little, but where to seek out its next set of instructions, the CMOS memory module.

 

I take it Bill that it is safe to say, the fan is not the issue?

Thx

 

I would not say that because in your opening statement, you said, "...the CPU fan seems to be spinning at a relatively slow speed." So I agree with the others that you need to check that out. Slow speed may indicate the voltages are wrong, or the fan bearings are starting to seize.

 

Sorry for cutting in (my tuppence worth)

A failing fan could have been the initial problem resulting in a failed CPU due to overheating. At this stage it's difficult to determine the actual problem but it does look like CPU or M/Board and you will need to check that fan.

 

Rats... and here's me without another 4 wire fan (just a 3 wire)

Thanks - will have to go off to town tomorrow

 

Thanks all - seems to be a known problem

Might as well start looking for a mobo

 

Nice Find. Good Luck with your replacement/rebuild.