Computer will not start

[dhwms]

I have a Micron Millennia running Windows98 SE that is misbehaving.

When I turn the computer on the power light(green) comes on and shortly thereafter the light related to the hard drive(amber) comes on. The amber light stays on for a few seconds and goes out. The green light continues to stay on.

There are no sounds from the computer other than the fan running for the power supply.

There are no displays on the monitor. No beeps or sounds from the floppy drive. If you hold the hard drive up to your ear you can hear it spinning.

I tried a working hard drive out of another Micron computer and got the same results. I replaced the CMOS battery.

Does this sound like a BIOS problem, hard drive or power supply problem?

Any suggestions or help will be greatly appreciated.


David

[IMNetUser]

[quote name='dhwms' post='790327' date='22-Aug-2009 21:24']I have a Micron Millennia running Windows98 SE that is misbehaving.

When I turn the computer on the power light(green) comes on and shortly thereafter the light related to the hard drive(amber) comes on. The amber light stays on for a few seconds and goes out. The green light continues to stay on.

There are no sounds from the computer other than the fan running for the power supply.

There are no displays on the monitor. No beeps or sounds from the floppy drive. If you hold the hard drive up to your ear you can hear it spinning.

I tried a working hard drive out of another Micron computer and got the same results. I replaced the CMOS battery.

Does this sound like a BIOS problem, hard drive or power supply problem?

Any suggestions or help will be greatly appreciated.


David[/quote]
OK ...
To definitely rule out the hard drive - can you put in the working computer to see if it works ?

If you can access the BIOS, have you verified the setting - especially after replacing the motherboard battery ?

You mentioned no beep codes from the motherboard and if the above has been verified, I would try putting the memory chips from the non-working computer in the working computer to see if they are good. Previously I had a computer go intermittent on me as a result of a weak memory chip on a memory card - only found it by swapping out the memory.

Next would be verifying the power supply.

[dhwms]

Tried a new power supply and same results.

Tried a NEW hard drive and the only difference was that both of the green lights stayed on. Monitor still blank and no sounds.

Can not access the BIOS.

[DocWatson]

Bad motherboard would be my guess.

[viking33]

[quote name='dhwms' post='793223' date='13-Sep-2009 18:22']Tried a new power supply and same results.

Tried a NEW hard drive and the only difference was that both of the green lights stayed on. Monitor still blank and no sounds.

Can not access the BIOS.[/quote]

If you can't even get into the BIOS, I would tend to agree with Doc.
Time to go shopping.

[dhwms]

[quote name='viking33' post='793233' date='13-Sep-2009 20:44']If you can't even get into the BIOS, I would tend to agree with Doc.
Time to go shopping. [/quote]



Any "shade tree method" to check motherboard?

[viking33]

[quote name='dhwms' post='793446' date='15-Sep-2009 18:25']Any "shade tree method" to check motherboard?[/quote]
Beyond the process of elimination, that you seem to have already done, you could open up the case and give it a good "look see". Check for anything obvious, loose connectors, etc. Unplug the connectors and reseat them firmly, that type of thing. However, it doesn't sound like a good prognosis.
You might want to consider buying a new "barebones" system and try to reuse some of the existing pieces of hardware that you have.

[cahuey]

[snip]

There are no displays on the monitor. No beeps or sounds from the floppy drive. If you hold the hard drive up to your ear you can hear it spinning.
[snip]
David

Can you try putting in another video card? If you don't have a display at all, that would be the first thing I would try.

[dumonster]

A simple test that many people forget is to check the keyboard. Watch the keyboard for a while after you turn the system on, when the POST test gets to the keyboard the CapsLock, NumLock, and any other LEDs will blink. If the keyboard blinks, you know the processor is running because the POST test is functioning. If not I would suspect the power supply first, then RAM, and then the rest is up for grabs. If you don't have a way to check the power supply voltages, then skip that and pull the RAM, power it up and see (and listen) if anything has changed. Good Luck.