help computer problem!!!?

Question

two days ago when i started my pc,only the power led was on,but there was no display in the monitor,and no hdd activity either....the led for the hdd was not flashing....
so i opened my comp and took out the RAM and again installed it..
this time i was able to boot up...but after working sometime...suddenly the monitor went blank and i heard the beep my comp makes while restarting..but it was same...only the power led was on...no display....no hdd activity...
i thought my graphics card has a problem ,,so i switch to onboard graphics and started..(i dismounted the graphics card)...again it was ok and after working some time the same thing happened...no display...no hdd activity...only power led on..
even tried different RAM and diffrent video card from my friend's comp...what may be the prob please help...
my computer:::
Compaq presario 6000(6240in)
pentium 4 1.9 ghz,256MB,PC2100 ram
segate 60Gb hdd
nvidia geforce4 mx420 64mb graphics card...
intel extreme onboard graphics

if i use the nvidia the onboard stays disabled in the bios...and vice versa..i mean to say that i use one at a time..
also i am not able to use the system restore...or the system recovery cd to install xp as it is shutting down in between

it is not a virus either...i have scaned the hdd in a friends computer...

all of my fans r running while this problem...

could it be the hdd,,should i change the hdd and see

Answer 1

I would start by removing all components in the PCI or AGP slots
and restart the system also check if you have the correct RAM install on your computer www.crucial.com is very good source just plug in you computer model or motherboard model and they will give you the exact RAM to use. If you remove everything and check the RAM and the computer still has the same problem then I would check if the is any metal (ex:screws) under the motherboard because that can cause the board to fail. After check all of this things, and stil the problem is still there then I sould go for a replacement motherboard because that's what it sounds like the problem is.
Hope this helps

Answer 2

Sporadic behavior or self-booting is typically caused by a bad power supply. make sure the P8 and P9 connections to the motherboard are conected properly. Also try cleaning the power supply fan. ** DO NOT OPEN THE POWER SUPPLY**. Blowing air in through the fan port with the power disconnected will blow most of the dust out. Make sure all fans are running properly as well, because of the possibility of overheating which will make components act strangly. If the above does not work change the power supply.

Answer 3

there is several viruses out that cause a HDD reboot, get avast its free on disk at friends because running seems to be ya prob burn it to disk, if not it sounds likea over heating system, check you fans and heat sinks clear them of debris, it may reguire a inspection of the heat sink contact cement try using restore jump back as far back as you feel safe to get running system, but sadly most restarting viruses infect your sys restore (shutting this off will only kill part of it) a new hard drive may be in order, the drives the came with were cheap and small, and by my figures you prolly reached the expiration date at 2 years, look for new one soon as this is sometimes the symtom of the HDD motor dying, it will stop spinning all together, use safe mode (with networking if it helps to get the fixes)
the last is the CMOS battery keeps iportant stuff like ram peripherals, replace it, becuase if removing the ram helped, its probly that, CMOS shouldnt have noticed any change if the ram ammount didnt change but if the batteries week it will read improper ammounts and will effect your bios settings

Answer 4

If your ccomputer worked when you took out and then reinserted the RAM chip and with another RAM chip it was the same, try to clean the RAM slot on the motherboard. Clean carefully the metal contacts with some alcohol and using a cardboard about as thick as the RAM chip, so the contactas will be rubbed by this cardboard. After that try again. If the problem persists, try to see if your computer has a heating problem (maybe one of the fans stopped working etc.
That's all I can do for you, I hope you solve your problem as quickly as possible.

Answer 5

That's interesting, I had a similar problem with just about exactly the same symptoms.

As it turned out, it was both the graphics card (the fan stopped working) and the power supply... I suspect problems with the power supply might have ruined my graphics card but I'm not sure.

Only thing is, if the power led is on then I don't think it's your power supply with the problem. Sorry I can't be more help.

Answer 6

1 ) First remove your HDD, Monitor and boot the system without it..
2) Check whether the processor runs properly
3)If not your Ram is the Problem
4) if it works, then try connecting the Monitor alone and boot it.
5)If this works, then your Hard disk has the problem.
Hope this helps

Answer 7

Could be your RAM or processor is going bad or has gone bad. You've got such an incredibly low amount of RAM to begin with, so just go grab some more (I HIGHLY recommend 512MB +) and if that doesn't actually fix the problem, you can take it back and try getting a replacement processor.

Answer 8

I have a compaq also and that happened to me a month ago... we took it to this repair guy that we use and it was a small battery in my comp.... I didn't even know there was one... It cost only 10 bucks and he said it usually won't burn out soo quickly, it usually takes a few years but my compaq runs a little hot so it just happened.... It could be a few other things that I cannot explain, too complicated and too expensive so take it to someone to get it checked.....and also check your warranty's....

Answer 9

That sounds more like a power supply problem. I don't think it has anything to do with your RAM. Either your power supply or your mother board is fried. You could always take it to a local pc tech to run a diagnostic on it. good luck

Answer 10

It seems to be probs at the bios stage. I've never had to deal with that but relate that all to someone in a computer shop and see what they say. Just one thing, I've noticed that computer-fixing-shops try to charge us a fortune. Like the last time I went in they were setting me up for $380.00 worth of fixing; where-as I fixed it my self for $35.00. Some difference.