Hardware trouble

[Watchman]

Yesterday my computer developed this funny habit of failing to power up. The LED on the corner of the MB (ASUS P5B if it matters) burns brightly enough if the main power switch is on, but the machine flat out fails to react in any fashion to the front-panel power button being pressed. Initially I hoped this was a problem with the button itself, it and the case being old enough (and getting rather cramped), but changing to a brand new (and rather roomier) one had no effect so that's ruled out.

Any idea what part of the system might be screwed, or how to find out ? The power source, the MB, something else ? It'd be nice to know which warranty receipt to dig up if nothing else, and the potential culprits aren't of the sort you want to start changing blind...

The really vexing thing, mind you, is that this came completely out of the blue and without any prior hints of trouble - and neither can I recall doing anything that might so grossly bugger the machinery.

[Whacker]

What are your system stats and components? All of em, PSU make/model/wattage, RAM make/model, HDD's, etc etc... all of it.

Have you tried reseating all connections, including power connections?

[Watchman]

Well, moving the machinery into the new case sort of necessitated detaching and reattaching all the wiring anyway, particularly the highly inconvenient spaghetti knot of the power cables... which should have gone correctly, as this isn't exactly the first time I've had to reassemble the thing. 'S been pain in the arse for a while already.

I'll get back to you with the hardware specs tomorrow - somewhat inconvenient having to rely on internet cafes and libraries for your 'net access I notice.

[Ramses II CP]

At a guess I'd say 50-50 reset your CMOS or replace your power supply, leaning towards the former since you (presumably) just changed hardware. You can usually pick up a standard power supply at any tech shop, test it out, and if it fixes the problem return the temporary PSU and shop for one that suits your price and power needs.

Of course it could be the motherboard or a few other things, but quite often on a complete failure to even POST it'll be one of the above.

[Watchman]

Well, clearing the CMOS had absolutely no effect. The machine still resolutely ignores the power button. Would it be theoretically possible that battery is out of juice though ? Seems somewhat unlikely as the MB's not even a year old mind you...

Anyway, the hardware specs should they prove useful:
- Asus P5B MB
- Intel Core 2 E6400 processor
- Antec Truepower 2.0 550W power unit
- two Kingston KVR533D2N4/512 DDR2 RAM cards
- one Western Digital WD800AAJS 80GB hard disk
- Leadtek WinFast Geforce PX7950GT graphics card

[Ramses II CP]

In theory yes, but in practice the odds are very slim unless your battery was defective. The next component I would look to rule out is the power supply as it's the easiest and cheapest to replace. There are only a few different designs, but make sure you buy one that will fit in your case and is at least as high a wattage as your current one.

After that, if it isn't fixed, you'll have to start testing individual components.

[Watchman]

Fair enough - although there's also the consideration the store I bought the MB from is rather closer than the one I bought the PSU from.

Seriously though, I'm disinclined to think the PSU was the problem; judging by the indicator LED on the MB corner and the barely-audible "electric" hum the device makes when the main power switch is flipped, it's probably working well enough.

[Ramses II CP]

Heck, if you bought your MB from a local retailer they might even be able to test it for you. Certainly you could swap it out, but... I'd still be tempted to check the PSU first. If it were defective or insufficient for your load you might get the effect you're describing. Plus, it's cheaper and much easier to switch in and out.

I typically order components online, which makes it much harder to get quick service.