PC won't start

[Censu]

Hello,

This morning I switched on the PC. Worked fine, suddenly it shut down without anyuone noticing. I use it as an internet-connection server, so I switch it on and leave it there so that other members of the family can use internet in their PC. My dad complaint that the PC was not on! I was sure it was on, but it wasn't anymore. When I tried to reswitch it on, it couldn't...

It sounds like a power supply failure, but... the PSU is an AT one... and the monitor is attached to it as well, BUT THERE IS POWER GOING TO THE MONITOR, cuz it remained on, albeit unsynced. Would you agree with me that the psu is ok? What could have gone wrong? PC is dead... no LEDs, fans, harddisks spinning etc. when the switch button is pressed. It's like there is no power cord.

Thanks in advance,
Vince

[Budfred]

Welcome to http://www.pcguide.com/ubb/pcgubb.gif

"Would you agree with me that the psu is ok?"

No, not necessarily. The AT power supply does not power the monitor, it is simply a pass through for power, so the fact that the monitor is powered doesn't mean anything. That doesn't mean that the power supply is the problem, but it is a likely suspect.

Budfred

[Censu]

Hello, thanks for answering promptly...

Another question...

How can a power supply fail? Is it through power surges? Yesterday I noticed that the lights in the room were flickering. Is that a likely candidate to why the psu failed today? A UPS works well against power surges?

Also, what brands of psus do you find to be the best?

[YODA74]

hmmm have you ever used a power tester or Volt/ohm meter

can you go ahead and pull the PSU from the syatem?

if so check the power cord with the meter to see if you have pwr. there first.

if so reconnect the cable to the PSU and test each run off wire, and see if you have pwr there.

if not then it's the PSU if so then we'll have to try something else.

[Budfred]

Is there a fan in your power supply and is it working? If the fan is working then there is still some power in the supply and it may not be the problem.

As for how the power supply could die, heat is probably the main thing over time. Every time you turn it on and off, it has to change temps in a major way and that causes strain to the components. Power surges add to this and other factors like dust and getting banged around could factor in too. A UPS will help with the power surges, but any power supply will fail eventually if used (and probably even if not used). As for brands, you will probably have to replace with an AT power supply, so I am not sure about what is available. The brands that I remember seeing good reviews or simply hearing good things include:
Enermax, Heroichi, Sparkle and Antec (Antec has bad service though).

Budfred

[mjc]

Yesterday I noticed that the lights in the room were flickering. Is that a likely candidate to why the psu failed today?

Yes, it can be a candidate......any kind of power problem can hasten a power supply to its doom.

[Sylvander]

Hello Censu.

SYSTEM TEST
1. PC is “Dead.
2. Does fan run? No.
3. Are power supply voltages correct? If they are, your fan would have to be faulty to be not working and should be replaced. If the fan is not faulty, the voltages are not ok, which may be due to something connected. Therefore:
4. Disconnect all peripherals & adaptors and the system board.
5. Does the fan now run? If it doesn’t your power supply is faulty. If it does run, re-connect the system board.
6. Does the fan now run? If it doesn’t the system board is faulty. If it does run then:
7. Re-connect ONE device at a time to see if the fan runs. If it doesn’t this last device is faulty. If it does it’s ok.
8. Repeat 7 until all faulty devices are identified and disconnected and all good devices are connected, then re-test the system.

[Censu]

Thanks veyr much by all your answers. The problem was found to be a faulty power supply. I brought a power supply from another PC to test, and as soon as I connected it, it worked. I tried the old power supply on minimum config (just supplying the motherboard) but it still didn't work.

Thanks very much.

[Censu]

I was suprised to find the power supply to be a 200W one. I think it is underrated for my system, especially since I added a GeForce-2 on the AGP slot, I heard that the AGP slot consumes a lot of power.

Maybe the PSU power ultimately wasn't enough for all that load and failed.

Would you agree with me that I need to purchase a 300W or higher power supply?

Thanks,
Vince

[mjc]

300W would probably be better.....