Erratic Start-up

[bobed]

I have a desktop, new in 2003, with a Shuttle AK38N motherboard It has been running steadily since then without incident or hardware alteration. It has been sitting idle for the past 6 months.

Now it starts and runs from a cold start without exception. All systems perform normally after start. However, after shut down while still warm it will not start again. I get an alarm similar to a rescue vehicle: alternating low and high pitch tones from the case speaker. I suspected the BIOS battery, but voltage and clock function are normal. What is happenong?

[crunchie]

How often do you clean the internals of dust?
A pc will still start without a cmos battery, so I do not think it is that.

[david eaton]

The alarm you are getting sounds like a temperature alarm. check the processor fan for dirt and free rotation, and ensure that the heatsink has not worked loose. When you can get into the BIOS, check the settings for the temperature alarm.