i went to sleep last night and today when i woke up, my computer had crapped itself.

basically nothing was being displayed on the monitors even after moving the mouse, keyboard. so i thought it was frozen or whatever and just restarted.

still nothing coming out on the monitors. i have the beeps off - stupid move, but now i've gotta deal with it.

i noticed it wasn't getting anywhere in the boot process because usually you have to hold the power button down if you want to turn it off while it's booting windows or something. but when i press the power button, it shuts off instantly.

so i tried replacing the video card, still nothing.

i tried turning off the power supply for 30 secs and then booting up but still nothing.

i removed all the extra pci cards and tried booting up with just a vid card but still nothing.

the only thing i haven't tried before concluding the motherboard has shit itself is removing memory modules.

any other ideas?

11/17/2006 2:30:44 PM

just to be clear: when the machine is totally off, and all you have plugged into the mobo is the hard drive, video card, 1 stick of RAM and the power supply, and you hit the power button, what happens? what lights/fans come on etc?

It sounds like the power supply is at least turning on, but you would need to test the voltages to see if its still putting out good power.

I've got a PS tester etc and could take a look at it for you for some beer if you want
PM me if you want some help.

[Edited on November 17, 2006 at 2:51 PM. Reason : ]

11/17/2006 2:44:49 PM

it sounds like you're saying the power supply is working ... so try unplugging the power connections from the mobo for a minute then plug 'em back in. beyond that, if your power supply is outputting and your mobo isn't responding, you need to replace the mobo.

11/17/2006 2:46:04 PM

i'm pretty sure that the power supply is perfectly fine

this morning when i woke up to the crashed system, it was still pushing power out over USB to my ppc6700. when i power it up, the CD drives spin up, the hard drives spin up, the lights on the motherboard are on (1 indicating power from the psu and 1 that the computer is on). the LEDs on the front of the case are on too.

i just unplugged the ATX connector and power supply and plugged it all back in. i didn't know how to short it like you said so i didn't. but it did the same thing as before when i turned it in. one interesting thing was the second time i restarted it, one of the fans didn't start spinning until like a minute into it.

11/17/2006 2:53:29 PM

ok, i'll get a replacement motherboard and RMA it to newegg in the meantime - hopefully that'll solve it

but i'm concerned about the RAID - i have two 250 GBs RAIDed together through the motherboard's RAID controller. will a new motherboard be able to save the data with the same config?

11/17/2006 2:57:17 PM

the processor couldn't have died, right?

11/17/2006 3:13:23 PM

^^^ the shorting thing is just to test if the PS is turning on...its handy when you have systems that are totally dead (which i thought yours was until i reread your thread)

^^ that seems kinda drastic without confirming the PS is good and without resetting the BIOS.

^ doubt it

1) remove the button battery (on the motherboard) for a few minutes.
2) Find your CMOS config jumper...its usually a jumper with 3 pins. Replace the battery, set that jumper to reset, then turn the system on. Sometimes it will take you straight to the BIOS, other times you leave it running for a minute, force it to shut down, put the jumper to normal and restart.

I would be concerned about the RAID too, sometimes you have to make sure the replacement motherboard has the same RAID version or you're screwed. all the more reason to ensure the motherboard is the actual problem before sending it off. are you using raid 0 or 1?



[Edited on November 17, 2006 at 3:16 PM. Reason : ]

11/17/2006 3:14:50 PM

meh, it's not really RAID

it's JBOD

let me go try the CMOS reset

11/17/2006 3:22:31 PM

well it sounds like the motherboard isn't completely dead, just doing wierd things. do as ^^ suggested before RMAing.

and since you have RAID, i agree to make sure you use the same mobo, RAID can be very picky.

[Edited on November 17, 2006 at 3:23 PM. Reason : .]

11/17/2006 3:22:38 PM

just tried the CMOS reset and it's doing the same thing - no video

intrex, tigerdirect, circuitcity, compusa, and bestbuy don't have an abit kn8 ultra

11/17/2006 3:36:10 PM

what RAM do you have installed? have you tried booting with only 1 stick in as he mentioned? it's likely one or both are bad.

[Edited on November 17, 2006 at 3:46 PM. Reason : .]

11/17/2006 3:45:39 PM

ebay...i bet they have one

do you have another PS you could throw in there for testing? this really does sound like a power problem to me

Check these threads:
http://forum.abit-usa.com/archive/index.php/t-111542.html
http://forum.abit-usa.com/showthread.php?p=778881

what video card are you using? does it require a power connection from the PS?

oh and make sure all power supply connectors are firmly attached to the motherboard. i fixed this guys PC a couple weeks ago with the exact same symptoms as yours and it turned out being the CPU power connector not plugged into the motherboard. but he had just built it so that explains why the connector wasn't plugged in. http://brentroad.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=440594&page=1#9525507



[Edited on November 17, 2006 at 3:59 PM. Reason : ]

11/17/2006 3:47:39 PM

it was the RAM - 1 stick had gone bad!

thanks, fellas

oh and that stuff about the PSU was good to know - i'm still using a 20-pin connector one on this motherboard.

11/17/2006 4:10:06 PM

ahhh now windows is pissed off at me

it's blue screening every time i turn it on
something about the winlogon not being a valid program

fuckin hell! even safe mode is blue screening!

i REALLY don't want to format...grrrrrr!

11/17/2006 5:09:36 PM

whats the exact error message

11/17/2006 5:16:27 PM

Quote :

"STOP: c00012a {Fatal System Error} The Windows Logon Process system process terminated unexpectedly with a status of 0x0000135 (0x00000000 0x00000000). The system has been shut down."

w...t...f...

i can get safe mode to log in but then copying files makes it blue screen - i'll get that error message in a sec...

[Edited on November 17, 2006 at 5:49 PM. Reason : .]

11/17/2006 5:42:51 PM

grrrrr now it won't even go into safe mode

formatting for a goddamn bad stick of memory! how pathetic.

11/17/2006 5:54:48 PM

just try running a windows repair first

11/17/2006 6:06:15 PM

nvm.

[Edited on November 17, 2006 at 6:14 PM. Reason : .]

11/17/2006 6:09:14 PM

do friggin' not let Windows chkdsk until you are sure that the marginal condition is resolved. chkdsk will happily destroy your entire filesystem if I/O corruption is occuring. if you haven't chkdsk'd yet, your existing installation will probably still be fine when the root cause of this is isolated.

things to check:

PSU voltages (if you're running +/- 10% or more on any rail you may need a PSU upgrade)
CPU fan (if for whatever reason the RPM sensor is reporting 0 most enthusiast boards will immediately
power off)
CMOS is cleared AND restored to default settings, then double-check your memory timings and frequency, optionally relax the timings and frequency to see if it'll boot
look for signs of leakage from any of the capacitors on the board, if you find any leaky caps you need a new board

if you have other systems laying around with similar components, try to test the CPU, PSU, and memory on other working systems... if you can eliminate all peripheral cards, CPU, PSU, and memory then it's pretty much got to be the board

if you can remember any more about what was actually happening when it shat itself that might provide some insight...

11/18/2006 12:42:24 AM

it was a bad stick of RAM that just died overnight apparently

now my problem is getting windows working. i formatted but my slipstreamed CD is problematic. this has been a horrible day for this PC.

11/18/2006 12:47:44 AM

hey, you could always just get a mac

i kid, i kid

11/18/2006 3:39:11 PM

i've got to slipstream the drivers into windowsxp to recognize my RAID

11/18/2006 4:29:10 PM

sounds like you need ComputerDiaper



http://www.cpu-diaper.com

11/18/2006 6:29:05 PM

touche

11/18/2006 8:36:26 PM

i can't install windows now - something has really gone wrong in the system.

i've slipstreamed the drivers into xp and it successfully recognizes the RAID array and can copy files onto the partition but fails every time i try.

1) Fully customized with options and drivers integrated - blue screened at 100% of files copied over with error BAD_POOL_HEADER
2) Didn't remove any components from Windows (in nLite) and kept everything else the same - gave an error copying a file over but I hit retry and it worked. Blue screened at 100% of files copied over with IRQL_NOT_LESS_THAN blah blah
3) Only added NVRaid drivers to Windows - line 12185 of txtsetup.sif is invalid. (the line says PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_9622&SUBSYS_00018086 = "i2omp" )

I only have my 2 SATA RAIDed drives hooked up, 2 memory sticks (removed the extra stick), and DVD-RW and DVDROM drive hooked up. I've removed my sound card, my TV tuner, my IDE drives - trying just to get Windows installed.

System specs:
Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ Manchester 2000MHz HT
RAM: 3 GB (2 x 1 GB + 2 x 512 MB) Dual Channel DDR400 SDRAM
Motherboard: ABIT KN8 Ultra NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra
Video Card: XFX Geforce 7600GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16
Sound Card: X-FI XtremeMusic
Monitor: Dual 19" @ 1600x1200
PSU: Antec True Power 430W

Software versions:
nLite 1.2.1
Windows XP with SP2
nForce 6.86

My disks have gone bad and I can't remake them without access to the PC - it's the only one with a floppy drive in the apartment. This is a headache!

can i conclude it's a hardware issue or should i really try to get the floppy disk for NVraid drivers somehow?

11/19/2006 2:35:20 AM

ur screwed! new comp time

11/19/2006 7:57:25 PM

grrr wtf could it be?!

11/19/2006 8:41:25 PM

what raid are you trying to setup? 1 or 0?

i would try to set up windows on 1 drive (using a standard XP install disk), then install all necessary rivers, then initialize the raid config.

11/19/2006 10:22:54 PM

the RAID is already set up as JBOD - it's not 1 or 0. it's "just a bunch of disks" put together

i just tried with the standard XP install disk and had a friend make the diskette for me. as soon as it gets to initializing windows, it gives me a blue screen saying my current BIOS isn't ACPI compliant and to get an upgraded BIOS from my motherboard manufacturer or press like F7 during textmode install. I have never gotten this error before and don't know what to do. I don't even know what textmode install is.

11/20/2006 12:46:31 AM

go into your BIOS setup and look for an option to turn ACPI on?

actually I'd reset to defaults and then hunt for the option to turn ACPI on

[Edited on November 20, 2006 at 12:50 AM. Reason : *]

11/20/2006 12:49:05 AM

are you serious? i doubt it's an "option"

i've already reset the CMOS so it should be back to factory

11/20/2006 12:54:16 PM

why did you setup a RAID as JBOD? I don't see the purpose for most consumer rigs as opposed to having two discs on their own. It seems like its more trouble than its worth (as you're finding out). I'm not trying to knock you, just curious.

Why are you reinstalling windows? you just had a bad stick or ram right...what was happening to your windows install after you found the bad stick of ram?

As far as the ACPI thing goes, theres no doubt that your mobo/BIOS is ACPI compliant. But there is almost always a BIOS option for it and you might have to go into the BIOS and enable it. I've never seen it cause a problem but it looks like it is in your case.

11/20/2006 1:58:10 PM

Quote :

"why did you setup a RAID as JBOD? I don't see the purpose for most consumer rigs as opposed to having two discs on their own. It seems like its more trouble than its worth (as you're finding out). I'm not trying to knock you, just curious."

yeah, i'm going to get rid of it as soon as i can now - it's such a pain. i have 2x250gb drives. i figured i can raid them together and then just take out 60gb for a windows partition and leave the rest for a storage - just for ease of file organization.

Quote :

"Why are you reinstalling windows? you just had a bad stick or ram right...what was happening to your windows install after you found the bad stick of ram?"

it was bluescreening within safemode and regular mode after i removed the stick of RAM. i couldn't even copy files off the windows partition that i wanted. it would blue screen all the time.

Quote :

"As far as the ACPI thing goes, theres no doubt that your mobo/BIOS is ACPI compliant. But there is almost always a BIOS option for it and you might have to go into the BIOS and enable it. I've never seen it cause a problem but it looks like it is in your case."

i had two options for ACPI -S1 and S3. it was on S3 so i switched it to S1 and tried installing Windows again. got a page_fault_in_a_nonpaged area bluescreen.

can i be pretty sure it's a bad PSU? i can go pick one up from intrex today because it seems like that's the only component that could be causing such a wide range of bluescreen messages.

11/20/2006 2:18:42 PM

I would def try a new PSU due to the problems you were having earlier...it sounded like PSU problems to me. Besides, even if it isn't the PSU its always good to have a spare one right?

11/20/2006 2:23:58 PM

i have the antec truepower 430w PSU right now - should i get the same one (version II)? or should i opt for more power?

http://www.intrex.com/parts/parts.aspx

430W Antec TruePower II ATX Power Supply, 24-pin, 120mm Fan, Ultra Quiet $79.99
500W Antec Modular ATX Power, 24-pin, SLI Ready, High Efficiency, Active PFC $109.99
550W Antec ATX Power, 24-pin, SLI Ready $109.99

i'd be willing to get any of these. any reason to pick one over the other?

11/20/2006 2:47:47 PM

Well I spent $35 on my last PS from Intrex and it was a only 250 or 300 Watt (it was supposed to be a temp PS but I'm not planning on replacing it anytime soon). My system specs are similar to yours except I have an ATI X800GTO video card and a Pentium D 2.8GHz. My PC has been running fine for at least 6 months on this PS.

so I doubt you need more power than the 430Watt...but it never hurts to have more power

Try this thing out and lemme know what it says...it'll probably put you around 400W I would guess. Make sure you select 1 processor.
http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculator.jsp



[Edited on November 20, 2006 at 3:12 PM. Reason : ]

11/20/2006 2:56:55 PM

yeah i think i'll just get the 430W
that link said i needed 344W

11/20/2006 3:31:02 PM

I have a quick computer question close to this topic.


My computer was fine until last night, but now when I turn it on nothing happens on the monitor and instead all I hear is an on/off beep coming from the CPU.

Any suggestions as to why I can not access anything after turning it on?

Thanks

[Edited on December 27, 2006 at 11:59 AM. Reason : .]

12/27/2006 11:59:02 AM

Is it a dell, if so look at
http://www.bioscentral.com/postcodes/dellbios.htm

12/27/2006 5:43:22 PM