‘with the PC. The exact pattems depend on the maker of the BIOS: the most common are Award and AMI BIOS BIOS Startup Screen ‘Whea the system BIOS starts up, you will see its familiar screen display, normally after the ‘video adapter displays ils information These are the contents of a typical BIOS start up screen: + The BIOS Manufacturer and Version Number. + The BIOS Date: The cate of the BIOS can be important in helping you determine its capabilities + Setup Program Key: The key or keys to press to enter the BIOS setup program (This is usually {Del}, sometimes (F2}, and sometimes another key combination. + System Logo: The logo of the BIOS company, or in some cases the PC maker or motherboard manafacturer. + The "Energy Star” Logo: This distinctive lozo is displayed if the BIOS supports the Energy Star standard, which almost all newer ones do. + The BIOS Serial Number: This is normally located at the bottom of the screen. Since BIOSes are highty customized to the particular motherboard, this serial number can be used in many cases to determine the specific motherboard and BIOS version you are using. Check out Wim Bervoets’ BIOS site for a huge list of these numbers ‘Troubleshooting BIOS Beep Codes ‘When a problem is identified with the system during the POST, the BIOS will normally produce an error message. However, in some cases the problem is detected so early in the test that the BIOS cannot even access the video card to print the messaze! In this case the BIOS ‘will produce a beeping pattem on the speaker totell you what the problem is The exact meaning of the beep codes depends on the type and version of BIOS that you have. The three most popular types of BIOS are those made by Award, American Megatrends (AMD and Phoenix. The beep codes for these BIOS products are described in this part of the twoubleshooter. If you are using aPC made by a company that writes its own BIOS, you will hhave to consult your owner's manual A single beep during the boot process, usually right before the BIOS startup screen is displayed, is nonmal and does not indicate a failure as long as the boot continues on, Beep codes can be in several different pattems, depending on the BIOS that you are using Some BIOSe: use very simple beep codes in a pattern of varying numbers of short beeps, ‘while others may mix short and long beeps. The Phoenix BIOS is famous for its complicated beep pattems that are actually in up to four groups-one or more beeps and then a pause, followed by as many as three more pattems.Introduction to Troubleshooti The problems that occur in a PC can be categorized mainly into two. 1. Problem of booting or starting up of the PC 2. Problem occumring after the boot up. For succes below ful troubleshooting, we must always gather some vital information 2s listed + Description of the problem like what error message, unusual displays was seen before the trouble + When did the problem stast? + What was the situation when the problem started 7 + What software or program was running when the problem occurred? + Was the computer moved in the recent times? + Was there any electrical power (Mains) supply problem or a thunderstorm prior to the trouble? + Was any hardware, software or configuration chang + Has someone else used the computer? made in the compater? Next check if the PC is booting or not. If there is any booting problem follow the flowchart shown below to diagnose the faut Doss he PC boo prpety? No —_ yes “raubehoot he stem thatirt wortng Ware an ero 6ST the screen blank}? maciage onthe server? yes no Canyoubea the eve orfan Fespondto Elsa the unnecesare ‘pining orsce igs? Becrormesage. | | Periom a ean boo.” wy Start by wouleshoating | [Can you bear asap the rower eter Seep dung boot vee No Zarby vowichowing | [ Sany the meterboar troubleshooting vdeo It the screen is blank and entire system is "dead" nor lights. no spinning drive or no fan, then there is obviously power supply problem.Ifall the above checks fail to correct the problem, then check the voltage at the pins of the power supply connectors referring to the pin configuration given below: Power Good” Tot wed or Sve [saa to B2vote 12 vole 1 H08 to +132 vols =12 yal [st08 to-132 volts ack ground ack ground ack ground ack grand Bale EEE aS vote TAS to 5B vote rte aa to 5B vote vote Fai BS vols Pin configuration for ATX case Troubleshoot ly fan Aa improperly working fan causes power supply problems. Usually before a fan stops working, it hums or whines, especially when the PC is first tumed on. If this has just happened , replace the fan or replace the power supply stself. If the fan sill does not work even after replacing the power supply then it is not the problem. ‘with the fan. A short somewhere else in the system and drawing too much power may be causing the problem.Do not operate the PC if the fan does not work. Computers without cooling fan can quickly overheat and damage the chips. To troubleshoot a noa functional fin, which might be a symptom of another problem and not a problem of the faa itself, follow the steps: 1. Tum off the power and remove all power cord connections to all components, including the connections to the motherboard and all the power cords to the drives. ‘Tum the power back on. If the fan works, the problem is with one of the systems that was disconnected. not with the power supply or its fan 2 Turn off the power and reconnect the power cords to the drives. If the fan comes on, ‘you can eliminate the drives as the problem. If the fan does not come on, then try ‘one drive at a time till the crive with a short is identified. 3. If the drives are not the problem, suspect the motherboard subsystem. With the power off reconnect all power cords to the drives. 4. Tum off the power and remove the power to the motherboard by disconnecting PS and P9 or PI. Tum back the power on. 5. Ifthe fan works, the problem is probably not the power supply but a short in one of the components powered by the power cords to the motherboard. The power to the ‘motherboard also powers interface cards. ‘Remove all interface cards and reconnect plugs to the motherboard. 7. If the fan still works, the problem is one of the interface cards. Ifthe fan does not work, the problem is the motherboard or something still connected to it. Power problems with the motherboard. The motherboard, like all other components inside the computer case, should be grounded to ‘the chassis. Look for a metal screw that grounds the board to the computer case. However, a short might be the problem with the electrical system if some component on the board makes an improper contact with the chassis. This short can seriously damage the motherboard. Check for missing standoff (small plastic spacers that hold the motherboard a short distance away from the chassis), the problem that most often causes these improper connections ‘Shorts in the cicuils on the motherboard might also cause problems, Look for damage cn the bottom of the motherboard. These circuits are coated with plastic, and quite often damage is difficult to spot Frayed wires on cable connections can also cause shorts. Disconnect hard drive cables connected directly to the motherboard. Power up P8 and PO or P1 connected but all cables disconnected from the motherboard. If the fan works, the problem is with one of the systems ‘you disconnected, Overheating Issues If-your computer hangs after it has been running for a while, you may have an overheating problem. Firs, check whether there is air flow within the case. Open the case and make sureWeek 3 ‘Troubleshooting Boot-Time Error Messages ‘The BIOS performs power-on self-test (POST) when it starts up the system, to check out the PC and make sure that everthing is working properly. Assuming that the BIOS is able to boot the system far enough to gain access ta the video subsystem, it will display information about the PC as it boots. It will also use the video system to communicate error messages to the user. In fact, most boot problems are displayed via video error messages, An error message can be produced by various different parts of the system, depending on how far into the boot process the system gets before it is produced. Most error messages are produced by the system BIOS, as it is responsible for most of the functions of starting the boot. However, other error messages depend on the operating-system. There are many thousands of individual error messages: some are more common than others because there are only a few different BIOS companies that are used by the majority of PCs today. However. since the exact wording of an error message can be changed by the manufacturer of each system or motherboard, there are a lot of variations. In most cases, the messages are pretty similar to cach other; Similar cor messages, those that really mean the same thing but just use different wording, have their descriptions and diagnoses grouped together to make things simpler. Some examples of error messages are: BIOS ROM checksum error - system halted Cache memory baé, do aot enable cache! CMOS battery (has) failed CMOS checksum error CMOS display type mismatch Disk boot failure Disk boot failure, insert system disk and press Enter DMA #1 exror FDD controller failure Keyboard error No boot sector on fixed disk - press F to retry boot Timer error ‘Some of the common error messages and their descriptions are listed in the table below: 14