Troubleshooting motherboard issue

[matt91]

Family computer has a Gigabyte GA-945GCM-S2 motherboard with onboard video. It runs XP and is on 24x7.

I went to check email before taking the dogs out for a walk the other morning, and the computer wouldn't respond. I figured it locked up somehow, and rebooted it. But not joy...

When I power on, all the fans start and I hear the HDs spin up; everything seems to be in order. However, the monitor never acknowledges a connection to the computer. That is, there is a green blinking activity light when the monitor is in a power-saving mode, and it just stays there. It normally should turn to solid green and then I'd see the BIOS info. But it just stays black.

I've swapped monitors, but both have identical results. I also had a PCI video card that I threw in, but get identical results - blinking green light and no sign of "life". (The PCI video card should work right off the bat as soon as I install it, right? That is, I shouldn't have to set it up to get *some* video output)

I've pulled out the memory, disconnected all the drives and get the same. I've reset the BIOS, and get the same.

I did a quick visual inspection, and there don't appear to be any bulging caps or anything else obviously out of place.

Any other thoughts on what to try?

Thanks
Matt

PS I'm pretty sure that I disabled the BIOS-beeps a while ago, so I don't really know if it's getting past the BIOS checks or not.

[Bill1426]

If the fan(s) turn on the off at startup and there are no beeps..
Then I would say it's the motherboard... Sorry

[Taddeusz]

What do the capacitors around the processor look like? Are they leaking anything?

[matt91]

Nothing leaking or bulging that I could see. There are a couple that are partially hidden by my processor fan, but they looked OK from what I could see.

this board is 3 years old, and a (similar) replacement is $55 or so from Newegg.

Aside from checking each lead, is there any way to rule in or out the power supply? Since the fans and HDs all spin up, i assume that it's working OK. Is there any other way to check that the PS is OK before I drop $55 on a new board?

[Taddeusz]

Originally Posted by matt91

Nothing leaking or bulging that I could see. There are a couple that are partially hidden by my processor fan, but they looked OK from what I could see.

this board is 3 years old, and a (similar) replacement is $55 or so from Newegg.

Aside from checking each lead, is there any way to rule in or out the power supply? Since the fans and HDs all spin up, i assume that it's working OK. Is there any other way to check that the PS is OK before I drop $55 on a new board?

Just trying a known good power supply would verify whether the one in there is working or not. If you don't have a spare hanging around you can always put two computers side-by-side if the wires are long enough.

[Opus4]

Originally Posted by matt91

Aside from checking each lead, is there any way to rule in or out the power supply? Since the fans and HDs all spin up, i assume that it's working OK. Is there any other way to check that the PS is OK before I drop $55 on a new board?

Newegg has power supply testers. They are probably about half the price you mentioned for the mb, but they would help test power supplies in the future.

- Andy

[david1234]

Take the cover off the power supply and look at the caps in there. I had one that would provide enough juice to turn on the power light on the motherboard, but after opening it, you could see right away that one of the caps had EXPLODED and a couple others were visibly bulged!

[zoundz]

Might also be worth the smell test. I've had a number of power supplies over the years that got that nasty burning electronics smell when they were on the verge of total failure but still appeared to function.

[SHS]

I've swapped monitors, but both have identical results. I also had a PCI video card that I threw in, but get identical results - blinking green light and no sign of "life". (The PCI video card should work right off the bat as soon as I install it, right? That is, I shouldn't have to set it up to get *some* video output)

That only works if have an older AGP board with no onboard Video and I think with PCIe video slot you need install a PCIe Video card if I recall rigth then should automatic switch.
One thing you could is to try reset you bios > clear CMOS jumper.

I've pulled out the memory, disconnected all the drives and get the same. I've reset the BIOS, and get the same.

But I take it that try that clear CMOS and other thing you said
So try pulling your CPU and reseat it if that still dosen't work check the CPU in a diff system just case the CPU had die then you know it the Motherboard it self.
david1234 makes a good piont there how ever it shouldn't be powering up at all ocen you blow a cap how ever if they are any visibly bulged then can cuase to the point where is short out the motherboard or cpu.

[JetreL]

Power supply would be the first thing I try always. They are fairly cheap and are one of the biggest things to fail on a PC.

• Next I would try reseating your RAM. Take them out and put them in different slots.
• Unplug all unnecessary peripherals (extra fans, cd-players, extra drives, etc) see if that resolves your issue. If it does add each back one at a time.
• Make sure the fans are turning for your processor. Canned air the heat-sink to assure good airflow.
• Try to make sure all capacitor are not blown or bulging. (Motherboard, Video Card, extra cards, etc)
• Remove all extra PCI and PCI-E cards.

Good luck!

[matt91]

I picked up a PSU tester, and the PSU checks out fine; Voltage(s) right at spec.

I've pulled every item off the mobo (RAM, HDD, CDROM, PCI cards, etc) and still don't get any signs of life.

So, a new mobo it is. I guess I'll keep this one around in case I get some time in the future (ha!) to try to troubleshoot it again.

thanks for the tips.

[Skirge01]

I just had my client HTPC start BSOD'ing, so I know where you're coming from. I'll skip all the gory details, but I basically ran memtest86+ for 24 hours on a single stick of RAM in each and every slot, then swapped the PSU with another one. When I removed the mobo to put the new one in, I noticed that a single capacitor--which had been concealed by the CPU heatsink--was ever so slightly bulging on top.

[paulbeers]

FYI, I had that same exact mother board in my server and it only lasted about a year and a half. Same exact issue.

[panteragstk]

MB is probly dead. If it all powers up and you get no beeps it is usually ram, cpu, or mb. Bad power supply will sometimes cause the issues you spoke of. I had memory that seemed to work fine, that is until I put it into another motherboard. Suddenly only one stick worked. In the board I thought was dead it caused lots of problems. New ram fixed everything. Although, if you can run memtest successfully then that probobly isn't it.

I'm guessing cpu or mb. Leaning towards mb. Can you disable the onboard video with a jumper? if you can, try it.