Laptop turns on for a moment and shuts down

posted in: Troubleshooting | 222

Today I was able to fix a “dead” notebook simply by reseating connectors. The customer brought in Compaq nx5000 notebook with the following complaint:

“Laptop shuts down on power up. When the power button is pushed, the laptop flashes green lights for several seconds and then powers down. Unit will not stay on with battery or when plugged in”.



I plugged the AC adapter and tried to turn on the laptop. After I pushed on the power button, fans started spinning and were active for a few seconds and laptop just turned itself off. The video never came on. I tried to power it on for a few times with the same result.
Here is how I fixed it.
First of all I tried simple stuff: remove the battery and start the laptop with AC adapter plugged in, reseat and swap the memory module, remove the hard drive, the DVD drive, the wireless card. Nothing helped to start the laptop normally. After that I went a little bit further. I opened up the laptop case, removed the LCD screen assembly and reseated the video card and… Surprise, surprise, the laptop started fine with an external monitor attached. Just in case I restarted it 3-4 times and each time I got video on the screen. After I assembled everything back, one more surprise was waiting for me. The laptop failed to boot again with the same symptoms. So, the only part that I added before it failed was the LCD screen assembly. I unplugged the video cable from the system board and the laptop started fine again with the external monitor. Now I know that the problem is somewhere inside the display assembly (of course, if the video connector on the system board is fine). The next logical step would be opening up the LCD display assembly and check if all connectors are seated properly. Bingo!!! I wasn’t very surprised, but I was very happy. The video cable was half-way out from the connector on the back of the LCD screen. The laptop started perfectly fine as soon as I plugged the video cable back in place. Fixed!
That was my first experience when improperly plugged video cable prevented entire system from booting.

Read more:
How to troubleshoot and fix laptop video problems

Laptop has bad video on the LCD screen. What is wrong?



222 Responses

  1. I have a Compaq NX5000 I have a similar problem with my laptop. The problem is when I start my notebook in the afternoon when the temperature is around 30 Celsius, it starts the fan on the backside and after shuting the fan the flash led next to the power on led flashes once and nothing happens. But if I start the notebbok in the morning on the third starting up try it starts the fan starts to work the num lock, caps lock, and scroll lock leds flashing once and the power on led is stays on and the computer starts. It is working then properly till next afternoon? What can be the problem??? Can somebody help me? I tried the connection cable on the back of the LCD panel but it looks ok and when I unplugged from the motherboard the problem was the same, tried to start with an external monitor but it not helped. PLEASE HELP ME!

  2. cj2600

    Peter,
    Your problem is very unusual, I’m not really sure what’s going on. Have you tried to replace the memory module?

  3. Yes I already tried, and when I wiggle the power cord on the back of the notebook it starts. But if it started when I still wiggleing it works properly doesn’t shut down. But the most intresting thing is that, when i plug the battery unit in and unplug the AC power it makes the same: Just little fan moving a HDD turn off and one
    amber flash next to the power on green indicator led. But if i plug the AC without the power just the end of the power cord and start
    wiggling it starts from the battery as well.
    What else can be the problem beside the memory modules?
    It is a HP Compaq NX5000

  4. I purchased a Toshiba Satelite M50 back in December 05 and had no problem with until a few days ago. I would go to turn it on and the fans spun but then it would shut off. Sometimes it would go on and would shut down randomely. I sent it to Toshiba with no clue whats going on with it. Does anyone know what tthe problem could be so I dont get messed with the company? I know ofr a fact that it isnt a virus because I was able to to a full system recovery. If anyone knows what it could be, please help.

  5. I have a similar problem with my Toshiba M35X-S161 (bought 2/05). When I try to turn on the laptop, the power button lights up and the heatsink fan does it’s initial power-up. Sometimes nothing else happens, the power button just stays lit and the I have to hold in the power button for ~10 seconds before it shuts down. Other times it’ll power up with no problems for a VERY short time (usually just past CD-ROM check and the initial splash screen and POST but on rare occasions, it’ll make it all the way to Windows) and cuts the power again to everything but the power button. I checked inside and I have the updated speaker grounding and I’ve replaced the CPU thinking it was sensing an overheating. I know it’s not a faulty DC jack since the battery gets fully charged all the time. Any ideas would be GREATLY appreciated!!

  6. Zak,
    You’ve replaced the CPU in this model, so I assume you know how to take it apart. First of all, try to reseat the memory module/modules. That’s would be nice if you can find a test memory for a while.
    When I have a weird laptop problem and cannot figure out what is wrong, I take it completely apart and assemble a basic system outside the laptop box, right on my bench. For a basic system you’ll need the system board, the CPU with cooling module and the memory module. Assemble everything together outside the laptop base, connect an external monitor and turn it on. You’ll have to remove the power switch board from the top cover or carefully connect it to the system board without removing, it’s up to you. If it still will not boot up, then one of three components is bad. You already replaced the CPU, so it would be either the system board or the memory.
    If you can boot the basic system, start assembling it back and test after each step. Make sure that you put correct screws into correct holes.

  7. Thanks cj for the advice, I really appreciate. I am definitely going to try that route to narrow down the problem.

  8. It sounds like I am having the same exact problem I need help. I’m from the states, but i’m over seas. My compaq presario laptop i thought was damaged on the plane ride over here. It starts up for a few seconds and shuts off just like yours. It has turned on a few times and when it turns on, i can do whatever with it, and it works flawlessly. I can reboot it without any issues. But if i shut it down, or shut it off, it will not turn back on and have the same issue. today i can no longer get lucky and get it turn turn on, can you tell me all the steps i need to follow to try and fix this? I’m open to any suggestions. thank you. If you could please email me if you can help.

  9. Billy,
    Try to reseat the memory module first. You can also try moving it to the second slot. If you can find any test memory, install it instead of your module and test if it makes any difference. From your description I cannot give you a better advice; it could be anything from a loose connection to a bad hardware.
    I would also try to minimize the system, remove modules (hard drive, DVD drive, wireless card, any other cards) one by one and try to turn it on after each removed part.

  10. Thank you for getting back to me, I will give those a shot. I’m not a big Compaq fan, but I bought it cheap, and I use it when I deploy. It has I think 2 512 chips in it, maybe one is failing, I’m not sure I’ve pulled them out before and put them back in because I noticed that I was only ready like 480 ram. Then it came back and said 9 hundred whatever after I did that. The computer actually turned back on right after I went out from writing your email yesterday first try like nothing was wrong. So I’m pretty lost. I don’t mind so much it being a pita to turn on because I can always leave it on, but sometimes I take it to work and then I get shafted like yesterday. Thanks for your help.

  11. D. Holloway

    Hello, I just wanted to say thank you to whoever left the article as I look like the bomb after reading this and repairing it for a friend worked awesome and yes took some time but it also made the “Experts” look like smo’s when the stated power switch,battery, and even mother board. I honestly sitched out every switch out quick component hard drive memory you name this artice and this site saved me.. God Bless & Thank You!!

  12. I have the exact and I mean the exact same problem. I have been having issues with my video display so I am certain that is what is causing my laptop to shutdown. Thanks for the suggestion.

  13. I have a Thinkpad G41 …….It is not starting at all …..when i push the power on button ……nothing happens …just the power LED glows ..thats it …nothing displays ……the cap locks led also doesnt displays ………if u happen to know anythinh about this pls let me know

  14. Vish,
    Do you hear any other laptop activity: the fan start spinning, the harddrive makes some noise or the DVD drive LED light starts flashing?
    I would try to reseat the memory module. Remove the memory and insert it back, try to move it into another slot. If you have 2 memory modules installed, remove them one by one and test the laptop after each removed module. It easily could be just a failed memory.

  15. I have a Dell Inspiron something or other laptop (i think i paid over $1800 for) which shortly after the warranty ran out I started having problems with. when you turn it on it says no bootable hard drive found….Dell did its troubleshooting and said …I need a new hard drive…….$80 dollars later that didnt help either…now I had to resort back to an old gateway desktop that is slower than hell….I also have a Dell desktop that doesn’t work…..very frustrated……I will be forever greatful if you could help me….

    Heard about you on the Howard Stern show

  16. James Gordon

    What a great site! I have a thinkpad a21m. It boots up fine, runs for 15 minutes and then shuts down, all the LED lights start flashing and it tries to reboot, gets to the thinkpad splash screen, shuts down and tries to reboot repeatedly until I hold the power button down for a few secs to shut it off. If I wait 10 minutes or so it’ll start up and run fine for another 15 minuts and repeat the same cycle. I just bought it used 2 weeks ago and it worked fine for a week. I installed a new hard drive thinking that would help but I still have the same problem.
    It did stay up long enough for me to install windows XP (I had it sitting on a vented plastic rack with a fan blowing on it) but then started doing the same thing. Do you think I have a bad fan? I’ve installed all the ibm management utilities. I’m really at a lost. Thanks for any direction you can point me in.
    James

  17. Gilly,
    When you see “no bootable hard drive found” during laptop start up, it usually means that the HDD is dead or it’s empty and an operating system is not found. It also might happen because of a bad HDD controller on the system board, but it’s not common. If the hard drive is dead, then you’ll have to replace the HDD and reload the operating system from a recovery CD or DVD. I don’t know what level of computer knowledge you have and I have to ask a simple question. Did you reload the operating system after you replaced the hard drive? 😀 If you didn’t, find the original recovery media (CD or DVD disk), boot the laptop from it and follow the wizard.
    Here are some troubleshooting tips.
    First of all, I would check if the new HDD is detected and listed in the BIOS. Enter the BIOS setup menu and see if you can see the hard drive in there. If you can see the HDD listed in the BIOS, it’s detected properly and probably you have a software issue. I don’t remember the key that you have to press for Setup on Dell laptops; usually it’s Esc, F1, or F2. On some models you can see this key under the Dell logo witch appears as soon as you turn on the laptop. Try them. You can also can test the HDD with Hard drive test utility Hitachi drive fitness test, if the test passes successfully, I would assume that the system board and the HDD are fine. Let me know how it goes.

  18. James,
    It might be just an overheating issue. I would check if the heatsink is clean. You can check the heatsink if you lift up the keyboard. When you turn on the laptop, the fan should start spinning. You also can access and check the fan if you lift up the keyboard.

  19. James Gordon

    cj2600
    Thank you for your reply.
    I’ll check that out and post a reply here as to my results.
    James

  20. James Gordon

    I believe you helped me find the problem.
    The fan wasn’t blowing!
    For 15 minutes or so the computer would run fine but no fan.
    When the computer shut down and tried to boot back up,
    I put my hand back there and felt the fan trying to start. Warm puffs of air but not engaging. I took it apart and pulled the fan. Not much dust and it spun freely with me blowing on it.
    I slapped it back together hoping it was a loose Molex connector that was the problem and made sure the connectors where solid.
    But alas, the fan continues to not run and the laptop shuts down after 15 or so minutes.
    I am heartened by this because now I can replace the fan and (if it is the fan and not a wire
    going to the fan) hopefully be in good shape.
    This is an IBM thinkpad a21m laptop that I have and the power button is on the keyboard so I had to put it all back together before I could start it and test the fan again
    Does anyone know of a way I can start it without the keyboard in place?
    Thanks again,
    James

  21. James,
    I think the keyboard cable is long enough and it’s not necessary to put the keyboard back in the laptop base during the test. When I have to test the fan on IBM laptop, I connect the keyboard cable to the system board and place the keyboard on the palmrest. After that I can start the laptop from the keyboard and still have and access to the cooling fan.

  22. James Gordon

    cj2600,
    Thanks for the tip(s).
    I’ll try that when I reinstall the new fan.
    James

  23. Hi.
    I have exactly the same problem on my toshiba A60 after removing the onboard RAM chips. They were dead, and that was told me by memtest86. Instead of replacing the motherboard, I was adviced to remove the chips and put memory in the external socket, by a user with the same problem.. now fixed. I did it carefully without damage in the board circuits, and now, the after pluging new RAM in the socket behind the board, the laptop boots for 2-3 seconds and then shuts down. How can I ckeck out whats happening? Anyone can help?

  24. Ok, this issue sounds exactly like the one I’m having.
    I have an Alienware Aurora M770 (supposedly reliable top of the range stuff) Bought it second hand from ebay but it was brand new when the guy sold it to me (he needed his money back) and has been working fine for about 4 months.

    What happens. I press power on, Power related LED’s come on, LED clock comes on the front, fan’s have spun sometimes as well.
    The hard drive LED shows for about 1-2 seconds and the DVD drive spins briefly, then it all clicks off except for the LED’s and tries again, trying to boot every few seconds. Nothing at all comes out of the speakers or on the monitor.

    Now presumably if it was the graphics card, something would come on screen nontheless via the motherboard. If it was the hard drive, then the screen would come on and say hard drive not found, if it was the power supply my fans and LED’s would not stay on.
    I have swapped 2 RAM sticks over, and tried to start it with just each one in. I have started it without the hard drive, without the graphics card, and without the DVD drive, just in case one of these were faulty and were causing a boot malfunction. Same thing happens every time.

    So I thought it must be a processor issue. Till I read this original post and thought perhaps the screen is not being detected and therefore causing a boot problem. So I tried tried booting with an external monitor, no luck. I then took the LCD display apart (which was really scary!) but could not find any faults in the connections. I did not pull the tape from the back of the LCD screen itself where the wire connects since I did not feel comfortably with that and thought it might break the connection permanently if I started messing with it.

    Any thoughts? Also if the graphics card was not detected becuase it was either broke or because the connection was bad where the actual card was, would the system still boot with some basic motherboard visuals, or just not start at all?

    In addition the system was bought in UK, and this has happened in Japan where I now live (which makes it far more difficult to get it fixed! However my transformer power pack specifically says 100 to 250 volts is acceptable, the voltage here being 110. And it has worked fine for 2-3 weeks until this happened anyway.

    One other thing, my first idea was to reseat some of the componants a few days ago, ad when I reseated my graphics card the system did boot and worked fine for about 15 minutes, then the screen and system froze and kept flicking between the fully lit up screen and what appeared to be a screen without a backlight (ie a very faded out dark image that nontheless displayed the same windows screens I had up). It was stuck like this for a while so I just turned it off, and it hasn’t come back on since, even after me playing with the graphics card a few times to try and make this happen again.
    This makes me think it must be a problem with visual hardware not being detected, ie graphics card or screen, since if it has come on a worked perfectly since the first time this happened then all other componants like processor/RAM/hard drive etc. must be working fine and there is simply a poor connection in the visual hardware preventing it from booting.
    Is this sound reasoning?

    I’m stuck for ideas now and don’t want to give it to a japanese person I can’t understand and pay him 10,000 Yen to tell me its a loose wire somewhere! so any ideas very much appreciated.

    Sorry for the length of this post but thought it best to get as much info as possible in at first

    thanks for any help you can give!!!!

  25. Hey Paul,
    You did a very good job troubleshooting your laptop. Here’s what I think:

    I reseated my graphics card the system did boot and worked fine for about 15 minutes

    You might have a failing video card or a bad connection between the video card and the motherboard. Disconnect the video cable from the video card (or system board) and start the laptop with an external monitor attached to it. This test will eliminate the entire display assembly (screen and video cable). If you can get video on the external monitor when the laptop screen is disconnected from the video card (system board), then most likely the problem is somewhere inside the laptop display assembly.

    Also if the graphics card was not detected because it was either broke or because the connection was bad where the actual card was, would the system still boot with some basic motherboard visuals, or just not start at all?

    I do not have a straight answer to this question. It depends. You might get a gargled video output, a video with some strange characters all over the screen, or no video at all.
    I believe that if you start the laptop without the video card attached to the motherboard, you will not get any video at all, even a basic one.

    I don’t know how comfortable you are with taking the laptop apart. When I get a laptop like yours for repair, I usually take it apart completely and minimize to a bare minimum.
    System board, video card (if it’s a separate module), memory, CPU (with cooling module) – that’s all you need to start the laptop with a basic video on an external monitor. If I can boot it with video, I start adding parts and test it after each step. If I still cannot boot the system, I start replacing parts starting with memory and CPU. Unfortunately, it’s very hard to troubleshoot a laptop without any test parts.

    Make sure that your memory sticks are good. I understand that it’s very unlikely that both memory modules fail at the same time, but anyway. Reseat them again. Move each module into different slots on the motherboard, make sure that you test any possible combination (module 1-slot 1, module 1 – slot 2, module 2 – slot 1, module 2 – slot 2).
    Also reseat any cable and connector you can find and access.
    Make sure that the AC adapter is good. Remove the battery and try starting the laptop just on AC power, without the battery installed.

    Good luck!

  26. Cheers cj, really appreciate it, will be sure to try all of your ideas. If I take my latop to an internet cafe I can chekily book a private booth and hook it up to their monitor to see if that works, and then try out everything else you said.
    If I understand correctly your saying that by detaching the display assembly by just taking the video cable out of the motherboard and then attaching an external monitor I will thus determine whether the problem involves the display or not.

    however the plot thickens, I noticed a couple of days ago when I removed the video card that one of the 4 nuts that the video card assembly screws into has broken off the motherboard. Basically their are two connecting strips for the video card on the board with 2 screws each, one at either end. The screws hold the video card and fan to the board connectors. thus one of the nuts not being there means the card is not firmly attached to one end of one of the board connections.

    So before I do anything else I think I should solder the nut back onto the board (I found it down the side of the board), since this seems the most likely problem, if this dosn’t fix it then I can stat trying everything else.

    Should I be concerned about damaging the board if I start soldering? Presumably if I use as little as possible and apply it very carefully the the nut it should be fine. Can you think of any obvious things I should be minful of etc. Also, to connect it tightly I probably need to somehow remove the solder still attached to the board, since it is preventing a snug fit. Not entirely sure how to go about this.

    I’m also concerned that I have broken this nut of once I started messing with the laptop! and so the reason it is not turning on is something else, which would make me an idiot. Nontheless i think there’s little point doing anything else till this is fixed, process of elimination and all…

    thanks again

  27. Paul,
    I don’t think that you can attach the broken nut with a regular solder. I’m not familiar with Alienware laptops. Toshiba laptops have nuts glued into a hole on the motherboard, I guess Alienware uses the same technique, not sure though.
    If you can easily access the video card under the keyboard, you can try this. Lift up the keyboard, press on the video card so it makes a better connection and turn on the laptop while you are still pressing on the card. Does it make any difference?

  28. I’m posting again, i posted earlier on page 2. My compaq has officially died. Like i stated before, It turns on for maybe 2-3 seconds, then shuts off. Before every so often it would turn on, and run fine for as long as i left it turned on. It did seem a little sluggish sometimes though. It’s a compaq 2ghz, 1 gig of ram. Last night i took the thing apart as far as i could figure out. i took both ram chips out, swapped tried each separte, no help. I pulled the LCD completely out of the computer, and disconnected and reconnected every connector i saw hoping for a stroke of luck. Still the same symptom. I dropped my computer off to be configured for our network, and they told me my NIC card wasn’t reading correctly, so i bought an external usb one to try, but never made it that far yet. I have had an issue with using my Wireless NIC, it would freeze while trying to install software for it ( this was before the current problem) i’m just throwing out there everything i can think of. I’m not sure what else to try. i had the hard drive out, the battery out, and tried it with the battery out. I couldn’t get the main part of the laptop in half, i didn’t want to break it, though i did feel like bashing it many times. Basically i’m writing because i’m deployed in the desert and i’ve got nothing else to passt he time besides this laptop on occasions so if i can rig this thing or fix it somehow, that would be great. I just need it to last for another two months. Thanks for the help. I appreciate any ideas and replacement ideas for the laptop, or parts.

  29. Stephen

    I recently had a problem with my A60 Toshiba (overheating) as most people have. So i found a website which explained how to open the laptop up and clean it out but when i opened it up (100 scres later) it would not come fully apart (think it was cd drive stopping it). Realised i was out of my depth, put it back together, switched it on and the machine was switching on but the screen was blank (black). I obiously must of broke dissconnected something but dont know hat to do. Please Help

  30. You were spot on with that solution, brilliant.
    Must be a common problem with that series.
    Thanks for sharing your knowledge

  31. I bought a Dell Inspiron 9300 laptop. The problem is only when operating with the battery, the video shuts off. The Windows XP logo is seen as it boots up, but then the video shuts off. Only the WiFi light is on and the Power (1st light) is ON, on the base of the lid.

    Tried all software settings (set most to ‘Never’). Did diagnostics etc., Still it wont stay on.

    It works fine with AC adapter.

    Any help is much appreciated. Thanks.

  32. hai.my old laptop(twinhead slimnote vxe) have a problem.hope you all can help me how to solve that problem.the problem is my laptop always turn off after 30-45 minute running.i open the casing and my cpu fans was dead.i’ve chang that cpu fan with fan with same size.but the problem is my cpu fan have 3 wire.red,black and yellow but my new fan with same size have 2 wires.just black and red.

  33. insp93,
    Enter the BIOS setup and see if you can change any settings for video in there. If there is an option “load default settings” go for it. Try upgrading/reflashing the BIOS.

  34. qhozi,
    Have you tried contacting the manufacturer and buy a new fan from them?

  35. I have a Toshiba A15-S127 that has worked fine for me even though the battery does not stay charged very long. Recently I tried to turnit on and the power light came on but nothing else happened. I checked all modules as best I could but found nothing loose. The last time it booted I got a CMOS settings lost which I associated with the battery being low. I cannot find any information about the MB to see if it has an old-fashioned CMOS battery. My basic problem is the power works but nothing runs, boot or fans. Any Ideas?

  36. I have an inspiron 5000e and i have a prblem with it.It started earlier this year.It all of a sudden just started shutting on and then in a few seconds it shut down.I have tried many things,i took off all the parts to see if anything was wrong.Nothing was wrong so i took off the battery n left the ac adaptor in to see if it would work, but it stil didnt.i need help badly. it would be a pleasure to get help and see my laptop working again.

  37. Hello
    I have a fujistu siemens notebook and everything was working fine, one day when i turned it on, the lcd is white and the computers boots normally, but nothing appears on the screen except the white color, if i press the button to dark the image that white color becomes darker, if I plug it to an external monitor the external monitor works fine but the notebook LCD keeps white, does anyone know what’s wrong? Please help me guys

  38. I have an Inspiron 1000. I’ve had problems with it in the past and have sent it back for repairs (motherboard). Now, I have a new issue. My laptop will not turn on unless the screen is tilted between 0 and 75 degrees or at 180 degrees. If I open my laptop to a normal angle and press the power button, the lights will flash and the fan will begin to run. After about 5 seconds, the fan will stop but the power light stays on. Sometimes, the startup screen will appear briefly. Other times, nothing will happen. Also, if the screen is moved when the laptop is on, it will shut off. Can anything be done to get my laptop working normally?

  39. I have an Dell Inspiron 8600 for 2 years now
    Couple of days back the laptop fell on the wooden floor from my laptop table.
    It was working OK after that, but suddenly the power went off.

    Now when I press the power button, the indicator light lits up for a few seconds before shutting off. I am able to see battery getting charged(via the indicator light).

    The problem is same with/without battery.

    I have opened up the laptop. I donot see even the heat sink fan running. I highly appreciate if you can help me in brining back life to my dead laptop.

  40. Some of what people have described here sounds just like what I’m dealing with on my son’s NX5000. But I can’t even figure out how to lift up the keyboard to check everything.

    Can anyone tell me how to do that? I’d like to be able to make sure everything is seated correctly, and I may be replacing the keyboard as well since it is missing two keys.

  41. Ravi,
    Here’s what I do with dropped laptops. I open them up and reseat memory, wireless card, CPU, etc… the parts that have some weight and might pop up from the socket when the laptop is dropped. Check if the cables are seated properly.

  42. David,
    You can download a maintenance and service guide (2.79MB) for HP Compaq nx5000 notebook PC. Instructions on the page 127 shows how to lift up the keyboard.

  43. I was just able to fix a Dell Inspiron 8000 that was dropped and experiencing the same problem (start up, blinking lights for a few secs, then shuts down). I used the disassembly instructions from Dell’s support page to remove the screen, then remove and reseat the video cable. Works great! Thanks.

  44. I have a Compaq Presario 1700 that just quick working on my last trip. It was dropped about 2 feet in a padded case but enough to jar it. Read all the threads above and found tons of great trouble shooting info but nothing that would make it come back to life. When you plug it in to AC power the green light comes on. Press the power button and it powers up for about 3-5 seconds then shuts down. When the hard drive is installed you can hear that spin up then shuts down. Took it completely apart; screen, battery, DVD drive, harddrive, memory, fan, CPU, mouse, key board, the works. I then put it all back together and still no luck. Power up then shut down. I took the advice from someone above that all it needs is 3 components to power up and stay on; motherboard, CPU and 1 stick of memory, and then an external monitor if you want to see if you have video. I was just looking for it to stay on for starters. I tore it all back apart again and put the CPU back in and the memory back in and still nothing. Called around and everybody was saying it sounds like a bad motherboard and wanted $60 – $80 to diagnose if that was the problem. Another $200 for a motherboard. The computer is about 4 years old so not worth throwing a lot of money into. Figured I would take one more closer look at the mother board to see if anything looked out of place. I pulled the CPU back out again and here is where I found my problem. The CPU has a sliding plate that locks the CPU down. I had just set the CPU on the plate not realizing it needed to be slid over to lock it into place. When it was originally dropped it must have been just at the exact angle to unlock that slide and loosen the CPU, because when I originally took it off, it just came right up. I didn’t unlock it to pull it out. So, I locked it down, and it fired right up. FREE FIX. Now some of you might be saying, “Well DUH”. And I can appreciate that. But for any others who might be reading this, when people say to “Reseat the CPU”, make sure it is locking into place, either by a sliding plate, lockdown screw or a small lever similar to the CPU plates in a tower”.

  45. I have an IBM T30 with very similar symptoms, everything else works but the LCD won’t come on. At boot, the control LEDs light up, the fan and harddisk start spinning, but after a few seconds it powers down. I then need to disconnect power (either mains or battery) for a few seconds, reconnect power, and the same happens again and again.
    I have already replaced LCD-cable, inverter and LCD-screen.
    The whole laptop has been fully dis-assembled. I inspected the mobo with a magnifying glass to look for loose bits, hairline cracks, bulging condensers, fallen off pieces etc. Nothing.

    With an external monitor it works absolutely perfect, regardless of whether the LCD-cable is connected to the motherboard or not. IBMs PC-Doctor diagnostics does not find any errors at all. Checked/swapped memory sticks (2×256). The battery is being charged etc.

    The fact that I have to remove the power to be able to even try and reboot, leads me to believe that something in the power circuit to/from the LCD is broken, capacitors blown, or even the BIOS gone. I flashed the BIOS successfully to the latest version. With external monitor = perfect, with LCD, no go.

    Any insight/tips/help appreciated

  46. I have a Compaq Presario V2000 and am having real troubles with the thing turning/staying on. It seems the laptop is very sensitive. Lots of times the power light will turn on and then off. Other times it’ll start to wind up but then either the HDD or DVD starts winding up and the laptop powers down. Other times (like now) it runs perfectly but a slight bump or picking it up shuts it off. From reading the thread it sounds like a loose connection somewhere and cj2600’s motif is “check the memory module” so I will do that when I get the chance. The laptop comes with me everywhere and I ride a bicycle or motorcycle so I imagine the laptop is repeatedly jolted, further supporting the bad connection theory. I’m gonna reseat the memory before confirmation but if that doesn’t lick it are there other areas notorious for wiggling out of place?

  47. I have a Toshiba 1115-S103, I read how you repaired the Compaq nx5000 by reseating the video cable inside the LCD screen. Well on my Toshiba, it does the same thing, powers up for a few seconds, the hard drive and fan spin and then it shuts right down. I took everything appart, all I had was the motherboard and batter and hard drive hooked up and still it does the same thing. What could all of a sudden cause it not to power up? And what would be the fix?
    Also before it started not to power up, just 2 days ago, the LCD display showed nothing when on, it was just black.
    Any suggestions would help.
    Thanks

  48. Joe,

    I took everything apart, all I had was the motherboard and batter and hard drive hooked up and still it does the same thing

    Did you test the AC adapter with a voltmeter, maybe the adapter is bad?
    If the system is minimized completely and will not start with a known good AC adapter, most likely there is something wrong with the motherboard. You’ll have to replace the motherboard.

  49. I’m a bit disappointed that I never got an answer here.
    Anyway, I ‘fixed’ it by replacing the motherboard with a used one from eBay. IBM Thinkpads must be the easiest laptops in the world to work on: only 3 different types of screws!

  50. I have the same problem “Laptop shuts down on power up. When the power button is pushed, the laptop flashes green lights for several seconds and then powers down. Unit will not stay on with battery or when plugged in”.

    Please help me. A repair person told me its the motherboard. What should I do?

  51. You guyz seem to know the stuff u r doing … i have a compaq nc8000 it was working fine but suddenly it shutdown and when i tried to restart it even with the power cable connected to it, the fan would run for about 20-30 secs and then system would shutdown. I don’t know how to take my laptop apart and i really dont wanna do it…If any of u guyz can help i would really appreciate it

  52. cj2600

    Sohaib,
    You cannot troubleshot the problem without taking it apart. You’ll find disassembly instructions in the maintenance and service guide for HP Compaq nc8000.

  53. Hermanus

    I have a bit of a more complicated problem. I have 2 Dell laptops and a Dell XPS desktop PC. Around the same time they all started to blank out after the Windows logo screen. It doesn’t seem like they are still booting, so I doubt it’s the video card(also video card on 3 pc’s???). I have a 2wire network modem so I’m wondering whether this could be causing the issue? I have allready reinstalled windows and one of the laptops is now working fine, but the XPS worked for a couple of days and then back to blanking out. Anyone have any ideas?

  54. bonnie flaig

    I borrowed my sons Dell Laptop – now I have a problem with the piece located on the back that the ac adapter plugs into. It was not making a connection and I fooled with it and made it worse. Where do I find a replacement part and what is it called. Can I start the computer another way (no battery) – Help! I would appreciate any help! Thanks.

  55. cj2600

    Hermanus,
    Maybe your problem somehow related to the latest Windows update? Do you set your computers to update automatically? Try reverting the operating system back to the previous state using the system restore utility and see if the problem disappears.

  56. Hermanus

    I can’t actually even get into windows to get as far as system restore, no safe mode or anything. Also, why do you think the one laptop would be working fine now? And the 3rd laptop was working fine with new updates until I hooked it up to the network.

  57. cj2600

    bonnie flaig,

    I have a problem with the piece located on the back that the ac adapter plugs into. It was not making a connection and I fooled with it and made it worse. Where do I find a replacement part and what is it called.

    This part is called “Power jack”, “AC jack” or “DC-IN jack” and you can find it on eBay. But it’s not easy to replace it. Most likely the power jack is soldered on the motherboard.

  58. I have a HP Pavilion n5000 notebook. It does the exact same thing as the first entry above. If the power button is pushed it runs a fan for a few seconds and then shuts off. I discovered that if the CD/DVD drawer was open that the computer would boot up normally. When the drawer was pushed in the computer would shut off. I replaced the CD/DVD drive (a Mashita UJDA710) with a new one and was pleased when the computer booted up normally. My elation was dampered when I inserted a CD disk into the drive and closed the drawer. The computer shut off immediately. I’m stumped. I could get a USB CD drive and use that, but I’d like to fix this problem. Ever seen this before or have any suggestions?

  59. Hi i have the same problem with an HP DV1000, sometimes when i boot it, it’ll power up and will do nothing. not even the BIOS will show. then sometimes it’ll shut off after a few secs like the first guy said. I looked inside for any loose cables and think i put everything in properly. It won’t boot with external or normal screen. I still think it’s the video like the first guy said. i just can’t find what you mean by “reseating the video card” i can’t find a card it’s just the motherboard, help is greatly appreciated. Thanks

  60. Same problem here with an HP nc6000. Came on all of the sudden. I will try re-seating, but I have no experience disassembling a laptop and recognizing the parts 🙁

  61. Victor

    Helo
    This site is greate, thanks so much for this wanderful job.
    I have a problem whit my frend’s laptop is an toshiba A75
    the prblem is:
    In a few cases : Laptop turns on for a few seconds and then shuts down. No video appears on the screen. I do what your say in this page but still the same problem.
    In other cases it boots and in the boot proccess or after boot the laptop freez and in the display apears malformed images something like colored squares or lines.
    i check DC adapter and connecter and both is ok, check a cooling sistem and work “fine”.
    in this step i don’t know what else i can do.
    Thank you a lot for help

  62. Karissa

    I have a floor display model, Toshiba Satellite M50 that I bought Jan. 26 at Best Buy, and I am having similar problems. It froze up for me when I was surfing the internet from my couch instead of my office desk (Maybe too much jiggling).

    When I went to restart it, it wouldn’t shut off so I unplugged it and removed the battery like I have had to do before. Then it wouldn’t start. The fan would run, the power lights would come on then it wouldn’t do anything. No sound or monitor. I took it to the Geek Squad and the guy there said that it probably was the motherboard and it needed to be sent to the Geek Squad Lab to have it replaced and have it back in 2 weeks IF they had the correct one, otherwise they would have to order it from Toshiba and it could take up to 6 weeks. All under manufactures warranty but I have to pay $50 shipping.

    I run a business from home and all my important info is on it. I can’t have it gone that long! So I had them do an unlimited data retrieval which cost another $150 since I have more then 10GB. I have a back up from when I transferred computers in January and did a partial back up in Feb. but I have gain 17 new clients since then and haven’t had time or remembered to do a back up.

    So my question is,
    Would it be the same for my computer? I didn’t see any posts that said if it happens to different models.
    Thanks

  63. I have an IBM Thinkpad that will turn on, but the screen stays black (dead). The fan whirs loudly in a pulse-like rhythm.

    I took it to a local computer-repair shop and they said my best bet was to buy a new laptop. (They said it might be the motherboard, but weren’t sure.) I’m not sure that they’re very experienced… Any other suggestions?

  64. cj2600

    Victor,

    In other cases it boots and in the boot process or after boot the laptop freezes and in the display appears malformed images something like colored squares or lines.

    Test the laptop with an external monitor. If the same images and colored squares appear on the external video, most likely you have a problem with the graphics card (integrated into the motherboard) or memory (integrated into the motherboard too).
    If you have any extra memory stick installed and test the laptop only with base memory. If the same problem appears, I would say you have a motherboard problem.
    If this Satellite A75 was purchased in the United States, take it to an authorized repair center. You can get a free repair because Toshiba extended warranty for this model.

  65. cj2600

    Karissa,

    Would it be the same for my computer? I didn’t see any posts that said if it happens to different models.

    Yes, it could happen with any computer. If the laptop is still under warranty, I wouldn’t open up the case myself.

    I run a business from home and all my important info is on it.

    Here’s what you can do to access the hard drive and backup all personal data.
    1. Buy an external use enclosure for notebook hard drives
    2. Remove the hard drive from the laptop and install it into the enclosure
    3. Connect the enclosure to any other working computer via USB cable
    4. The hard drive should be detected automatically
    5. Access the hard drive and backup data

  66. cj2600

    Heidi,

    I have an IBM Thinkpad that will turn on, but the screen stays black (dead). The fan whirs loudly in a pulse-like rhythm.

    Sounds like a problem with the motherboard. I think they are right.

  67. Jennifer

    I have a dell inspiron 700m, last night i dropped it on the side that the dvd/cd drive is on. when i power the computer on, it seems to load fine except the screen does not come on. any sugguestions on what could be wrong or how to fix it? thanks.

  68. cj2600

    Jennifer,
    If the laptop was dropped and doesn’t work properly anymore, I would recommend checking all cables and reseating all connectors first. It’s possible that one of the cables inside the laptop got loose and that’s why the screen doesn’t come on. I would check the video cable first. Unfortunately, it will be necessary to take the laptop apart and if you have no experience fixing laptops, do not open the case.

  69. Great site!
    I have a very similar problem as in the original article:
    Compaq nx5000, followed me to the ground in a stumbling accident after I was attacked by a vicious sidewalk. I feared the worst, both for my knee and the computer, but it worked – until my knee was good enough to move three days later, and when I tried to turn it on (the laptop, that is), the behaviour was exactly as described in the post:
    – fan starts
    – HD led (#4 from left) lights up
    – computer power-offs
    – orange power led (#3 from left) blinks and goes off.

    I followed the suggestions above, took the whole thing apart, more or less, at least up until the screen and the memory modules.
    Here are the results:
    – Most times, nothing happens
    – Once, this was after I had taken off the screen, the three green leds on the top went on and the computer started. I had then forgotten to put in the PCI card, so it wouldn’t boot, but there was hope…
    – … but on the next attempt, it was black again.
    – Once, a number of attempts later, the green leds momentarily blinked on just before it shut down again.
    – Once, I actually managed to get into the computer with an external display. Everything worked, and I backed up the past few days’ work. Phew….
    – Next attempt: black again. And again. And again.
    – until I had given up and assembled the whole thing again, to bring it to repair, and I pressed the button one last time — and it went on.

    And that’s where I am right now. I don’t think I’ll turn it off again, although I will have to do something about it.
    It seems very erratic when it works and when it doesn’t. At first I thought it must be the screen (it seemed to have taken some beating in the fall; the right hinge was a bit looser than it used to), but now it’s working just fine. I’ve looked for loose connectors and tried to reassemble various cards, but I can’t find anything that seems wrong.
    What are the odds that it can be fixed, by me or some official repair guy? Any ideas what it can be?

  70. cj2600

    Eyolf,
    Not sure what is causing the problem, probably you still have a loose connection somewhere inside the laptop. Did you reseat the CPU? Did you actually open up the display assembly and reseat the video cable on the back of the LCD screen, not just on the motherboard?
    Here’s what I would try.
    Unplug the laptop display panel from the motherboard and test the laptop with an external monitor. If the laptop works fine with the external monitor and never fails when the LCD is unplugged but it fails when the LCD is plugged back into the motherboard, the problem is somewhere inside the display panel.
    If the laptop fails with the external monitor even when the LCD is unplugged from the motherboard, probably there is a loose connection somewhere on the motherboard.

  71. rachael

    ok well; i pressed the power button while my computer was starting up and now it wont turn on.

    and when it goes to the screen where you choose how to run windows cause it wasnt turned off properly, i choose what it says and it goes to a blue screen which disapears to fast for me to read. it sucks..

    cause it was broken like a week ago… and i broke it AGAIN.

    my parents like hate me!

    any ideas?

  72. cj2600

    Rachael,

    ok well; i pressed the power button while my computer was starting up and now it wont turn on.

    It shouldn’t break the computer.
    You said the laptop was broken a week ago, maybe it actually hasn’t been fixed and the BSOD error you are getting now is related to the previous problem?
    First of all test the hard drive and run the memory test. You can use Hitachi’s drive fitness test for the HDD and Memtest86+ for the memory. You’ll find both links on the right side in Resources.

  73. Jeff Pancrazio

    I had the SAME dell, with the SAME issue, mine turned out to be the video connector on the MB, unplugged it from the MB, used external video and worked, so i reseated the video, and good as new!.. thanks for the post!.

  74. justin

    i have a dell inspiron 2650 i’m working on the the situation was you plug it in try to turn it on and it would blink for a sec then shut down the know good power supply (the lite on the power brick would turn off!)- so i figured to get a cheap used motherboard off ebay- so i picked one up well this one will work for like a day then shut off- the fan will come on for a second all leds light up then just the power one is lit- tried all the usual troubleshooting tips swap out the ram disconnect all drives- hook up external monitor – no video there either- swap out the video card (its separate on this model) i don’t have an extra cpu so it could be that- anyone have a tip for fixing either of these 2 motherboards- sometimes if i reseat the cpu and reseat all the connectors it will work for a day or so- any tips or info would be great- i don’t wanna shell out a couple hundred dollars for a known working mainboard this computer isn’t worth it

  75. justin

    no ideas? anything i haven’t tried? 2 bad motherboards i guess wish i had the schematics to attempt troubleshooting

  76. Hi i have an ibm think pad A20m laptop. Now it boots up to the screen that say IBM Thinkpad and stays like that for about a minute then it shuts down then restarts itself. I turned it on once and let it stay on to see if it would finnally boot up to windows but it just constantly boots up then restarts it self then shuts down the restarts itself I dont understand whats going wrong. Can some on help me out here please. Thank you…

  77. aurangzeb

    my compaq armada 7700 laptop has a problem inon and off and no diaplay .
    please tell me its fault

  78. aurangzeb

    i have dell d400 laptop it has aproblem in motherboard and no proper display
    please tell me it fault

  79. Hi.i have a HP pavillion dv6516tx laptop;just 1 month ago.I am also facing the same kind of issue.
    1.When i turn ON the power LED it turns on and turns off after 2 seconds.
    2.Tried using battery alone and AC adapter alone.still the same condition.
    3.Reseated the Ram modules also.Still the problem exists.
    4.Sometimes the laptop would turn ON and work smoothly and sometimes it would not start as described above.

    Want help….and also wanted to know why this problem occurs sometimes but not all times.

  80. suresh,
    If your laptop is still under warranty, I would send it for repair to HP. I think you might have a problem with the motherboard and it has to be replaced.

  81. I had the exact problem as the one posted. I open up the laptop by removing two screws from the back, sliding down 4 tabs for the keyboard and then lifting out the keyboard. By doing this it gives access to the internals. I then popped off the trim tab above the keyboard. At this you can see the LCD cable in the upper left corner of the computer. Ensure that the connector is firmly seated to the motherboard and then fire up the computer. My computer started right away without any issue.

  82. Awesome trick, I just try it with a Compaq nx5000 that had the similar simptom, works like a charm.

  83. MY dell inspiron LAPTOP does not display but only glows when i turn on the power, it formally would display on an external monitor– but now no more. so what is the problem, and how can i solve it.

  84. Hi All,
    Yesterday I got a blinking color line on the screen of my Toshiba M65. I switched it off, used a vacuum cleaner to clean up cooler and heat sink then started it up. Imagine my surprise when it doesn’t start at all!
    I disassemble notebook on 100% twice already. Unplug everything, including video adapter from motherboard and nothing. I thought it might be a overheating problem, but this is strange as I am using external cooling system for notebook, yet I cleaned up heatsinks.
    I tried to play with memory banks – nothing. I tried using external monitor – once it started then switched off after like 2 minutes. After that it didn’t show anything on external monitor ever again.
    So here are symptoms:
    1. Power Led is ON yet computer is not starting up
    2. Cooler runs once, then switches off
    3. Unplugging and plugging video cable does nothing
    4. Opening a cd-rom does nothing too

    Any ideas what else can I try?
    I do appreciate your help!

  85. Thanks for putting your experience online. It has helped me greatly to track down the fault in my Compaq V2000 series laptop. In my case, the backlight inverter has died. A component has died and melted across a couple of surface mount components, so I am ordering a replacement board. Thanks!

  86. James Gill

    Thanks a million!! I was having the same problem described here and worried that I would lose many untold hours of work that had not been backed-up. Suffice to say, the first thing I did was back-up my files which I need to have a better habit of doing!!!

  87. i have the same problem with my dell inspiron 2200 – i had been using it, turned it off & when i went to turn it on again, the only thing that happened was that the lights turned on for about 2 seconds before dying on me (it does the same thing both when it’s plugged in or running on a battery).

    does anyone about how much it would cost to get this fixed, or should i just fork up the dough for another computer? thanx!

  88. Agung Prihanggoro

    I had the same problem with my Presario V1000. When I press the power button, it will powered on for 2 seconds then goes down, nothing on the screen. When I check for loose connector everything seems fine. The only strange symptom is a high-tone ‘buzzing’ noise from inside. When it buzzing the battery-charging indicator LED off (also my windows battery status say so) even my battery isn’t full yet. I suspect something wrong with power module, but i don’t know what. Do you have any idea?

  89. I have recently purchased an HDTV with a PC input and I wanted to try connecting up my laptop to it. I purchased the higher quality monitor cable and all displayed as you would expect on it. The problem is when the cooling fan cycles on and off in the laptop. When the fan comes on, the TV goes black and says that it has lost the monitor signal. When the laptop’s fan cuts off, the TV pops back up the computer’s desktop image. Any suggestions to about why the fan is interferring with or killing my external monitor signal?

  90. Chris,

    Any suggestions to about why the fan is interfering with or killing my external monitor signal?

    this is a really weird problem, I’ve never seen something like this. Just in case check the BIOS version installed on your laptop and upgrade it to the latest one if needed. It’s possible this is a known issue for your laptop model and might be it was fixed in the latest BIOS release.

  91. Hello
    first of all I like to thank you for your effort
    and if you can send any picture to support the exlanation

  92. No1UKnow

    Fakamaz: Today I had the same exact problem with my M65 – S9063

    I put in a new Hitachi 160 GB Drive and loaded up Ubuntu Linux…
    Everything was going fine and then after a day or so a program locked up…

    The computer did not appear to get hotter than normal, and I use this laptop for hours usually…

    I put back in my old hard drive and got the same result nothing came on the screen.

    Then after hours, it did turn back on for a few minutes and then the mouse stopped working along with the keyboard…

    Then when I reboot, no video again…

    I’m really pissed, the computer was working better than ever once I installed the new hard drive, now this…

    I’ve had the computer for 4 years and its our of warranty, and no need to buy a new computer… Just need to find what is wrong with this one…

    Did I over heat something you think?

  93. No1UKnow,
    Just in case run the memory test. You can use Memtest86+ if you can start the laptop. Let this test run overnight, so it passes a few time. You’ll see if you get any memory errors.
    Try reseating memory, move it from one slot to another.

  94. thnx for the post.
    you solved my problem.
    it was exactly as described.
    the flat cable connector on the top rear site of the lcd was half way out.

  95. Hi. I have an IBM ThinkPad A21m but got it second hand 5 yrs ago. I’m facing a similar issue.
    1. When I turn the power, the LED turns green. (but only if the AC adaptor is connected)
    2. When I press the power on again, the light disappears. but if i continue pressing sometimes the other symbols light up. like the caps lock.

    Need help. I don’t know if it’s b’coz of battery life but most of the times the AC adaptor is connected when I use it. Or is it b’coz of some more technical reason? Unless it’s too old and has to die?

  96. magz,

    I don’t know if it’s b’coz of battery life but most of the times the AC adaptor is connected when I use it.

    You can remove the battery and start the laptop just from the AC adapter. If you experience the same issue even with the battery removed, most likely it’s not your problem and something else is going on.
    Could be bad memory, defective keyboard or something is wrong with the motherboard. It’s hard to troubleshoot these kind of problems without looking at the laptop.
    Try basic stuff like reseating memory, reconnecting the keyboard cable on the motherboard. Try starting the laptop with an external monitor and see if you get any video on the external screen.

  97. E.S. Jackson

    I have a Hewlett Packard ZE4500 and it has those same symptoms, but the laptop won’t hold a charge when plugged in. When i check the battery life, it’s very low even when its been plugged in for hours. When the adapter is connected to the laptop, it cuts on and shuts down within 3 seconds (same as when you just use the battery). Any idea what the issue is or what i need to do?

  98. C. A. Salmon

    I recently purchased an Alienware Aurora m7700 off eBay and was told ahead of time that that battery did not hold a charge. After purchasing a new battery off eBay and swapping the two, I was surprised by the lack of change. My computer tells me it has a battery and will even charge, but when the AC cord is unplugged, it simply goes dead. I now believe that it is not a problem with the batteries, but rather a problem with the motherboard.

    Symptoms: Notebook acts like desktop, incapable of powering up when unplugged.

    Any suggestions on how I move forward and fix this?

  99. I have an old laptop one day I turned it on it was saying : system error check some file and the windows didn`t started I restarted it and the screen was black no backlight but the laptop was working i pluged it in to an external monitor and the same thing happend please help me

  100. C.A. Salmon,

    My computer tells me it has a battery and will even charge, but when the AC cord is unplugged, it simply goes dead.

    I assume the new battery is good and it’s not the problem. Just in case, you can try re-flashing the BIOS.
    If you have the same problem with a known good battery then most likely you problem is related to the motherboard. I doubt that you can fix the motherboard yourself on the component level. You’ll have to replace the motherboard or use the laptop as is.

  101. Darius,

    one day I turned it on it was saying : system error check some file and the windows didn’t started I restarted it and the screen was black no backlight but the laptop was working

    I think this can be memory related problem. Try reseating the memory module. Replace it with a known good memory stick and test the laptop again.

  102. I was working on my laptop, a Toshiba Satellite S2410 (I know its old…can’t afford a new one >.

  103. What do you think of this? Compaq Presario 2103US had a bad power jack. I had it repaired about 10 months ago. It failed again about a month ago. The computer could not be powered on or charged. I had another guy repair it a week ago. After that, the battery can be charged with the computer turned off. If I power it on, the computer starts to boot and, at least on the first try, shows the Compaq logo and a line that says, “Press ESC to change boot order, F2 to enter setup, etc.” Then the computer just shuts down.

    During this brief power-on period, the fan is running fast, as if the computer had become hot from having vents blocked. There is air flowing out both fan areas in the back, though. If I power on again, I might get the Compaq logo but not the “Press ESC…” line. I have to wait awhile for that to come back. With the battery removed, the power-up is the same, but no logo.

    I tried reseating the memory modules. No help. Why isn’t it booting up?

  104. cj2600

    BobH,

    If I power it on, the computer starts to boot and, at least on the first try, shows the Compaq logo and a line that says, “Press ESC to change boot order, F2 to enter setup, etc.” Then the computer just shuts down.
    During this brief power-on period, the fan is running fast, as if the computer had become hot from having vents blocked.

    Maybe the repair guy forgot to apply thermal compound on the processor and the laptop overheats? This would explain why the fans running fast right from the startup.

    I have to wait awhile for that to come back.

    I think this problem may be related to overheating too.

  105. Kenny Hendrick

    Hello and many thanks for this website…

    I have a relatively new laptop that came in here R3430 and all the lights come on all over the machine but nothing out of video and nothing out of the crt connection even with the lcd disconnected….I’ve taken every screw out of the unit….i’m surrounded by parts and trust god to put all this crap together later….anyway, I was wondering what the worst and best scenarios would be here…after reading some of the posts here I feel it’s moot taking apart the screen itself (it’s already disconnected….everything is disconnected)….

    Thanks for your time.

  106. Kenny Hendrick

    p.s….this is the second time i’ve taken it all apart but this time it’s a few steps further…there’s never been video out of this machine since it arrived (phew).

  107. cj2600

    Kenny Hendrick,

    all the lights come on all over the machine but nothing out of video and nothing out of the crt connection even with the lcd disconnected

    In order to start any laptop with video you’ll need only few major parts: motherboard, video card (if it’s a separate module), CPU and memory. Most laptops have integrated video card and they need only motherboard, CPU (with heatsink/fan) and memory.
    If you connect all these three pats together and all these parts in good working condition, you should be able to start the laptop with video, at least get the logo. Make sure all three parts are properly connected, reseat the memory module.
    In your case the laptop starts but there is no video, so it’s either memory (check first), CPU (fails rarely) or motherboard (fails often). I would say memory – the best case scenario bad connection or bad memory, the worst case scenario – bad motherboard.

  108. I have an Acer Aspire 5601. I updated the system drivers direct from the Acer website. After that, the system froze. I had to shut it down manually and now it does nothing. THe power button does nothing. I won’t power up on battery or AC Power. I tried everything to decipher the problem. If any knows how to fix it or has a diagram of how to take apart the system, please get back to me. Thanks!

  109. Mike

    I had a power issue with the plug not seating very well, so took the cover off to see if I could get to the plug. Found out I couldn’t very well, so put it back together (I only took the heat sink out and cleaned it while it was out) and when I turned it on the fans started up, then shut off. The display never turned on. Didn’t have either of those problems before, just a mostly dead battery and a ac/dc adapter plug that would make a loose connection on the computer. Any thoughts? I’m willing to try the memory card first. Hopefully it’s not the motherboard…

  110. Eyolf

    Just a small update, one year later. I got a new laptop from work, so I didn’t bother to pursue the issue any further; if I desperately needed to boot the old one — the compaq nx5000 I had trouble with (it has a better sound card than the new one) — I’d press “on” until it started: usually after about 20-50 attempts.
    Today, I had some spare time, and I took the whole thing apart, down to the system board — loosened and put back in again every connection I could find — and when I had put everything back together again — … it worked as new. I’ve tried a couple of times now, and it seems to be permanent. Then again, that’s probably what Adam thought too….

    Just thought I’d let you know.

  111. Alan Loveard

    My NX5000 has a slightly different problem – boots OK but the built-in screen displays only the faintest image, then fades completely. An external monitor works fine. Is this problem likely to be the connectors to the screen, or the screen itself?

    Any help appreciated

  112. Tariq

    Hello
    please I need to get knowledge where to find this LCD screen assembly in my nx5000 hp compaq laptop (by pictures if possible)
    Thanks

  113. samuel

    i have a thinkpas ibm laptop that boots and displays for 10min and after tha goes blank and when it comes up again, it boots all over again and this displays nothing on the screen. pls what should i do

  114. cj2600

    Samuel,

    i have a thinkpad ibm laptop that boots and displays for 10min and after that goes blank and when it comes up again, it boots all over again and this displays nothing on the screen.

    You said that the laptop screen works for 10 minutes. Does it mean that during that time the laptop works normally and you can see normal desktop on the screen? After the screen goes blank, is it completely dark or you still can see the backlight? Can you see a very dim image if you look at the screen very closely?
    Did you test your laptop with an external monitor? Will it go blank the same way as video on the laptop LCD?

  115. Hi, I have exactly the same problem mentioned at the top except that the laptop is HP Compa nc6000.

  116. SONAWANE

    Dear friends,

    I have Compaq Presario V3000,
    Problem: when i press power button, power indicator was sucessfully but screen doesn’t show any thing. laptop goes on untill battry will empty.

    This problem happened on same laptop before 2 month. that time I given in service center. they told out of warrenty, and you need to replace your mother board to solve this problem. they given 15000/- repairing quotation for me.
    after that I get my laptop and came to home.

    that time I press power button. but problem still in laptop due to mother board problem. but one time I was started my laptop without battery. that laptop gose on sucessfully.
    I shocked. they given me wrong quotation.

    but right now I’m facing same problem, but previous trick couldn’t work.

    SEND ME YOUR SUGESSION @

    Thanks,

  117. CJ2600
    The problem you were talking about with samuel, i have the same one!
    Do you have a solution for it?

  118. cj2600

    Indi,

    The problem you were talking about with samuel, i have the same one!
    Do you have a solution for it?

    Enter the BIOS setup menu and left the laptop in there for a while. Do you still have the same problem when the laptop is in the BIOS setup menu or the problem appears only when it’s loading Windows?

  119. satyveer

    thanks a lot for sharing the info.
    really helpful.

  120. Jack Yan

    Hi folks, I hope this solution might help someone out there. I have an HP Compaq NX5100. I took it in to the shop after it would power on for a few seconds, then die—no HP logo on the screen would appear. The computer serviceman said it ran for a day for him and tried powering it up with new RAM and a new hard drive, to no avail. His conclusion: needed a new motherboard for NZ$1,000!

    My father, who is an electronic technician, believed the fault was actually a capacitor connected to the power supply and gave the repair a shot, and actually had it working for about five days.

    My solution: take the battery out during start-up. I have done this now for five days and the laptop powers up every time. Dad’s conclusion after this info is that there is a short in the battery that prevents the remainder of the power-up sequence.

    So, please do try just taking your battery out, then powering up your laptop. It really was that simple for me. Good luck!

  121. My Compaq presario F500 notebook is having a problem like this, It tries to turn on and hard disk tries to start, DVD tries to start and you can hear the fan spin sometimes, but after some seconds the PC shuts down itself and tries to re-start again and again and never starts, the screen is completely black.
    I sent it to maintenance and I hope it´s fixed, I will tell you any news on this….

  122. Having the same problem with an HP Pavillion ze4600.
    On turning laptopn on, it just turns itself on and off. Nothing appears on the screen. Can hear the fan startup, but thats it.ANy help, thanks

  123. Rob,

    On turning laptop on, it just turns itself on and off. Nothing appears on the screen.

    Take a look at this thread:
    Laptop is dead. How to troubleshoot the problem.

    Try minimizing the laptop as much as you can. If the laptop still has the same problem when you have only major components connected (motherboard, CPU, known good memory), there could be a problem with the motherboard.

  124. I just recently experienced this same problem. I removed the battery and it powered up fine using the AC only. Do I need to buy a new battery now? I am confused on where to go from here if I want to use the laptop without AC. Thanks

  125. Cliff,
    Do you experience the same problem every time you run the laptop with the battery or it happened just once?

  126. I have a Cyberpower laptop
    my computer starts by iteself and shows a black screen. than after 5 seconds shuts off and turns back on to reapt the same thing. Also it turns back on by itself OMG :p

  127. i have an ibm a21m and had an error,it is 0175 can you help me to fix this ptoblem,thanks

  128. I have an HP dv6000 an its a good laptop but one day the screen froze and so i shut it down and ever since then the screen doesnt ever show and when i go to run it, it starts up then shuts itself down and starts itself back up again a few seconds later and stays on. can u help me fix this problem please? thanx

  129. mohamed hamza

    DELL inspiron 6400 Working on the battery well but with no electricity transformer on

    I want to know ic in charge of the cargo and his whereabouts

  130. i’m having a similar problem i changed my ram and my computer wouldn’t start it was doing exactly wat u sed so i changed it back and it still wont work.HELP ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  131. Noah Diamond

    This particular Compaq nx5000 described on this page is unique in it’s problem, as the video connection does not usually come loose.

    In many cases, the problem is the motherboard. Replacing a motherboard in a laptop is very easy if you follow the steps and are careful.

    If you need help servicing your own laptop, you can usually find a service manual on the web with complete tear down instructions. This is especially true of Dell laptops. Feel free to contact me if you need help finding your service manual or need free *BASIC* technical support on any laptop or desktop.

    If you want me to repair your laptop for you, there will be a fee, but it’s not expensive, usually landing in the vicinity of $75 to $150, not including parts.

  132. I would love one of those repair guides if you have one or can find one for the alienware m7700 d900t motherboard.

  133. I have an IBM G41 Thinkpad.
    Today it starts up only to display a post message :
    Thermal Sensor Failure
    and then it turns off automatically.
    I have found that pressing ESC when the message appears allows the computer to boot!
    I have managed to run the Access IBM and Diagnostics partition And run the PC Doctor software installed there (it is a DOS version).
    I tested motherboard, fans and sensor and it reports tests as pasted. I updated the bios to the latest version. Loaded Setup defaults for bios settings.
    The computer seems to run fine accept that it needs the ESC button to boot. Has anyone seen anything similar? Is there a solution?

  134. this worked for me. one of my customers had the same problem, the notebook would power up then a few seconds it would turn off. i fallow this directions and it worked. thank you

  135. I tried everything you told me and now thanks to you, I have made my first ever harware fix. Your explanation really helped me! I am new to the hardware side of the computer and find it completely amazing!Thanks again!

  136. I have a Acer laptop which erratically shuts itself off. I do not believe it is due to over heating based on several diagnostics I have completed. I do, however, have an AC adapter which shows wear around the area where the cord meets the Adapter. Through the rubberized area where the cord meets the Adapter, I can see the wires. I have wrapped this area with electrical tape to stabilize it, however, the problem remains. Do you think the erratic shut down is due to the broken AC adapter problem? Or, do I have two problems? Please help?

  137. sabrie

    ya..me to…
    I’ve format Acer 4520 to install new Windows Xp Sp3. after format computer restart installing windows…then…TURN OFF…
    it suddenly turn back on it self…then came back to installing windows….then it turn off again…

    after that i turn on the computer and press any key to boot from cd…reformat the HD…choose NTSC normal not (quick) half way…turn off again…take out the batery….still the same…should i throw my laptop from 4th floor?

  138. cj2600

    sabrie,

    after that i turn on the computer and press any key to boot from cd…reformat the HD…choose NTSC normal not (quick) half way…turn off again…take out the batery….still the same…

    Maybe the laptop shuts down because it overheats? Take a look inside the air intake for the cooling fan. Does it look dusty? Try cleaning the heat sink with compressed air. Spray the air inside the fan, it should be enough to clean the heat sink temporarily and finish installing XP.
    Try running the installation process again.

  139. Neeraj

    when i power on my laptop 1st screen appears but after few seconds it powers off what to do to shortout this problem.

  140. Illusionist

    I have a Toshiba Satellite A135 that powers up for a few seconds, I can either get to the Bios Config and move for a few seconds then it freezes on whatever screen i’m in or press F12 to choose a boot up option but it freezes as well. I also hear some weird static coming from the speakers when this happeneds but i have no idea what it could be. Any help would be appreciated.

  141. cj2600

    Neeraj,

    when i power on my laptop 1st screen appears but after few seconds it powers off

    Does it fail the same way if you start just from the battery?
    Can you hear the cooling fan?

  142. cj2600

    Illusionist,

    I have a Toshiba Satellite A135 that powers up for a few seconds, I can either get to the Bios Config and move for a few seconds then it freezes on whatever screen i’m in or press F12 to choose a boot up option but it freezes as well.

    Could be memory related problem. Try removing memory modules one by one and start the laptop with each modules separately. Does it fail the same way when only one memory module is installed?

    I also hear some weird static coming from the speakers when this happeneds but i have no idea what it could be.

    Could be a problem with the motherboard.

  143. I have an HP 6910p laptop that quit working after a week of no use and o battery in it.

    Currently, it will not do anything from the battery. No lights of any kind light up and the power button does nothing.

    With AC power, when I plug it in the laptop immediately powers on (the power button light goes yellow, but no other lights), the fan turns on, and the screen lights up with some thin colored lines off to the left of the screen with the rest of the screen being blank. After 2-5 seconds the computer and display turn off and pressing the power button doesn’t do anything. Only after unplugging and replugging the power adapter back in will it try to turn back on.

    The laptop is one of 2 6910s that are about 1.5 years old, started with an XP ISO and has been running Vista for about a year. I’ve tried swapping power adapters and batteries, and reseting the power and memory.

  144. cj2600

    John,

    With AC power, when I plug it in the laptop immediately powers on (the power button light goes yellow, but no other lights), the fan turns on, and the screen lights up with some thin colored lines off to the left of the screen with the rest of the screen being blank…
    ..I’ve tried swapping power adapters and batteries, and reseting the power and memory.

    Sounds like a problem with the motherboard or video card. If the video card is integrated into the motherboard, you’ll have to replace the motherboard.

  145. Daniel

    Hi,
    I have a HP DV6324 Pavilion with a similar problem.
    When I start the computer, the fan spins for 2 seconds and them stops.
    5 Seconds later the computer reboots by itself and the same thing happens..

    Steps:
    1- Turn the PC ON
    2- Lights are on, Fan Spins for 2 seconds and then stops
    3- 5 Seconds later PC shuts down by itself, and goes back to Step-1

    PS: Screen is blank 100% of the times, I don’t see anything, not even with an external monitor.
    What can I do?

  146. cj2600

    Daniel,

    I have a HP DV6324 Pavilion with a similar problem.
    When I start the computer, the fan spins for 2 seconds and them stops.
    5 Seconds later the computer reboots by itself and the same thing happens..

    1. It’s possible that one of the memory modules is bad. Try removing memory modules one by one and test the laptop with each one separately.
    2. If the laptop fails the same way with each memory module installed into each slot, most likely you have a problem with the motherboard. It’s unlikely that both memory modules failed at the same time.

  147. hello
    i have a hp pavallion dv6000. It has same problems (shuts down 1sec after startup no video) So i opened it up, did what you did (i guess) but all the cables seemed fine. im not english so i could have misunderstood this whole thing
    thanks in advance

  148. ChuffChuffWoo!!

    Hi, I have an HP6000 that won’t start. When I press the power button, the fan starts, the blue ‘wireless turned on’ light comes on, followed by the ‘charging’ lamp (psu plugged in or on battery) then it all shuts down after a second or two, nothing on the screen. I’ts twice tried to start normally with the screen active but then it just cuts dead, but with the cpu fan still running.

    I had been using it and it all just went off, no shut down or anything, it just went off. I was running on slow cpu mode, and nothing was hot at the back so I know its not a heat related issue.

    Any ideas what up?

    Cheers! Clivey :-))

  149. My son has a IBM Thinkpad T41. Unfortunately, he knocked it to the ground a few days ago, about a distance of 12 inches. Now when we turn it on the screen is slightly black with a strip of blue at the top and the lights flash and go out…I can hear the fan, but it sounds weak, like it is struggling to power up. After a few days we tried it again and everything booted up fine. It then worked for about 10mins then shutdown but the fan continued to work but humming noise was coming and going (very difficult to explain). When I try to start it up, again I get the black screen with blue stripe. Could the fan be damaged? Causing it to overheat, hence it shutting down? HELP! Thanks in advance for any advice.

  150. I have an NX9420. I bought it new, about 2 years ago. I recently replaced both the battery and power supply (I’m on my third one), both about 1 month ago. The p/s seemed a little light for this machine but it “supposedly” is supposed to work with the unit.
    Recently (last day or so, some funny things have been happening at startup, including the startup-5 seconds-shutdown with no video screen at all). Now, this morning, that’s all I get, though, I got the hp logo once. I have tried starting it with only the p/s, battery to no avail. have reseated the hard drive, and about ready to reseed the memory and see if any of this has an effect.
    Someone told me that there’s been a lot of issues with included wifi internal card, causing this behavior, but would it just all the sudden surface after 2.5 years of ownership?

  151. Hi, i’ve got a hp compaq nc6000 and have exactly the same symptoms as John on post 146, except i found that if i bashed the bottom a little bit it would work perfectly again but if i move it or jolt it and breaks down again. This leads me to beleive that something may be loose inside?
    Thanks, Chris

  152. Florin

    Hi everybody! I have the almost same problem, yet almost! I have a HP Omnibook 6100 and when I plug the AC adapter the battery led is orange(charging), and when I switch power on, the led is switching off. My battery is dead, but it worked before without it since I used it only connected with AC adaptor, at home. Can you give me some hints ?
    Thanks, Florin

  153. SAQIB DIN

    Hi all nice post and i only just tried opening everything up reseating and making it all tight and snug (literally 5 minutes before i read your post), and it didn’t work. I have the same laptop model, and the same symptoms but i cannot use it with an external monitor, and i cant even use my laptop screen as a display my unit wont charge itself either, it will charge with the orange light on, and then turn off straight away. Any more help? Or ideas? This used to be a work laptop, so i went through some tough times, but all of these problems just recently happened, with no cause, i didn’t shake it or drop it or anything, so it leads me to wonder what’s wrong.

    p.s. i have triple checked, and everything is fully plugged in.

  154. I need help on mine please, when i hit the power button the lights flash then it powers down, it wont turn on, i had it up and running then it just shuts off now i cant get it back on, I have a Dell 8600. Is it the screen? what do i do. someone help email me at tricia_b12@yahoo.com

  155. Tricia,

    I need help on mine please, when i hit the power button the lights flash then it powers down, it wont turn on, i had it up and running then it just shuts off now i cant get it back on, I have a Dell 8600. Is it the screen?

    I don’t think that your problem is related to the screen. Sounds more like a power related problem.
    It’s possible that you have a failed AC adapter and the battery doesn’t have enough charge to start the laptop.
    Can you test the laptop with another AC adapter. That would be the first thing to try.

  156. I have a Gateway M350 notebook the problem is cannot use AC
    ADAPTER so start on the other hand i can start it with battery
    Is this mahine ia battery dependent one or something wrong
    please give me some sort of help would be appreciated.

  157. Thanks. Had the exact symptons. Played with the video connection and it is working again. For how long remains to be seen.

    Thanks again!

  158. For the past couple of days now my ibm thinkpad T41 series is giving a set of problems ,whenever i put it on it will run for 5 minutes and it would just freeze and if turn off will not start , i will have to remove the battery and wait for a few minutes then install back the battery . This sometimes would not work . Could you please assist me with this problem . I’m from Guyana . PLEASE HELP ME I’M BEGGING YOU FOR YOUR ASSISTANCE .Your trully KP.

  159. kp,

    For the past couple of days now my ibm thinkpad T41 series is giving a set of problems ,whenever i put it on it will run for 5 minutes and it would just freeze and if turn off will not start

    This could be memory related failure. Do you have two memory modules installed? Try removing them one by one. Test the laptop with each memory module installed into different slots.
    Will it work properly with only one memory module in place?
    Also, listen for the cooling fan. Does it work at all? Maybe the cooling fan failed and the laptop freezes because of overheating.

  160. I have a Dell Latitude D600 laptop, when plugged in, the battery light goes green, but when I try to turn it on, all the lights and everything goes on, but no noise or anything on the screen. I’ve tried everything, everybody says it will turn on if you press the power button followed by the keys f9 and f10, and stuff like that, it hasn’t worked. I was wondering if somebody could please help me! I’m desperate! I have an old toshiba, and it works fine, could I maybe use some of thoes parts to fix it? please help!!!

    Thanks,
    Daisy

  161. Just fixed my IBM T42p (~6 years old) by reseating the memory module. I’ve had the same startup problems (no video, but fan and battery and power lights) for about a year; every time that happens (~once a week), I use IBM’s mystical “static discharge” procedure (remove AC adapter and battery, press and release power button 10 times, then hold for 30 – 60 seconds) to bring my machine back to life. It worked pretty well… until today, when it took a really long time to start up, then powered off and wouldn’t turn back on (although each time I tried I’d get the fan and a couple lights). A couple times when trying to turn it on it gave me “Four cycles of four short beeps and a blank screen.”, which indicates: “System board (Security chip)”
    Lenovo offered out of warranty repair (~$500), but I searched around a bit and “the reseating of the ram worked like a charm!!”

  162. Hello, I thought I had fixed a friends Gateway T1620 AMD Turion 64 x2 laptop last night that was having video problems (overheating I believe). Cleaned out dust from heatsink and reseated heat sink with arctic silver. Laptop ran fine all night doing updates, surfing and even running prime95. The laptop put itself to sleep during the night.

    This morning though it looked like it has turned itself off during the night (when it was supposed to be sleeping).

    I managed once more to boot into windows OK, then shut down.

    Next tried again to startup and have discovered that I can only get into the BIOS, but trying to go any further will cause the laptop to click and shut down.

    Does being able to be in the BIOS indicated a good CPU? does the BIOS require the RAM to be good? Just trying to think of troubleshooting steps from here.

    Thanks for any suggestions.
    -Paul

  163. Lilly

    I need some help becuase my brain is hurting from all the troubleshooting that I’ve tried. I have a Toshiba Satellite A75 and it starts up fine past the BIOS and Windows screen but when it gets to the desktop, it shuts itself down.
    I’ve charged it with the adapter, it starts up fine again but then when it gets to the desktop, an icon pops up and says something about the battery and switch to outlet power.
    I’ve taking the battery out the laptop,used the laptop with the adapter, turned it off, charged the battery overnight, switched it back on and it still does the same thing.

    The video is fine, the fans are fine, i’ve used a can of air and sprayed the fans, i’m using a cooling pad so it doesnt overheat.

    I dont know what the problem is…is it my power adapter (its a universal one), the battery, the motherboard???

    Please help aleviate my headache

  164. Hello every,

    I have got a 5 yr old Acer TravelMate 2304NLC laptop, since last three days I am having the same above mentioned problem ( On POWER up, Power LED keeps glowing, fan starts and stop, but no Vid on the screen, laptop keep to blank and nothing happen afterward,)

    It seems theres no problem with the power as Power LED keeps glowing and i can open/close the DVD drive also.

    I have already back panel and cleaned up near fan, and memory bay, hard disk bay. but the problem is still the same.

    The only thing left as i have read in the above post, is to disconnect the LCD panel now.

    Can any one please give me any idea, how to do that. Do I have to Open up the complete motherboard to get access to solution mentioned in the above post.

    Awaiting responses,

    Noren Das @ gmail

  165. mario erazo

    Hi, i have a toshiba satellite A35-SP4796 and when i turn it on, only the the lights PWR and battery are on, but no noise or anything on the screen(black screen). I’ve tried everything, i removed the HDD,memory,battery,usb ports… I turned it on but nothing… i put´em back, and all is the same…what more can i do?
    i apreciate your answer, thanks a lot in advance..

  166. mario erazo,

    i have a toshiba satellite A35-SP4796 and when i turn it on, only the the lights PWR and battery are on, but no noise or anything on the screen(black screen). I’ve tried everything, i removed the HDD,memory,battery,usb ports… I turned it on but nothing… i put´em back, and all is the same…what more can i do?

    Have you tried removing memory modules one by one? It’s possible that one of the modules is bad. Try different memory modules in different slots.

  167. mario erazo

    thanks my friend for your suggestion; this pc only has one DDR 512MB module, i swapped the module and the same result…i disassembly the laptop, taking apart the display assembly and plugged the power connector in and the same symptom, meanwhile, i spotted a chip under a thin plate getting hot, i guess this one is the video processor and i remember what the pc’s user told me about the last time when the pc was working, suddenly appeared vertical stripes in zigzag shape with flashing dash after that the pc shutsdown and that’s how is up today…i’m going to try with another memory module but do you think that built in video card has a lot to do with this issue?
    also i will open up the LCD display assembly and check if all connectors are seated properly…i’ll tell you later what’s happened and if you have another tip please tell me…
    Thanks a lot!!!

  168. Dave Gayed

    I have this HP Pavillion 9700 with AMD Turion microprocessor, my problem is my laptop continuously on and off every second, but if you press the ESC key just after it is in on status it will stick to on status because all lights on the fan everything but no video.
    I tried to use external video monitor but same no video at all. One more thing is, you can not turn off while it is continuously on and off every second, i tried to remove the RAM and turn on but same and even no beep. I hope you can help me with this Guys, thanks…

  169. hi, i have a toshiba A205-s5825 laptop, I’ve recently started having this problem. It started acting up yesterday around 3 a.m. when i was using it, it just cut off on me. I started the computer up and it cut off again.I thought it kept doing that because it was running hot, so i went to bed. The next morning i tried it again and it just keep cutting off. it would start up only to cut off when it gets to the desktop and other times it would cutt off an hour or so when im using it. WHAT CAOULD BE THE PROBLEM??? PLEASE HELP!!!

  170. david,

    i have a toshiba A205-s5825 laptop, I’ve recently started having this problem. It started acting up yesterday around 3 a.m. when i was using it, it just cut off on me. I started the computer up and it cut off again.I thought it kept doing that because it was running hot, so i went to bed. The next morning i tried it again and it just keep cutting off. it would start up only to cut off when it gets to the desktop and other times it would cutt off an hour or so when im using it. WHAT CAOULD BE THE PROBLEM???

    Try to find what is causing the problem.
    Turn on the laptop. If it starts successfully, try moving the laptop, try applying some pressure on the palmrest/keyboard. Will it shut down when you doing that?
    Try reseating both memory modules.

  171. I’m having similar problems with a toshiba dynabook ax/740ls, it starts up for a few seconds, lights flash green then it powers off, then powers on again and so on, i can hear the fan starting then clicking off again. I’ve removed most peripherals, hdd, battery, memory and reseated them all but it wont power on properly, even tried disconnecting all cables going to lcd screen and connecting it to external monitor but it still kept powering off and on continuously. The person who owns it said that when it went his wife was downloading stuff and a box popped up on screen about deleteing items and then said there were some cookies to delete and so she hit yes then it restarted and she got a bluescreen(which sounded like bsod) saying to shutdown and so she did and since then the aforementioned problems keeps occuring.

  172. Epic Battle

    HI!I have a MSI U100, the problem is 1 day when i was using it (win 7) it just randomly turns off and reboots. Sometimes I can use the netbook for several minutes then it reboots again. Then I reformatted and changed to win xp but still the problem occurs! Battery and charger are fine (i think). Please help what are the possible cause(s)? Thanks!

  173. Epic Battle,

    I have a MSI U100, the problem is 1 day when i was using it (win 7) it just randomly turns off and reboots. Sometimes I can use the netbook for several minutes then it reboots again. Then I reformatted and changed to win xp but still the problem occurs!

    Sounds like hardware related problem. Could be bad memory or motherboard failure. Isn’t it still under warranty?

  174. Hello,
    I just have a small question.
    How do you connect to an external monitor to check if the lcd is the source of the problem ?
    do you have to disconect the lcd screen in the rear of the lcd and just plug the vga output to an external monitor ?
    Thank you

  175. james manion

    hello
    i m defintely getting that video course you have soon Good idea

    Question
    i have this laptop 450sx4 i sent away for amotherboard and the laptop turned on where previously it didnt

    But the laptop gets hot and all of a sudden the video gets garbled like its gone to pieces is that the video card or a troubled motherboard Great pic on external monitor except for the garbled Well what happened is that after i put a external hardrive to the usb port then the garbling started and some time it would stay at the welcome screen

    Now its on the desktop screen fine intermitten problem does it sound like a motherboard

    if i do something like hook something up to the usb ports etc it starts up what is the dc control board

  176. RAY TRAVIS

    Hello
    Good pic on external monitor but When i hook up more than one thing to my usb ports or use something powereful in the usb port the color on the screen on the external monitor crumbles
    and falls apart Is that the video card even if i pres down on the mouse which dont work anyhow the color changes

    video card seperate from motherboard Would a bad motherboard cause all that other than video card 2nd video card

  177. RAY TRAVIS

    now when i turn it on it stays running fast like a car with a high idle when it slows down then the laptop turns on the screen

  178. RAY TRAVIS,

    Good pic on external monitor but When i hook up more than one thing to my usb ports or use something powereful in the usb port the color on the screen on the external monitor crumbles
    and falls apart Is that the video card even if i pres down on the mouse which dont work anyhow the color changes

    video card seperate from motherboard Would a bad motherboard cause all that other than video card 2nd video card

    It’s hard to tell what is causing the problem because it’s not a common failure.
    When I’m not sure which part is failing, I disassemble the laptop to bare bone system (motherboard, video card, CPU and memory) and test in basic configuration. If it still fails, I start replacing parts one by one until find the faulty component.
    If the system works in basic configuration, I start adding parts one by one until the laptop fails again. Most likely the last added part is not good.

  179. james manion,

    But the laptop gets hot and all of a sudden the video gets garbled like its gone to pieces is that the video card or a troubled motherboard Great pic on external monitor except for the garbled

    It’s not very clear. Do you get garbled image only on the laptop screen or the image garbled on both, the internal and external monitors?
    If images is garbled on both internal and external monitors, this is graphics card failure.

  180. hi i have tried to

    disaasemble the whole laptop static discharge didnt help
    memory changed still the machine will not turn on

  181. jamesw746

    My problem is exactly like yours only when I tried an external monitor nothing showed up on it. So in this case could the problem be something else?

  182. cj2600

    jamesw746,

    My problem is exactly like yours only when I tried an external monitor nothing showed up on it. So in this case could the problem be something else?

    Did you test your AC adapter?
    It’s possible your AC adapter failed and the battery doesn’t have enough charge to start the laptop.
    Maybe it’s just failed adapter. You can test your AC adapter with a voltmeter. Make sure the adapter outputs correct voltage.

  183. jamesw746

    The adapter looks fine and there’s plenty battery power. I don’t know what caused something like this to happen, I was just watching a movie and then the screen turned blurry and froze. I shut it down manually and every time I turn it on it just shuts down and turns on in a cycle.

  184. cj2600

    jamesw746,

    The adapter looks fine and there’s plenty battery power. I don’t know what caused something like this to happen, I was just watching a movie and then the screen turned blurry and froze. I shut it down manually and every time I turn it on it just shuts down and turns on in a cycle.

    1. Possible memory failure. If you have two memory modules installed in the laptop, remove them one by one and test the laptop with each memory module separately. If one of the bad, the laptop should start properly with another module.
    2. If removing/replacing memory doesn’t help, probably this is motherboard failure. I suspect failed graphics card.
    What is your laptop model? Some laptops like HP Pavilion dv2000/dv6000/dv9000 have known issue with graphics cards.

  185. Ailonas

    Hello,
    I have HP Compaq NX9005. It used to shut down by itself sometimes and once finally it didn’t turn on at all. The same like Your’s – it turns on for a few seconds, the lights show up and it shuts down. If I trying to turn it on many times – it turns on just for second. If I wait more time between tests – it turns on for longer, but for both cases the video doesn’t appear. I opened laptop,disconnected display, removed everything till motherboard – the same. So its faulty motherboard? By the way – is it okay that laptop fan doesn’t start when I turn on the laptop? I cleaned it, replaced, but still the same.
    It would be great to get some advice because I really need to fix it up. Thanks.

  186. cj2600

    Ailonas,

    If I trying to turn it on many times – it turns on just for second. If I wait more time between tests – it turns on for longer, but for both cases the video doesn’t appear. I opened laptop,disconnected display, removed everything till motherboard – the same. So its faulty motherboard?

    Did you test the AC adapter? Does it output correct voltage?
    It’s possible the AC adapter is dead (or doesn’t work properly under load) and the battery doesn’t have enough charge to start the laptop.
    I would recommend testing the laptop with another working AC adapter or at least make sure the original adapter outputs correct voltage.
    If the AC adapter works properly, most likely you have a problem with the motherboard.

    By the way – is it okay that laptop fan doesn’t start when I turn on the laptop?

    Cannot tell. All laptops are different.
    In some laptop the fan turns on for a moment when you turn on the laptop for the first time (more common).
    In other model the fan starts only when the CPU gets hot (less common).

  187. Mitsos

    Hi. I was given this Laptop (Satellite M60 -183) with the problem described. After you press the power butoon, the power led turns on, you can hear the fan spin (only a few times not always), the screen stays black, and after a few 3-5 seconds it just turns off. I have tried it several times with the same results. Also I tried using only ac power, reseating ram, hard drive, dvd rom, removing everything, but with the same result. I have now dissasembled the entire laptop and try to operate it with just the basics. They told me that the original charger had stopped working and they replaced it with a generic one. The laptop specifications say that it needs 19v and 3.95A, while the new charger has 19v and 6A.Do you believe the difference in the ampers could damage the system this way?…. Any help appreciated. Thanks

  188. The issue that i am having is that when the laptop is powered on the system either reaches windows desktop or the windows boot screen before shutting down on its own any help on what could possibly be causes this

  189. Tanveer

    I have hp nc6220 with same probleum it turn on 3 second and i was surpried when i acdiently it start runing when ever i do something with its lcd it show the result what should be the probleum

  190. I suggest.. never buy a HP laptop unless it has 3 years of warranty. The power on and off problem looks like a common problem in most of the HP laptops.My 1+ year old HP laptop also giving the same problem. I called up HP techincal support. They told me that it costs around 350$ for troubleshooting/rectifying the problem. It’s funny..who will go for this rather than buying a new laptop (of course other than HP).

  191. Bala Chandar

    When the power button of my Dell Latitude D600 is pressed, the LED on the right side of the panel lights up momentarily and goes off. Nothing happens after that. The battery is not fully charged and the adapter is fine and supplies 19.5 volts. The green LED on the adapter does not go off when the power button is pressed. So, there is no short on the motherboard. On pressing the power button, the LED blinks even if the main battery and the adapter are not connected. So, the only power that the laptop is getting is from the CMOS battery. I disassembled the laptop and ensured all the connectors are firmly in their place. Still the problem persists. The issue seems to be that the laptop is not getting the power or it is a failure of some component in the power supply section or elsewhere. Any help / suggestions?

  192. laptop display goes blank sometimes while i am working and if am restarting the system by pressing the button, it resolves. what is the problem?

  193. my dell vostro has a similar problem..it wont turn on.. i tired with battery, ac power, ac power when battery is plugged. I also tried after reseating memory modules, taking off dvd drive, disconnecting monitor cable, disconnecting wireless card etc, but same problem… the blue led on the right blinks, it is on for like 3-4 seconds and turns off… nothing on screen… sometimes i the fans are also on while the laptop it is on 3-4 secs, sometimes it is just the led on 3-4 secs…

  194. ESSEX BOY(UK)

    HI ALL

    JUST LET PEOPLE KNOW I DONT HAVE ONE OF THESE HP PAVILLION LAPTOPS BUT I WAS TRING TO FIX A HP COMPAQ 6820s WITH ALL THE SAME BLANK SCREEN PROBLEMS THAT ARE REPORTED HERE AND ON MANY OTHER SITES AND LINKS.I WAS QUITE SURPRISED WITH THE RESULTS IN THAT ALL I DONE WAS PURCHASE A COMPATABLE AC POWER SUPPLY(CURTOUSY OF EBAY) ,CONNECTED A HARD DRIVE THEN TURNED ON,BUT THE BIT OF MAGIC ,I WAS WENT ALONG THE “f” KEYS AND WHEN I HIT F9 THE SCREEN SHOT INTO LIFE.THE FIRST SCREEN IT SHOWED WAS A BOOT OPTION WHICH I PICKED THE HARD DRIVE AND SO ALONG IT ROLLED.I WOULD SUGGEST TRYING THIS FIRST BEFORE YOU GET TEMPTED INTO PULLING YOUR LAPTOPS TO BITS THINKING ITS GRAPHIC CARDS,CPU,S AND THE LIKE),I WOULD ALSO TRY ALL THE USUAL SUSPECTS(REMOVE MEMORY,CHANGE BATTERY ETC) AS WELL LIKE OTHER PEOPLE SAY BUT LIKE MOST THINGS IN LIFE YOU WILL GET VARIED RESULTS ON VARIED LAPTOPS…

    HAPPY FIXING

  195. Santhana

    Dear Author.

    I am glad I came across your site today.

    My Lenovo Y530 had broken hinges letting the LCD fall flat on its back. So I replaced the hinges using great help here:

    HOWEVER, now the laptop shuts down when I move the LCD, or even move the tiny wires on the sides that go from the base into the LCD, under the hinges. I tested by removing the new hinges, and just moving the wires that run underneath.

    Is this due to a broken wire? Or a lose connection in the LCD itself? How can I isolate and fix this problem? Appreciate your kind help and insight.

  196. Fortitude

    Hello World!

    Try these steps and I hope it’ll work for some of you.

    1. Unplug the laptop
    2. Remove the battery
    3. Press and hold power button for 30-60 seconds. (This will flush any residual charge)

    4. Plug back and attempt to start/boot the laptop
    5. Shut it down
    6. Insert battery and turn on the laptop.

  197. Hi;

    I ve removed everything from the laptop just one RAM, processor and heatsink, and power.
    When putting the power on, the fan start spinning for 10 second, stops 5 seconds and repeat this process for 4 times. Then it goes out.
    Can you help me on this issue?
    Thanks.

  198. @ rachid,

    I ve removed everything from the laptop just one RAM, processor and heatsink, and power.
    When putting the power on, the fan start spinning for 10 second, stops 5 seconds and repeat this process for 4 times. Then it goes out.
    Can you help me on this issue?

    First of all, I would test the laptop with another memory module. This could be memory failure.
    If new memory module doesn’t help, probably this is motherboard failure. You’ll have to replace the motherboard.
    From my experience I can tell that CPU failures are not very common.

  199. Laptop turns on for a few seconds and then shuts down without.No video appears on screen

  200. @ Wolfred,

    Laptop turns on for a few seconds and then shuts down without.No video appears on screen

    First of all, test the AC adapter. Make sure it works.
    It’s possible the adapter doesn’t work and the battery doesn’t have enough charge to start the laptop.
    Also, try reseating memory modules. Test the laptop with only one memory module installed.

  201. Hello,
    I have a hp pavilion dv4 1204tu laptop of 250gb hard disc, 3gb ram, windows 7 ultimate os. When the laptop is switched on, it starts with fan spinning for a few seconds and then the fan stops spinning and the display will be black. It shows light flashing across two keyboard switches. I removed the battery and plug in the charger and tried again but it showed the same problem. There is another issue, in past few days when i switched on the laptop it has shown a message to replace my battery which i ignored. Please help me to resolve my issue.

  202. @ Mohan,

    This could be motherboard failure. I’ve seen HP laptops failing like that before.
    Before you jump to any conclusion, you can try the following.
    1. Remove laptop battery, hard drive, DVD drive, wireless card and try turning it on again.
    2. Try removing memory modules one by one and test the laptop with each module separately. Use different memory slots. One of the memory modules could be bad and the laptop might start properly when the bad module removed.
    3. Try disconnecting the keyboard and test the laptop with an external USB keyboard. Maybe the internal keyboard failed and it’s shoring the whole system.
    If nothing helps, probably this is motherboard failure.

  203. i got an alienware m5500ir3 ok i turn it on lights come on and its fails and starts again to load and its comes on whats stopping its to load the first time ?

  204. jennifer

    EXCELLENT. Thank you so much. Worked perfectly fixing my Toshiba A-135.

  205. ive got a friends laptop trying to fix an advent 7094
    he was changing the memory when he saw a heatsink loose
    now when the laptop boots it shuts itself off straight away
    i can get into bios but before i can make any changes it shuts itself off the part that came off was attached to SiS M661FX
    chip would this cause it to shut off prematurely and how would
    i re-attach it with adhesive or thermal tape ive uploaded a picture of it thats it just above memory module (striped thing) when you zoom in
    any help? i would have to re-attach this part through memory bay
    as i cannot find a disassembly manual anywhere which makes me wary of using tape as i dont think i could position it accurately
    Help!!!

  206. graeme,

    i can get into bios but before i can make any changes it shuts itself off the part that came off was attached to SiS M661FX
    chip would this cause it to shut off prematurely

    Yes, it can cause the problem. It’s likely the laptop shuts down because the chip overheats.

    i would have to re-attach this part through memory bay
    as i cannot find a disassembly manual

    I’m not sure you can do that though the memory bay. Most likely it will be necessary to remove the motherboard in order to reattach the heatsink.

  207. thanks for the reply cj i can access it thru memory
    bay i can see outline of heatsink where it came off
    i got sekisui thermal tape off ebay but reading on
    internet there is little play in it once its down its down
    or does it not matter where it is placed on the chip as long
    as its as near its original position as possible or would it be better to use something like artic silver thermal adhesive
    would this give me more play to manouvere it into position
    this is a nightmare laptop to take apart i took all the screws off bottom got the hinge cover off tried to take keyboard off seems like theres another screw holding it but i cant see it
    didnt want to force it so left it could you tell me if any old glue residue left on chip would nullify the new stuff tape or adhesive going on ive cleaned it as best as i can with a toothbrush dipped in isopropol it looks clean can see writing on chip would appreciate your feedback CJ
    Thanks Graeme

  208. graeme,

    i got sekisui thermal tape off ebay but reading on
    internet there is little play in it once its down its down
    or does it not matter where it is placed on the chip as long
    as its as near its original position as possible or would it be better to use something like artic silver thermal adhesive
    would this give me more play to manouvere it into position

    Some laptop models user thermal grease and some use thermal pads. You’ll have to use same type (grease or pad) as it was used by the manufacturer.
    Here’s the difference. Let’s say your laptop had thermal pads on some chips. If you replace them with thermal grease, the heat sink will not make good contact with the chips. It happens because thermal pads are thick.
    So, if you had thermal pad before, use thermal pad.

    this is a nightmare laptop to take apart i took all the screws off bottom got the hinge cover off tried to take keyboard off seems like theres another screw holding it but i cant see it

    Probably there are screws under the keyboard.
    1. Remove all screws from the bottom and disconnect all cables on the bottom.
    2. Remove hinge covers (if you can) and keyboard. Disconnect all cables under the keyboard.
    3. Separate top cover from the bottom case.

  209. Its definitely not thermal pads i removed the residue
    from the heatsink with a one sided razor blade and cleaned
    it off with a med wipe it came off no problem so im left
    wondering whats the best stuff to re-apply can you recommend
    anything
    graeme

  210. greame,
    I’m using Shin-Etsu X23-7762 Thermal Compound.

  211. ive already tried the thermal tape from ebay
    still same problem cuts out after about a minute
    although this time it gave off 2 or three sharp beeps
    tried to install puppy linux that cut out while loading
    drivers what surprises me is when it cuts out the cpu
    fan keeps spinning yet no life in optical drive i have
    to take battery out to stop fan faulty cpu?
    graeme

  212. @ graeme,

    tried to install puppy linux that cut out while loading
    drivers what surprises me is when it cuts out the cpu
    fan keeps spinning yet no life in optical drive i have
    to take battery out to stop fan faulty cpu?

    Maybe faulty motherboard? CPU failures are not very common.

  213. right cj got the heatsink on the graphics chip
    tried to boot up same thing cut out 2 minutes in
    left it for the day tried a hirens boot cd in it
    surprise surprise it boots up i go to one of
    the boot utilities think it was Smart Boot or something
    it prompts me right away Virus? in bootsector asks me if
    i want to overwrite Y/N of course said yes took the hard
    drive out wiped it and reinstalled Windows installed speed fan
    to monitor temp on graphics chip seems ok 47c idle hard drive 30c
    idle seems a bit hot under power jack is this normal for an advent and im not getting sound just a vibrating buzz this may have been my fault when trying to remove the keyboard still not
    got that b*****d out must be superglued removed all the screws i could see still wouldnt come out anybody got a clue how to get
    this out anyway least its going
    Graeme

  214. Josh Olu

    Hi, I have a Toshiba N200, it won`t power up. it always stops with the hard drive working but nothing on the screen. Could you help please?

  215. Mohammed Tabish

    i had the same problem when i reinstalled my cpu again. as it was not properly installed so i was facing that problem and when i reinstalled it properly it booted up as it was use to…

    hope this will help you guys
    …:-)

  216. Adam Gordon

    Exact same problem. My fix was to reseat the cmos battery. Worked like a charm. Thanks for the ideas.

  217. Simon Hansen

    I had this problem, I tried every tutorial I could find on the internet, and I followed every HP tutorial for my computer model.

    I dont have alot of hardware knowledge so I didnt know what to do, but I really wanted my laptop to work so I just looked for loose conections or wierd stuff.

    Then after 3 hours I found the problem, there was a damn loose screw under the CPU that was laying between two connections. I remowed it, now my computer is back to normal! 😀

  218. I have a dell xps15z

    On starting it it loads for maybe five seconds then loses all power when plugged in to wall. It used to not load up but if you shook it it would I know terrible way to solve problem but now it won’t even load for more than ten seconds. I’ve taken back of removed battery and held powe button for 1 minute to drain any electrical build up. But still nothing any ideas would be great.

  219. punk diva

    yesterday I slipped and dropped my Dell N5010, The distance was around 1 feet but it was a marbled floor,so….
    Now my laptop turns off whenever it wants usually it takes around 30 seconds, right around the time the laptop asks me for the password, buts its not a hard n fast rule, after a couple of tries it remained on for 10 min , and was working fine , until it turned off.
    tried removing the battery, holding the power button for 30 sec , removing AC power cord and than holding the power button, but these were temporary fixes, sometimes they worked sometimes not.
    I removed the ac power cable and let it rest for a couple of hours, it started on great, so i just shut the lid, when I opened it , it was still running 2 hours later, i started using it and 15 min down the road voila, it shut down again, now its just a hit and miss, usually it shuts down automatically within the 30 sec period sometime a couple of minutes, miraculously right now its on…
    Is my actually using the laptop might be the problem in the cases where it does remain on? and do you think reseating might help?
    I really donot want to spend money replacing this.any help would be appreciated.

  220. i have a lenovo thinkpad l420. after it fell one afternoon from a very short height i automatically turns off anytime i turn it on..the display appears alright but before a few second pass it goes off.how can i solve this prolem?

  221. Laptop will not start with a similar problem, lights and dvd fans come on for about a few seconds and shuts down. Any ideas on how I can fix ?

  222. clasher

    I have compaq cq40 andvthe problem is when i turn it on …after 3 to 5 mins turn off. And its so hot …but the fan is ok and i already cleanup every thing any body can help me…?…