Alienware Desktop - General Hardware Troubleshooting

Aurora Hardware Validation - For non UEFI systems (like Aurora R1, R2 and Area51)
- Most steps should also work for other AW Desktops

F2: BIOS
F12: Preboot BootDrive select (also PSA/Diags if Loaded in Partition 0)
F8: Windows Safe Mode

Document BIOS SATA mode (normal or RAID mode). Reset your BIOS to Defaults and remove all Over-Clocks.

Basics

Be sure AC power is clean and steady (use UPS like APC).
Check all internal connections with power off.
Run Dell Diags/PSA/ePSA from BIOS screens or bootable DVD/flash (outside of Windows). All should pass.
Check BIOS and that all installed hardware is reporting correctly.
Don't get too hung-up on it being an Alienware Desktop. Inside, it's a fairly standard computer.

Alienware Beep Codes Table

Thread created by DELL-Chris M

CPUID HW Monitor  - Temp and other detailed data. Be sure no over-heating or high fans at idle.
http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/hwmonitor.html

HWiNFO-64 (Portable) - Temps and other detailed data. Test at Idle and Max Utilization.
http://www.hwinfo.com/

Crystal DiskInfo (Standard Edition - Portable has no OpenCandy) - HDD SMART Info
- On a spinning drive, Raw values for ID 05, C5 & C6 should be 0. This should assign status "Good" to drive.
http://crystalmark.info/download/index-e.html

Windows Event Viewer
- Check for entry around time of strange event (crash, unexpected shut-down, etc.)

Windows BSOD Collection
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gag_ouwiGGI

BlueScreenView (BSOD)
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/blue_screen_view.html

- Dell Knowledge Base Article on collecting BSOD info in conventional manner
- http://www.dell.com/support/troubleshooting/us/en/04/KCS/KcsArticles/ArticleView?c=us&l=en&s=bsd&docid=549031

OCCT - Power Supply Test (aka Stress Test Everything ... PS, CPU, GPU, etc.)
- Better than using games for Stress-Test or 3D Graphics Test (removes games from equation).
If you want to get the SSD/HDD going at the same time, you can do Windows Defender Full-Scan concurrently.
http://www.ocbase.com/

All CPU Meter gadget (Does CPU usage ramp-up when called upon)
http://addgadgets.com/all_cpu_meter/

Prime95 - Push all CPU cores to 100% (works nice with All CPU Meter and HW Monitor)

HyperPI - Push all CPU cores to 100% (works nice with All CPU Meter and HW Monitor)

Bootable Diags (outside Windows):
- Create boot-able Flash drives when possible

Dell-Alienware 32bit Hardware Diags
http://ftp.dell.com/diags/AW1382A0.exe

MemTest86.com - Memory Test
http://www.memtest86.com/

Harddrive Confidence Test
WDC - Data Lifeguard Diags (DOS or Windows)
Seagate - SeaTools (DOS or Windows)

If above fails:
- Dissipate Power. Shut-down, unplug AC Power, and press power-button a few times. Power back on.
- Re-seat parts, replace parts, etc.
- Remove hardware and make system config as simple as possible.
- If video cards(s) are suspect, install a spare small (low-power) known good PCIe one for testing.
- Remove discrete video-card and use on-board one (if available).
- If you have 2 video cards, try only one in main PCIe slot. Test both that way.
- Test Power Supply with "Digital PC Power Supply Tester". Also check PowerGood value in ms
- If you expect ram problems, remove them all. Try to boot with each Dimm in Slot-1 by itself. 
- Try re-installing original Dell-shipped ram memory Dimms (unless they are bad).
- Check Power-Switch or replace Front-Panel assembly (if switch is in solid-state circuit).
- Hire qualified technician if you don't know what you are doing.

Power-Supply:
When the machine is on, the green power-supply led should be on steady.

When the machine is off, you can press the button on back of PS. The green led will come on steady, the main power-button light will turn on, the fans will run. If you hold it in, all that happens continuously (like the machine is powering-up) but I don't think it will actually boot/post (you have to press the main power-button for that to happen).

So, the green light is helpful, but I would not say it is "all-telling". The proper way to test a power supply is with a $20 Digital Power-Supply Tester. Here is a slightly-nicer name-brand one.
 
SMPS is a complex component. Not only does a $20 Digital Switch-Mode Power-Supply Tester test for all voltages concurrently, it also puts a (although small) load on it ... it also tests for Power-Good (PG)signal.
 
When they fail, one voltage might be missing or out-of-range under-load, PG out-of-range, etc. It's easy for a failing SMPS to generate voltages with no real power (amps or watts) behind it. Have you ever had a bad-battery in your car that reads 12volts? (same thing)
 
Power Supply Wiring Harness:
Check individual pins (on both sides) for over-amp scorching/melting or anything preventing a good connection. Sometimes simply "re-seating" the connectors into the sockets helps.

CMOS/BIOS Upgrades:
The general rule is you don't update motherboard CMOS-BIOS firmware, unless you have a good reason to do so. This is due to the risk of "bricking" the motherboard. If under warranty, I suggest you call phone support and let them walk you through it. That way, if it bricks, you can usually get your motherboard replaced for free. Bricking-risk is especially true with older (non-UEFI) conventional Legacy-BIOS machines. Better to do those outside-of-Windows with DOS bootable media.
 
Newer UEFI machines might be less prone to bricking/killing. Finally, a very old BIOS might have bugs/glitches that are fixed in newer versions. If you are far behind and have many to install, it's usually best to just install them all in order (checking machine after each one).
 
I've had good luck flashing BIOS outside of Windows with Rufus-made FreeDOS bootable flash drive. If in UEFI-Mode, you might have to temporarily disable SecureBoot or even resort to Legacy-Mode to get flash-drive to boot:
http://www.howtogeek.com/136987/how-to-create-a-bootable-dos-usb-drive/
I just make one of these USB Flash drives. Create a Folder on it for each machine. Inside the folder, copy all the consecutive BIOS updates needed for that machine. Goes pretty fast. Again, be sure to check machine after each one. Don't get it a hurry or get confused. Better to have machine on a good UPS (like APC) while doing this.

Dell wrote this article about completely dead machines:
http://www.dell.com/support/troubleshooting/us/en/04/KCS/KcsArticles/ArticleView?c=us&l=en&s=bsd&docid=464502

If all above passes:
- Update all drivers and WindowsUpdates
- Retest failing app.

 

Slow Performance:

Crystal Disk Mark (Standard Edition - Portable) - HDD/SSD Performance
http://crystalmark.info/software/CrystalDiskMark/index-e.html

PC Mark 7 or 8 (Free Basic Edition)
http://www.futuremark.com/benchmarks/pcmark8

Heaven Benchmark - Direct-X GPU Graphics Test (simulates system gaming demands)
- Another good one for Stress Testing like games
http://unigine.com/products/heaven/

Dell finally wrote an article:
http://www.dell.com/support/troubleshooting/us/en/19/KCS/KcsArticles/ArticleView?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&docid=511984&dgc=SM&cid=249387&lid=4801492

 

If you suspect Windows OS corruption or damage:

Windows Safe-Mode (Tap F8 or Shift-F8 on Windows load)
- Then check Device Manager and Windows in general
- Get into Windows to backup vital data files
- Uninstall rogue programs
- A way to get in and use a System Restore set-point (before problem occurred)

Dell-Restore whole machine (to Factory original software/OS load)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LNIPkqsQy8

- or -

Clean-Install Windows from scratch Dell-AW OEM Win7-64
http://en.community.dell.com/owners-club/alienware/f/3746/t/19376654.aspx

Remember that Windows can temporarily be installed to a spare HDD/SDD for testing.
- While your existing hard-drive (with all it's programs, data, and config) should still be backed-up first, with it temporarily completely disconnected, there is very little chance of anything happening to it. You can always switch them back and be back where you left off.