Dell Dimension 4600

Question

Hi, My Dell Dimension 4600 didn't save cmos setting after i turn off power. Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance. Hope to hear from you soon. Thank you.

osprey4 · Answer

Hi Taysweeyih, Please replace your motherboard battery. After you do that, boot to system set up (F2) and configure your hardware and the clock.

speedstep · Answer

The Duracell DL2032 battery is dead. Time to go to the Grocery Store in the *** section and buy a new battery.

Duracell Batteries DL2032 3 Volt Lithium Coin Battery

Removing and Installing Parts

Removing the Computer Cover

Dell™ Dimension™ 4600 Series Service Manual

CAUTION: Before you begin any of the procedures in this section, follow the safety instructions in your Owner's Manual or Product Information Guide.

CAUTION: To guard against electrical shock, always unplug your computer from the electrical outlet before removing the cover.

Follow the procedures in "Before You Begin."
<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed from this post by Dell>
Lay your computer on its side with the computer cover facing up.
If your computer cover has a cover latch, slide and hold the cover latch.
Grip the indents on the computer cover, and slide the computer cover toward the back of the computer

.

Battery

CAUTION: Before you begin any of the procedures in this section, follow the safety instructions in your Owner's Manual or Product Information Guide.

CAUTION: To guard against electrical shock, always unplug your computer from the electrical outlet before removing the cover.

Battery Overview

A coin-cell battery maintains computer configuration, date, and time information. The battery can last several years.

If you have to repeatedly reset time and date information after turning on the computer, replace the battery.

CAUTION: A new battery can explode if it is incorrectly installed. Replace the 3-V CR2032 battery only with the same or equivalent type recommended by the manufacturer. Discard used batteries according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Replacing the Battery

Record all the screens in system setup so that you can restore the correct settings when you perform step 8.
Follow the procedures in "Before You Begin."
<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed from this post by Dell>
Locate the battery socket on the system board.

NOTICE: If you pry the battery out of its socket with a blunt object, be careful not to touch the system board with the object. Ensure that the object is inserted between the battery and the socket before you attempt to pry out the battery. Otherwise, you may damage the system board by prying off the socket or by breaking circuit traces on the system board.

Remove the battery by carefully prying it out of its socket with your fingers or with a blunt, nonconducting object such as a plastic screwdriver.
Insert the new battery into the socket with the side labeled "+" facing up, and snap the battery into place.
Replace the computer cover.

NOTICE: To connect a network cable, first plug the cable into the network wall jack and then plug it into the computer.

Connect your computer and devices to electrical outlets, and turn them on.
Enter system setupand restore the settings you recorded in step 1.
<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed from this post by Dell>
Properly dispose of the old battery. See the safety instructions in your Owner's Manual or Product Information Guide.

Back to Contents Page

speedstep · Answer

You have to do F2 and save the settings.

Entering System Setup

Viewing Settings

Turn on (or restart) your computer.
When the blue DELL™ logo appears, press immediately.

If you wait too long and the operating system logo appears, continue to wait until you see the Microsoft® Windows® desktop. Then shut down your computer and try again.

System Setup Screens

System setup screens display the current configuration information for your computer. Information on the screen is divided into five areas:

Title — The box at the top of all screens that lists the computer name.
Computer data — Two boxes below the title box that display your computer processor, L2 cache, Service Tag, and the version number of the BIOS.
Options — A scrollable box listing options that define the configuration of your computer, including installed hardware, power conservation, and security features.

Fields to the right of the option titles contain settings or values. When <Enter> appears to the right of an option title, press to access a pop-up menu of additional options.

Help — A feature that gives you information on the option that is selected (highlighted) when you press .

Key functions — A line of boxes across the bottom of all screens that lists keys and their functions within system setup.

Keys	Action
or down arrow	Moves to the next field.
, or up arrow	Moves to the previous field.
back arrow or forward arrow	Cycles through the options in a field. In many fields, you can also type the appropriate value.
or	Scrolls through help information.
	Enters the selected field's pop-up options menu.
spacebar, <=> or <->	In the selected field's pop-up options menu, cycles through the options in a field.
	Exits system setup without restarting the computer and returns the computer to the boot routine.
	Exits system setup and restarts the computer, implementing any changes you have made.
	Resets the selected option to the default setting.
	Restores all system settings to the default configuration.

System Setup Options

NOTE: Depending on your computer and installed devices, the items listed in this section may or may not appear.

Drive Configuration
Diskette Drive A	Identifies the floppy drive attached to the DSKT connector on the system board. With the standard cabling configuration, Diskette Drive A (the boot floppy drive) is the 3.5-inch floppy drive installed in the top externally accessible drive bay. The two options are 3.5 Inch, 1.44 MB and Not Installed. Tape drives are not reflected in the Diskette Drive A option. For example, if a single floppy drive and a tape drive are attached to the floppy drive interface cable, set Diskette Drive A to 3.5 Inch, 1.44 MB.
SATA Primary Drive	Identifies the serial ATA hard drive attached to the SATA1 connector on the system board.
SATA Secondary Drive	Identifies the serial ATA hard drive attached to the SATA2 connector on the system board (not available on the small form-factor computer).
Primary Drive 0	Identifies the IDE hard drive attached to the IDE1 connector on the system board.
Primary Drive 1	Identifies the IDE device attached to the IDE2 connector on the system board.
Secondary Drive 0	Identifies the device that is cabled with the drive on the IDE1 data cable.
Secondary Drive 1	Identifies the device that is cabled with the device on the IDE2 data cable.
IDE Drive UDMA	Sets the mode for all installed hard drives. NOTE: You must have an IDE device connected to the primary IDE interface if you have an IDE device connected to the secondary IDE interface.
If you have a problem, see "Hard Drive Problems" in your Owner's Manual.

Hard-Disk Drive Sequence
If you insert a boot device and restart, this option appears in the system setup menu.
System BIOS boot device
USB Device	To boot from a USB memory device, select the USB device and move it so it becomes the first device in the list.

Boot Sequence
Normal	(This option is available only for the current boot process.) The computer attempts to boot from the sequence of devices specified in system setup.
Diskette Drive	The computer attempts to boot from the floppy drive. If the floppy disk in the drive is not bootable, or if no floppy disk is in the drive, the computer generates an error message.
Hard Drive	The computer attempts to boot from the primary hard drive. If no operating system is on the drive, the computer generates an error message.
CD Drive	The computer attempts to boot from the CD drive. If no CD is in the drive, or if no operating system is on the CD, the computer generates an error message.
PXE	(This option is available only for the future boot process.) As the computer boots, it prompts the user to press . Pressing this key combination causes a menu to display that allows you to select a method for booting from a network server. If a boot routine is not available from the network server, the computer attempts to boot from the next device in the boot sequence list.
USB Flash Device	Insert the memory device into a USB port and restart the computer. When F12 = Boot Menu appears in the upper-right corner of the screen, press . The BIOS detects the device and adds the USB flash option to the boot menu. NOTE: To boot to a USB device, the device must be bootable. To ensure that your device is bootable, check the device documentation.

Memory Information
Indicates amount of installed memory, computer memory speed, amount of video memory, size of the display cache, and channel mode (dual or single).
Installed System Memory	Displays the amount of installed system memory.
System Memory Speed	Displays the speed of your system memory.
System Memory Channel Mode	Displays the mode of your system memory.
AGP Aperture	Displays the amount of aperture memory. The default setting is 128 MB.

CPU Information
CPU Speed	The processor speed at which the computer boots. Press the left- or right-arrow key to toggle the CPU Speed option between the resident processor's rated speed (the default speed) and a lower-compatibility speed. A change to this option takes effect immediately and no restart is necessary. To toggle between the rated processor speed and the compatibility speed while the computer is running in real mode, press <\>. (For keyboards that do not use American English, press <#>.)
Bus Speed	The speed of the processor's system bus.
Processor ID	The manufacturer's identification code(s) for the installed processor.
Clock Speed	The core speed at which the processor(s) can operate.
Cache Size	The size of the processor's L2 cache.
Hyper-Threading	The setting that allows you to enables or disable Hyper-Threading technology for operating systems that support Hyper-Threading. The default setting is Disabled.
NOTE: If your computer has a processor capable of supporting Hyper-Threading, the Hyper-Threading option is the first selection in the list.

Integrated Devices (Legacy Select Options)
Configures the following devices integrated with the system board:
Sound	The settings are On (default) or Off.
Network Interface Controller	The settings are On (default), Off, or On w/ PXE.
Mouse Port	The settings are On or Off.
USB Emulation	The settings are On (default) and Off.
USB Controller	The settings are On (default) or Off.
PCI Slots	The settings are Enabled (default) and Disabled.
Serial Port 1 and Serial Port 2	The settings are Off and Auto (default). (Serial Port 2 appears as an option if you have a serial port card installed.) Auto automatically configures a connector to a particular designation (COM1 or COM3 for Serial Port 1; COM2 or COM4 for Serial Port 2). If you set a serial connector to Auto and then add a card that is also set to Auto, the computer automatically remaps the integrated port to the next available connector designation that shares the same IRQ setting as follows: COM1 (I/O address 3F8h), which shares IRQ4 with COM3, is remapped to COM3 (I/O address 3E8h). COM2 (I/O address 2F8h), which shares IRQ3 with COM4, is remapped to COM4 (I/O address 2E8h). NOTE: When two COM connectors share an IRQ setting, you can use either connector as necessary, but you may not be able to use both connectors at the same time.
Parallel Port	The settings are Mode, I/O Address, and DMA Channel: Mode settings are PS/2 (default), EPP, ECP, AT, or Off. Set the Mode option according to the type of device connected to the parallel connector. To determine the correct mode to use, see the documentation that came with the device. I/O Address settings are 378h (default), 278h, or 3BCh. The settings are not available when Mode is set to Off. NOTE: You cannot set the parallel connector to 3BCh if Mode is set to EPP. DMA Channel appears only when Mode is set to ECP. Settings are DMA 1, DMA 3, or Off.
IDE Drive Interface	The settings are Off and Auto (default). Auto turns off the IDE interface (when necessary) to accommodate a controller card installed in an expansion slot.
Diskette Interface	The settings are Auto (default), Read Only, and Off. Auto turns off the integrated floppy drive controller when necessary to accommodate a controller card installed in an expansion slot. Read Only prevents the computer's integrated floppy drive controller from writing to floppy drives and also activates the Auto setting.
PC Speaker	The settings are On (default) and Off.
Primary Video Controller	The settings are Auto (default) and Onboard. Auto (default) — If only an AGP card is installed, the computer uses the AGP card; if only a PCI card is installed, the computer uses the PCI card; if both AGP and PCI cards are installed, the computer uses both cards. Onboard — The computer uses the AGP card.
Onboard Video Buffer	The settings are 1 MB (default) and 8 MB.

Power Management
Suspend Mode	The options are S1 or S3.
AC Power Recovery	Determines what happens when AC power is restored to the computer. Off (default) — The computer remains off when AC power is restored. On — The computer starts when AC power is restored. Last — The computer returns to the AC power state existing at the time that AC power was lost.
Low Power Mode	The settings are Enabled and Disabled.
See "Power Problems" in your Owner's Manual for more information.

System Security
Display system security options when you press .

Keyboard NumLock
The settings are On and Off (these settings do not apply to 84-key keyboards).
On (default)	Activates the rightmost bank of keys so that they provide the mathematical and numeric functions shown at the top of each key.
Off	Activates the rightmost bank of keys so that they provide the cursor-control functions shown by the label on the bottom of each key.

Report Keyboard Errors
Displays keyboard errors when set to Report. The default setting is Report.

Auto Power On

Sets time and days of week to automatically turn on the computer. Choices are every day or every Monday through Friday.

Time is kept in a 24-hour format (hours:minutes). Change the start-up time by pressing the right- or left-arrow key to increase or decrease the numbers, or type numbers in both the date and time fields.

The default setting is Disabled.

This feature does not work if you turn off your computer using a power strip or surge protector.

Fastboot
On (default)	Your computer starts more quickly, skipping certain configurations and tests.
Off	Your computer does not skip certain configurations and tests during the boot process.

OS Install mode
Turns the OS Install mode on and off. The default setting is Off.

IDE Hard Drive Acoustics Mode
The acoustics mode field may contain the following options:
Quiet	The hard drive operates in its quietest setting.
Performance	The hard drive operates at its maximum speed. NOTE: Switching to performance mode may cause the drive to be noisier, but its performance is not affected.
Bypass (default)	Your computer does not test or change the current acoustics mode setting.
Suggested	The hard drive operates at the level suggested by the hard drive manufacturer. NOTE: Changing the acoustics setting does not alter your hard drive image.

System Event Log
Displays the system event log when you press .

Asset Tag
Displays the customer-programmable asset tag number for the computer if an asset tag number is assigned.

Boot Sequence

This feature allows you to change the boot sequence for devices.

Option Settings

Normal — (Available only for the current boot process) The computer attempts to boot from the sequence of devices specified in system setup.
Diskette Drive — The computer attempts to boot from the floppy drive. If the floppy disk in the drive is not bootable, or if no floppy disk is in the drive, the computer generates an error message.
Hard Drive — The computer attempts to boot from the primary hard drive. If no operating system is on the drive, the computer generates an error message.
CD Drive — The computer attempts to boot from the CD drive. If no CD is in the drive, or if the CD has no operating system, the computer generates an error message.
PXE — (Available only for the future boot process) As the computer boots, it prompts the user to press . Pressing this key combination causes a menu to display that allows you to select a method for booting from a network server. If a boot routine is not available from the network server, the system attempts to boot from the next device in the boot sequence list.
USB Flash Device — Insert the memory device into a USB port and restart the computer. When F12 = Boot Menu appears in the upper-right corner of the screen, press . The BIOS detects the device and adds the USB flash option to the boot menu.

NOTE: To boot to a USB device, the device must be bootable. To make sure your device is bootable, check the device documentation.

Changing Boot Sequence for the Current Boot

You can use this feature, for example, to restart your computer from a USB device, such as a floppy drive, memory key, or CD-RW drive.

Turn on (or restart) your computer.

When F2 = Setup, F12 = Boot Menu appears in the upper-right corner of the screen, press .

If you wait too long and the operating system logo appears, continue to wait until you see the Microsoft Windows desktop. Then shut down your computer and try again.

The Boot Device Menu appears, listing all available boot devices. Each device has a number next to it.

At the bottom of the menu, enter the number of the device that is to be used for the current boot only.

Changing Boot Sequence for Future Boots

Enter system setup.

Use the arrow keys to highlight the Boot Sequence menu option and press to access the pop-up menu.

NOTE: Write down your current boot sequence in case you want to restore it.

Press the up- and down-arrow keys to move through the list of devices.

Press the spacebar to enable or disable a device (enabled devices have a checkmark).

Press plus (+) or minus (–) to move a selected device up or down the list.

taysweeyih · Answer

Sorry, i combine to post below.:emotion-10:

taysweeyih · Answer

Thanks SpeedStep and Osprey4.

I am sorry. I did change some new 2032 battery but still the same.

When i turn on power outlet on wall, the computer straight away power on without a need to press power button of cpu.

It then show me this.

I press F2 to change System Time and System Date, change Hyper-Threading to Enabled from CPU Information.

Then i Save Changes and Exit bios.

I need to repeat this everytime after i turn off power outlet on the wall.

Please help me.

Thank you.

osprey4 · Answer

Make sure the battery is good, and installed correctly. If you typically turn off the power outlet, you'll go through batteries much faster. My suggestion would be to leave the power to the PC on.

taysweeyih · Answer

Hi Osprey4,

Had try reinstall properly a few new battery and even battery from other working Dell PC still no luck.

I very seldom turn off the power outlet after i first change its battery years ago.

Recently i move the PC and found this problem.

Guess i need to leave the power to the PC on to save me the trouble everytime.

Thanks for your helps all along.

RoHe · Answer

That's a strange error screen because it looks like it says: "Diskette drive 8 seek failure."

If you reboot and press F2, can you get into BIOS Setup? If you can get into Setup, disable the Diskette Interface. Then reset the date and time. Be sure to save these changes before exiting setup. Assuming it boots to the desktop, shut down normally and power off. Then reboot and see if that fixed the problem.

If that doesn't help, try this:

Power off and unplug

Press/hold power button on tower for ~15 sec

Open the case and remove motherboard battery

Press/hold power button on tower for ~30 sec

Leave it unplugged and without the battery for at least a couple of hours

Use a link-free cloth to gently wipe the battery socket on the motherboard and wipe surfaces and edges of the battery to remove fingerprints and dirt.

Then hold the battery by the edges and reinstall (right-side-up!).

See what happens when you reboot now

taysweeyih · Answer

Hi Ron,

Sorry didn't mention i also need to change Diskette Drive A: to Not Installed from Drive Configuration.

Had try your Method. It fix the cpu from power on by itself when i turn on power outlet on wall.

But too bad still have to get into BIOS to change and save setting everytime.

My Dell OptiPlex 160L no problem with Dell Dimension 4600 battery.

But Dell Dimension 4600 same problem with Dell OptiPlex 160L battery.

Somehow my Dell Dimension 4600 can't remember setting or can't detect battery.

Thanks for helping me.

osprey4 · Answer

Could be a bad CMOS chip, which of course cannot be fixed without a motherboard replacement.

taysweeyih · Answer

Hi Osprey4, Guess i have to live with this. Thanks for your helps.

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