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Dell Inspiron 520 Will Not Start Up Unless Left Off for Few Minutes
I have a Dell Inspiron 520 desktop with an AMD chip that is probably not even two years old. I have it running all the time since I run a web site from it. Tonight, I tried to log in and the monitor said there was no signal. I had another computer and monitor beside it so I switched monitors hoping it was one of the really old monitors that had gone bad. Unfortunately, it was the desktop. It just beeped once about every minute. I turned it off and unplugged it. I came back about 10 minutes later and it started up fine. The first sign I had that it was giving me problems was the other night. I was watching a movie on YouTube and it froze. I thought it was a software issue so restarted the desktop.
Anyway, I am wondering if a fan has gone. I have turned it off for now as I do not want to do any more damage.
Please help.
RoHe
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June 11th, 2014 18:00
I don't see an "Inspiron 520" listed on Dell's support site. Is that the correct model number? (There is an Inspiron 530.)
Since it rebooted after being off for a while, it could be a heat issue or maybe a failing power supply or video card. What color is the power button when it won't boot and is it steady or blinking?
One beep means: System Board: BIOS ROM failure
So you might also try clearing BIOS setup:
*This might be a good time to install a fresh battery. CR2032 3-volt lithium ion battery, ~US$2.00 at discount stores.
RoHe
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June 12th, 2014 12:00
Time isn't always a good indicator of battery condition. If you have the OS set to sync the clock automatically with network time (eg with NIST), you may never see a date/time error. And the message from hardinfo suggests you need to replace the battery. CR2032 is correct.
There are no settings or temp indicators in BIOS on Dell systems, and many/most Dell's don't even have the CPU temp sensor enabled. So check to see if the CPU and video card fans are free of dust/debris and turn freely.
Since you don't have a diagnostics partition, try booting from your Dell Resources CD to see if you can run the diagnostics from there, which should include a CPU fan test.
DELL-Ravi Ch
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June 9th, 2014 22:00
Hi Otago Harbour,
I would suggest that you run the diagnostics on the computer by following the steps mentioned in the video below and check if there is any issue with the hardware on your system.
http://dell.to/164l6g4
Also, I would suggest you to update the BIOS on the computer. Please enter your service tag # on the link below, then download the BIOS required onto the system and install it.
http://dell.to/18r60nI
Please let me know the findings.
Otago Harbour
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June 10th, 2014 19:00
Dear Sir,
I followed from the video. I did get into the diagnostic function but it was all white text on a blue background rather than teh way it appeared on the video. It tested timers, hard drive, CDROM, video card and did several tests for memory. It passed all the tests but ended with the following message.
Pre-boot System Assessment Complete. No diagnostic Utility Partition Identified. Please select OK to reboot your system.
I was hoping that it would test the fans, motherboard and temperature. I had installed Debian on the system, using the whole HD. Could I have overwritten the full PBSA?
I went into BIOS but could not find anything that gave the temperature of any components in the system, It did have the following info.
System:: Inspiron 520
BIOS version: A05 12/20/10
Processor AMD Athlon II X2 750
Memory: 4096 MB
Memory Speed: 1066 MHz
Memory Technology: DDR3 SDRAM
Power: ACPI Suspend Type S3
Thanks,
OH
Otago Harbour
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June 10th, 2014 20:00
I went here
http://dell.to/18r60nI
but they do not have tools for any OS other than Windows.
Otago Harbour
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June 10th, 2014 21:00
I did find a Debian utility hardinfo. It has a sensor option and gives the temperature as 20C which doesn't seem too bad after running the PC for a couple of hours. Except it doesn't say what the temperature relates to. I once had a PC freezing because the CPU fan had died. The main fan was working but the CPU temp got up to 70C.
Otago Harbour
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June 11th, 2014 19:00
Many thanks for your reply. My apologies. It is an Inspiron 570. I must have misread. I found a manual so will print it out and do what you suggest. The battery for a 570 is a CR2032. It looks similar to a battery that I replaced on another computer. The PC still gives the correct time.
As I recall, the power button was the steady broad spectrum white that it is under normal operation which is why I initially thought the problem was with the monitor or monitor connection. It has been on for the past 24 hours and the linux function, hardinfo, still gives the temperature as 20C. However it also says "No batteries found on this system" while the manual says what type of battery it is and where it is located. It also has a CPU fan. I remember a computer I had once had the CPU fan die. The CPU temperature would rise to about 70C in a few minutes and then the system would freeze. I could not find the temperature on the BIOS of this system.
Thanks very much again,
OH
Otago Harbour
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June 14th, 2014 11:00
Thank you very much for your reply. I did as you suggested and so far everything is working fine. I ran the PC with the cover off and the fans appear to be working fine.
Thanks again,
OH
RoHe
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June 14th, 2014 21:00
:emotion-21: