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Dimension E520 - Power supply or other???
I ran a scan for something else and got a message that said my computer temprature was high 75 and that I needed to either hand clean fan or replace, I then when I was finished with my session on the computer shut it down to cool for the night but usually leave it on. When I tried to turn it on in the morning or early afternoon it the fan came on for a few seconds like it normally does, then shut off and on the screen it shows it booting up but then power shuts down or screen goes black and then fan will come on for a secdond and shut off right away and that is what it will do until I power it off again.. also cpu has lots of ventalation and is in open area. I tried to clean whole inside of computer and it still does this. It did say when I first turned it back on that there was a thermal event... I get the amber light on power button flashing on and off kind of quickly and no other lights, but it appears that if it did not keep shutting down it would boot up again. I have had the computer now about four years now.. and usually clean it every couple of months and more when it is more dusty around here... and keep it in the coolest place I can in the house. Is it the power supply or is it something else anyway to tell? I am already thinking about purchasing a power supply replacement.... I understand it can cost me about $80 according to the sales department here at dell but I have to wait for money.
Any suggestions, comments or what ever will be helpful... Thank You in advance.
shesagordie
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January 26th, 2010 12:00
LRowemn
A flashing Amber power button LED, usually indicates a failing/failed power supply, try installing a different PSU.
The E520 systems do not use a Dell proprietary power supply, you can install most standard ATX power supplies with a 24-pin or 20+4-pin main motherboard power connector.
As the E520 has an open back panel, a power supply with or without the on/off switch can be installed.
You should be able to buy a compatible power supply from either a local or online computer store.
Note: You will need a power supply, with four SATA power connectors.
Or, a Dell OEM refurbished e520 power supply can be purchased from HERE @ $29.00
Bev.
RoHe
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January 26th, 2010 14:00
CPU heat sink loose?
Ron
RoHe
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January 26th, 2010 16:00
Yes, but is the heatsink <ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed from this post by Dell> shield properly screwed down on the motherboard? Since you got a thermal event warning, it's possible the heatsink is loose and/or failed.
Something to consider before buying new parts.
Ron
LRowemn
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January 26th, 2010 16:00
I tried to disconnect and reconnect all connections and parts, and did this several times and still get the same thing so I am pretty sure there is no loose connections or parts...
LRowemn
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January 26th, 2010 23:00
I again did that and also checked a few of the other connections and then tried again a few times and then it at first did not want to start up and shut down right away before even fan could get running, but after third time it all kicked in and is working but did notice that where power cord goes in that fan either is not working properly or something else is going on got real warm very quickly on back of computer and I don't even have cpu in its place still have it out in the open... I have placed a household fan facing that way to try to help the power supply stay cool... or I am wrong with this too... or am I going to have to replace the power supply anyways....
Thank you for your help...
Linda
shesagordie
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January 27th, 2010 08:00
LRowemn
Is the power supply fan working?
Bev.
LRowemn
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January 27th, 2010 11:00
I can't hear it but can feel a little breeze coming from the power supply.... I shut my computer down last night or early this morning thinking I would let the machine cool while I slept and now it won't go again, it will flash the amber light and you can hear the hard drives working but it will not load or boot. and I have nothing on the monitor like before it started working and not sure what it was I did to get it going again.... I did get a message when it worked again that said...
Alert! Previous Shut down due to thermal event.
Alert! Previous atteptes at booting this system failed at check point [Ithr].
It said to contact Dell technical service for further help if needed.
Also when it first is powered on the other cooling fan or cirrculation fan comes on immediately and then shuts off right awayl And then the other devices start working but then the yellow or amber light keeps flashing and nothing shows on the monitor, but when cpu not connected monitor works and has a test screen that shows up...I can connect other cpu to monitor and it works.. so it is not the monitor... also last night when computer did start to work my computer kind of acted like it was new or I had new devices put in it, there was also a symbol that looked like my cpu or tower...but when scanned finnished it said my computer was running normally....and it did not find any problems...but that was not the same scan that I used the other day, that one was online and was for another program I was going to install before changing my mind that I would wait until I do a little clean up on my computer and some maintenance if needed...
So do you think it will help with new power supply or am I or did I lose something else? If I can get the power supply to work properly seems that computer will run but not sure that is the problem but did some reading online and said power supply... Again thank you in advance... this computer is my baby and my life cause I have depression and a disability I can spend a lot of time on it at times, and without it I sometimes get more depressed cause I can't talk to my online friends and family... but also can't connect with my counselors if needed... the more information and suggestions to fix this the better.. I really appreciate it.
LRowemn
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January 27th, 2010 13:00
Alert! Previous Shut down due to thermal event.
Alert! Previous atteptes at booting this system failed at check point [Ithr].
It said to contact Dell technical service for further help if needed.
and after running computer for about an hour I then shut it down and now have same problem before but fan does not keep coming on and turning off frequently... and I can hear hard drives working, and the cd/dvd roms working, and lights come on as they normally do except power on button which is yellow and flashing kind of fast...or blinking.
Any Ideas what could be going on?
shesagordie
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January 27th, 2010 17:00
Ron.
Could be the battery, it would not harm anything to replace it, but I think the 'Alert! Previous Shut down due to thermal event' error, is the answer.
LRowemn
Have you cleaned the dust build up from the inside of the case, fans, heatsink cooling fins and the front air intakes, recently?
Bev.
RoHe
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January 27th, 2010 17:00
Bev- Do you think at least some of this might be due to a dead motherboard battery?
LRowemn's last post says there's a warning about a failure at checkpoint (Ithr]. That can frequently be cleared by resetting BIOS to defaults by removing/replacing the battery. When I got that same error message on my 8400, the power button was blinking amber too and resetting BIOS fixed it. But I wasn't getting a thermal event warning which is what ithr checks. So there still may be a heat issue here.
The other possibility is maybe the CPU fan died or the motherboard sensor failed and isn't turning that fan on.
The only way to get at the CPU fan is to remove the heat sink assembly.
Ron