Optiplex 9010 will not power on

You've been through quite a bit of troubleshooting and did a good job.

If you try replacing the RAM stick, but then find out both RAM sticks are good, you could use both in a different 9010.  It helps to make sure specs and mfr. are the same to better chances of 2 sticks working together.  It's also a part of Dell specs.  I'd be remiss if I didn't mention others have mixed mfrs. and capacities, but other specs the same, like speed and volts, even if not recommended.  I have 2 different brands in my 7010.  The generation the same as 9010 seemed to have some flexibility.

You may have gotten a virus.  The fact that you're storage drive was wiped seems vindictive of that.  Does your boot drive still work in another PC?

Also, the SSD is the only one thing besides the RAM you haven't replaced, so that could be worth a try.

Is the PSU you put in it also a Dell?

You said it now says "7010" in diagnostics.  Probably says that in BIOS too.  That's because the MB is likely for a 7010.  Seller possibly screwed up.

Thanks for your reply.

I'll either buy more memory or buy another 9010 and try out its memory.  I doubt whether I got a virus.  I was using KDE Linux.  The SSD still seems good.  The PSU is same model Dell.

Sounds good.  I only asked if current PSU is a Dell is because while Dell's can take some aftermarket PSU's, the specs are often different.

That's good to know about PSUs.  I was at one time thinking of adding a GPU, and I figured I'd have to upgrade the PSU to one with at least 500 watts.  Being able to upgrade parts easily is why I prefer desktops.  For now I'm stuck with my HP I5 laptop.  Overall the Dell tested 1.5 times better.

The machine is somewhat too old to invest in.  It's good if you can manage to repair it with what you have but don't pour more money into which may have another part fail in the next few months. 

For less than 200 usd, you can get a newer optiplex, probably a 7050 tower with skylake i7 and ssd for storage and with win 10 pro.  The machine will last another 5 years easily.

Just some thoughts.

By any chance does it start and boot while holding in the PSU test button?

Something may be to rule out is check power switch cable to make sure connections are tight and nothing is shorting.  I'd suspect the power switch, but you also had it shutting off by itself.

If the cabling is fine, I'd still fall back on trying different RAM and/or a different SSD depending on how it goes.

That's sort-of what I'm thinking but I'm also thinking of this as a puzzle and I don't want to let it defeat me.  While it worked it was as good a computer as I need.

I just did some experimenting on older computers to see what happened if I took the memory out of them.  The power button on the Compaq laptop just blinked when I pressed it.  Both the Dell and the Compaq desktops came on and beeped as soon as I plugged them in.  A computer I built with an MSI motherboard turned on and beeped when I pressed the power button.  Never before did I try to run computers without memory but I had plenty of experience with incompatible and mismatched memory.  In every case the computers turned on when I pressed the power button and beeped at least.

So all this leads me to think that my Optiplex should beep or at least blink if it's a memory problem.  The fact that it does nothing makes me wonder whether the replacement motherboard I bought is also no good.  So I'm thinking of buying yet another.

Or not.  With all the old and obsolete computers I have that still work, I don't think age is an issue.  A motherboard so prone to failure is more likely plain old bad engineering.

Hi,

I didn't get it to boot or even get video out of it when I pressed the button on the PSU but I never got video out of any computer with missing, incompatible or mismatched memory.  I didn't try removing the power button but I traced the cable and it seemed fine.  When I tried pulling the connector off the motherboard and putting it back the fans came on for a few seconds and the power button light glowed white while they were on.  When I briefly inserted the connector and removed it again the fans came on and stayed on till I put the connector back and pushed it in.

I suppose all this means I should try buying another memory stick.  I'll have to wait till next month unless I can borrow the money.

I mistakenly left out a detail in the 1st sentence in my post above.  I meant to ask:  If you hold in the PSU test button, and then you push and release the power button, will it start?

Make sure PC is off and unplugged whenever working on the inside of it.

Dell VYR4N and 2W1T9 OptiPlex 7010 9010 USFF Power Button Board https://a.co/d/0iQvf3G

https://www.ebay.com/itm/175294888581?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=rHjZePAhTTi&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=4aJmgrhGRgO&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY 

I linked a couple of power switches (1 with cable, sometimes the only way to get it).  Not the l.e.d., but if the power switch maintains a constant connection, that could be a problem.

I take it you have the USFF, as you the "S" processor.  USFF has it's own unique switch and cable.

Optiplex 9010 Documentation  A couple of troubleshooting manuals listed in that link could be of help.

Optiplex 9010 USFF Owner's Manual.pdf 

No, it made no difference whether I hold in the PSU button and press and release the power button or hold in the power button and press the PSU button.  No beeps, no power button light, and no video.  Sometimes the fans come on briefly when I press the power button by itself but that's rare.

At least I found out that the computer beeps a number of times when I pull the power button connector out of the motherboard then insert it briefly if I don't have the memory installed.  It doesn't beep with memory installed.  So wouldn't that mean the memory is good?

I checked the links you had in your second post but they don't apply.  I have the large MT case not the USFF case.  The cable is round not a ribbon, and it has the 3x2 connector.  Since I bought the computer from a refurbisher, who knows what it was originally like. 

Optiplex 7010/9010 MT Owner's Manual.page view 

Googling power switch for 9010 MT brings up quite a few options:  https://www.google.com/search?q=optiplex+9010+mt+power+switch&oq=optiplex+9010+mt+power+switch&aqs=chrome..69i57j33i160l2j33i22i29i30l2.18338j0j7&client=ms-android-americamovil-us-revc&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#scso=_FaO0YseNLrqekPIPzfinkAM3:0 

It's quite possible your RAM is good.  But of course I don't have a way of testing it from here.

Good news!  Everything works if I can just figure out how to make it work.

I was messing around with the power switch connector as usual.  I happened to plug in the AC power cable with the switch cable unplugged.  The computer came on and stayed on.  I decided to plug in the VGA cable and got video this time.  The words on the screen were talking about there being no boot device among other things.  I did still more messing around and concluded that the reason I didn't get video before was whatever signal that's supposed to tell the monitor to power on was missing.  The monitor comes on when I plug or unplug the VGA cable so it was already on and picked up the video.  Later I'll try the Display Port to HDMI adapter to see if that works any better but that was upstairs where I used to have the computer, not in the basement where I was working on it.

Soon I'll try installing the hard drive and SSD but for now I put a Linux install DVD in the burner and that booted fine.  I ordered a replacement power switch and cable.

Thanks for your help!  I still hope to get a second Optiplex working but that means ordering another memory stick and heatsink/fan and deciding what old case to put it all in.

What would you recommend for heatsink compound?  I'm almost out of the stuff I bought long ago from Radio Shack and am not sure I should be using that anyway.