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azhorton01
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January 25th, 2006 15:00
4100 Bootup Irritation
When I first got this machine it would automatically bootup through and Dell Flash Screen and then on into windows. Somwhere along the line it got to the point where it would stop after the flash page and display system information such as model and Bios (A07) and then I have to hit to resume the boot process. I'd like to get back to where Windows boots automatically if possible.
I think this little irritation may have started sometime back when I was experimenting with booting windows in the safe mode, but not sure.
Azhorton01
azhorton01
3 Posts
114
0
Posted January 25th, 2006 20:00
Thanks for your response regarding this problem, and after reading a number of responses that you've given other users with a similar problem I'm thinking it may be time for a new machine as I upgraded a year or so ago to XP from ME and did not upgrade the BIOS so think I'll just suffer with being iritated everytime I have to hit the key to finish the boot process until such time as the wife will spring for the money to purchase a new PC.Anyway, thanks again for your advise and help.- Glad to have been of assistance. If anything, make sure you keep decent backups of any important data on your hard drive. You can also run the Dell Diagnostics just check the condition of the system and if indeed the hard drive is the culprit. Your 4100 model with BIOS version A07 will also support a quick hard drive test called the 90/90. When the system is booted and the Dell logo appears just press the CTRL + ALT + D key together and the system will run a quick test of the primary hard drive's condition.
Message Edited by Majestic on 01-26-2006 09:07 AM
- I had the same problems with my 4100. It would stop during boot, you would have to hit Del to get it to continue.
When it stopped during boot the diagnostic lights on back indicated "PCI Bus Failure" (I think it was 1-GREEN, 2-YELLOW, 3--GREEN, 4-GREEN, but please check). Sometimes on boot I would get 1 or 2 "beep" codes indicated a "memory parity failure".
The problem turned out to be a failing Maxtor 40 Gig hardrive. I ran the Dell 90/90 diagnostic test and the hardrive failed the SMART test. SMART technology looks for changes in a hard drive that could indicate impending failure. I ran the Dell diagnostics tests for my system that tested the whole system more thoroughly. In each test of the hardrive it failed the SMART test. I replaced the hardrive with a Western Digital 80 GB - all problems solved.
To make a long story short, do check your hardrive with the DELL software specific for your system. Especially if you have one of the dreaded Maxtor hardrives. Programs like Norton Utilities are not specific enough to show anything. A lot of Maxtors installed in 4100s (and some Optiplex) seemed to have this problem.
Jthoma4 azhorton01
3 Posts
114
0
Posted February 7th, 2006 22:00
To JThomas4
Thanks for your repsonse and I did check the lights when it would stop during boot process and there were some orange lights. I also ran the Seagate diagnostic that was available on the 4100 and it came up with a SMART error of some sort but wasn't specific. Since I posted my original message I have been experiencing other problems as well, so have decided it is time to break loose and get a new model since this baby is over six years old. Anyway, thanks for responding to my cry for help.
AZhorton01
Majestic
2 Intern
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9371 Posts
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Posted January 25th, 2006 17:00
With the machine unplugged from the wall remove the battery from the motherboard. Then with the machine still unplugged press the On button for several seconds to dissipate any remaining electrical charge on the motherboard. Then re-install the battery, plug the machine back into the wall and see if it will boot normally.