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Pre-Boot System Assessment

You can use the Pre-Boot System Assessment (PSA) to diagnose various hardware problems. The ePSA tests devices such as the system board, keyboard, display, memory, hard drive, and so on.
NOTE PSA may not be supported on all computers.

Invoking PSA

  1. Turn on or restart your computer.
  2. Press F12 at the Dell logo to access the BIOS setup program.
    NOTE If you wait too long and the operating system logo appears, continue to wait until you see the Windows desktop, then restart your computer and try again.
  3. Select Diagnostics and press Enter.
  4. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the test.

If a component fails the test, the test stops, the computer beeps, and an error code is displayed. Note the error code(s) and search for solutions at www.dell.com/support or Contact Dell.

Follow the on-screen instructions to continue to the next test, retest the component that failed, or stop the test and restart the computer. If the PSA completes successfully, the following message appears on your screen: No problems have been found with this system so far. Do you want to run the remaining memory tests? This will take about 30 minutes or more. Do you want to continue? (Recommended).

Press <y> to continue if you are experiencing memory issue, otherwise press <n> to finish the test.
NOTE Press Esc anytime during the test to abort testing and restart your computer.

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