pc y u do dis

GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz QueenMountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
in Hardware
So I'll try to keep this quick:

On Thursday of last week, @Soda and I installed a new hard drive for my pc (secondary to my SSD with windows on it). After installing, for some reason, while the computer would start and appear to run correctly, nothing would happen on the screen. We checked the screen and the PC with another screen, and the same thing happened; it was the PC, not my monitor.

Soda reseated my graphics cards and futzed a bit, and then magically this problem was solved. We were not sure what the issue was to begin with.

I got home yesterday, and found my graphics card FLOATING in my PC. (Note: Graphics cards are not a flotation device. Do not grab one in case of water landing). Apparently one of us forgot to put the screws back in that hold it in place. After my hysterics ended, I reseated my graphics card and booted it up.

It worked! Except it said that I had a disk drive failure. I turned off the computer, and attempted to boot into bios. Now, it would not boot, and started doing the thing when the computer starts, but the screen never turns on.

Additionally, and this may be the most important part: when I turn it on, it will restart at least once, possibly twice, before it gets going in earnest. This is actually not a new problem, it's been doing that for months. So perhaps it's the power supply?

Help me obi-wan icrontobi, you're my only hope.
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Comments

  • Cliff_ForsterCliff_Forster Icrontian
    I'm assuming your desktop went on a hobbit like pilgrimage to the misty mountains of Detroit, there and back again?

    My suggestion on any PC that moves around a bit then has some issues is to pop the side off and do a quick re build of everything. Every single cable, power, data, RAM, everything that plugs into that board make sure it's properly connected before giving up and going to the next stage of troubleshooting.

    You graphics card fell out of a PCIE slot, so a cable coming loose or Ram not being properly seated, or even a combination of those things is not out of the realm of possibility. That's where you should start, check every connection, basically re build in place, should not take too long.
  • midgamidga "There's so much hot dog in Rome" ~digi (> ^.(> O_o)> Icrontian
    Sounds like either a loose thing or a power problem. Cliff's is a good suggestion, though I would do a minimal boot with only the bare necessities connected before attaching more stuff.

    Also,

    DICK PEE CEE
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    midga said:

    Sounds like either a loose thing or a power problem. Cliff's is a good suggestion, though I would do a minimal boot with only the bare necessities connected before attaching more stuff.

    Also,

    DICK PEE CEE

    I did think about titling my thread that, but I figured I would disappoint everyone when this wasn't a funny thread.
    midga
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    By "floating in your PC," do you mean it snapped out of its PCI Express slot and was dangling in the case?

    I strongly suspect a damaged motherboard, but without evaluating components one by one to rule everything else out, you can't really be certain.
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    Thrax said:

    By "floating in your PC," do you mean it snapped out of its PCI Express slot and was dangling in the case?

    I strongly suspect a damaged motherboard, but without evaluating components one by one to rule everything else out, you can't really be certain.

    "Snapped" isn't quite the right word. It was no longer anchored to the motherboard, but I had no issues pushing it back into place; the mechanisms holding it to the motherboard do not seem to be broken.
  • oni_delsoni_dels Drunk French Canadian Montréal, Québec. Icrontian
    Have you tried turn it off and on again?
    mertesn
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    Someone remind me to get a modular power supply the next time I build a computer, these goddamn cords are everywhere!
  • midgamidga "There's so much hot dog in Rome" ~digi (> ^.(> O_o)> Icrontian
    Any luck so far?
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    midga said:

    Any luck so far?

    Did some futzing, no change. :/ Soda will be coming over after he's done with work to see if he can ascertain anything.
  • midgamidga "There's so much hot dog in Rome" ~digi (> ^.(> O_o)> Icrontian
    :(
  • Cliff_ForsterCliff_Forster Icrontian
    The only reason I suggest to re plug everything before going backwards is it should only take about ten minutes, and if that's the only problem, just something that jiggled loose, it's allot easier than the troubleshooting that's going to come afterwards, basically taking everything apart and booting with the minimum amount of hardware, adding in a piece at a time assuming it boots at all.

    Another thing to consider is maybe your boards BIOS requires something to set it's video default to PCIE, and if it came out, maybe it's booting to the boards video instead ? I'm just wondering if since it came loose, you re plugged it, if you may have to plug back into the boards video assuming you have some basic video there, vs. plugging into the card, fixing the BIOS settings from there then plugging back into your card.
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    Cliff_Forster said:

    The only reason I suggest to re plug everything before going backwards is it should only take about ten minutes, and if that's the only problem, just something that jiggled loose, it's allot easier than the troubleshooting that's going to come afterwards, basically taking everything apart and booting with the minimum amount of hardware, adding in a piece at a time assuming it boots at all.

    Another thing to consider is maybe your boards BIOS requires something to set it's video default to PCIE, and if it came out, maybe it's booting to the boards video instead ? I'm just wondering if since it came loose, you re plugged it, if you may have to plug back into the boards video assuming you have some basic video there, vs. plugging into the card, fixing the BIOS settings from there then plugging back into your card.

    Yea, I suppose that will be the next step. I don't know if it's relevant, but my board is in IDE.
  • Cliff_ForsterCliff_Forster Icrontian
    It sounds like you and Soda had things running fine prior so I don't think it's an IDE/AHCI drive config issue? Stranger things have happened though.

    What is the make and model of your motherboard?
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    DFI LanParty DK P35-T2R/S
  • PirateNinjaPirateNinja Icrontian
    Probably a dumb question, but did you try resetting the bios via jumper?
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    PirateNinja said:

    Probably a dumb question, but did you try resetting the bios via jumper?

    I have no idea what that means, but I'm not sure how to do that if I can't get the computer to post?
  • oni_delsoni_dels Drunk French Canadian Montréal, Québec. Icrontian
    BobbyDigi said:

    GnomeQueen said:

    ... LanParty ...

    There is the problem. You introduced it to an Epic LAN Party and after that just running by itself alone is not an option.

    -Digi
    Once you go icrontic you go psychotic.
    this diabolic,
    hypnotic
    catastrophic
    idiotic
    idea of an alcoholic.
    metaphoric
    toxic
    mnemonic
    pathologic
    dream which is rather ironic.
    this workaholic
    monophonic
    harmonic,
    rhapsodic
    microscopic
    Sonic.
    he truly is the Cosmic
    Garlic,
    Oni and his brain, which is episodic.
    GnomeQueen
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    In good news, apparently being without a computer means I clean my room. I even vacuumed.
    oni_delsTeramona
  • oni_delsoni_dels Drunk French Canadian Montréal, Québec. Icrontian
    GnomeQueen said:

    In good news, apparently being without a computer means I clean my room. I even vacuumed.

    damn. my pc is fucked up too, if you want to look at it.... and you know... vacuum my room.
    this might be an euphemism.

  • ardichokeardichoke Icrontian
    GnomeQueen said:

    PirateNinja said:

    Probably a dumb question, but did you try resetting the bios via jumper?

    I have no idea what that means, but I'm not sure how to do that if I can't get the computer to post?
    A BIOS reset jumper is a physical thing on the motherboard. Usually you pull a little tabby piece of plastic with metal inside off two pins and slide it over so it connects one of the pins with a different pin which forces the BIOS to reset to factory settings.The location of said jumper (it may also be a button or a switch, it all depends on the motherboard) should be located in the manual. I highly doubt this is your problem, but it wouldn't hurt to do it.

    If I were you, I'd follow Cliff's advice and unplug/replug everything (if you haven't already). If that doesn't help, completely unplug the new hard drive. If it starts at that point, signs point to your power supply being insufficient (or just bad).
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    So today, @Soda came over and we did the stuff suggested here to my PC. Nothing worked. I also remembered that I had an old spare graphics card laying around; that didn't work either, so I'm assuming that's not the problem. I'm getting a feeling that it's the PSU, but it's also possible it's the motherboard, or who the fuck knows. I'm going to return to ICHQ over the weekend to use a spare PSU @Primesuspect has laying around, and see if that does anything.
  • RyderRyder Kalamazoo, Mi Icrontian
    You got a disk boot failure? So maybe the SSD died?
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    Ryder said:

    You got a disk boot failure? So maybe the SSD died?

    Would I get that once and then the screen go away forever?
  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    I'm suspecting your motherboard got scratched and damaged in transit, and it's game over.
    oni_delsmidga
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    edited July 2013
    It's quite possible. But the restart thing upon start-up has been happening for months, so couldn't that be a PSU issue?
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    All motherboards using that specific chipset reboot once out of a cold boot to back up the primary BIOS to the backup BIOS. A double boot on that motherboard is not indicative of a problem, if that's what you're referring to with "restart thing upon start-up."
    midgaGnomeQueen
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    Thrax said:

    All motherboards using that specific chipset reboot once out of a cold boot to back up the primary BIOS to the backup BIOS. A double boot on that motherboard is not indicative of a problem, if that's what you're referring to with "restart thing upon start-up."

    Oooooooh, good to know, I had no idea. What if it's a triple or quadruple reboot?
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    Probably not so good. ;D
  • GnomeQueenGnomeQueen The Lulz Queen Mountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
    Thrax said:

    Probably not so good. ;D

    Why the happy face??
    :mean:
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