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Compaq DeskPro 4000 Issue

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by joelicketto

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I have acquired an older (166MHz) Compaq DeskPro 4000 (6166MMX) system. The small hard drive (1.6 GB) was on its last legs and Windows 95 was badly corrupted. When the Windows finally died, I loaded Windows 98 from CD-ROM after booting to a floppydisk. After Windows 98 completed copying files and went into the first reboot to detect hardware, the machine wouldn?t go into the POST and acted as if the entire system had died.

When I attempt to boot the system to a floppy or to the C: drive, nothing happens. The POST doesn?t even ?beep? and I have no video. The CD-ROM drive, floppy drive and hard drive lights flash momentarily flash as if the system is attempting to read them, then nothing further happens.

How can I determine whatto look at first if the POST doesn?t respond?
Is there something that I am overlooking?
Are there any special tricks with these older Compaq systems that I need to attempt in order to revive the system?

This system will be used for my grandsons to play games on when they come to visit.

9 replies

by tsevy

reseat the ram and cpu and retry but if no work, it sounds like the m-board or the CPU crapped out

by jetbonami

Also in addition to answer #1, reset dip switches on the board if any (flip to opposite position and then back to origninal position). Do you see a memory count in the upper left corner? Does it stick to a blinking cursor in the upper left corner?

by joelicketto

I'll try the dip switch trick. However, up to the point where I began installing Win98, I never opened the case on the system, so how would all of a sudden there be a need to "flip the dip switches"?

As I stated earlier, after copying the Win98 setup files and going into the first of the series of necessary reboots for hardware detection, the machine wouldn't go into the POST and acted as if the entire system had died - no video, no memory test and not even any "Beeps".

Has Win98 installation overwritten a disk partition BIOS for this system?

by steve moores

A lot of the older Compaq Deskpros were set to Cable select on the IDE cable.
This relies on the user connecting a second HDD to a Cable select cable(one with a hole in one of the data lines)Try checking the setting on the CD rom and moving it to Slave and set the HDD Primary Master to "Master"

by joelicketto

The Drives were left in the standard position - (the only) hard drive on the Primary channel, the CD-ROM drive on the secondary channel. Both drives are in the Master/Only mode as they came from the factory. Remember, the problem occurred after Windows 98 completed copying files and went into the first reboot to detect hardware. At that point, the machine wouldn't go into the POST and acted as if the entire system had died.

I have tried the 1.6GB drive in another system and Win98 begins at the Hardware detection phase of installation, so the drive is apparently OK in another system.

Has Win98 installation overwritten a disk partition BIOS for this system?

by atrahasis

I got another idea.
Deskpro 4000s have a utility partition (aka "F10 Utilies", since you press F10 during POST to access them) on the hard drive that enable you to access CMOS settings. If you deleted the partition, or if this partition was corrupted, you cannot access the CMOS settings to make changes. If the CMOS settings are what's causing the fail, then there is one recourse.

Using a jumper on the mainboard you can force the CMOS settings on the 4000 back to factory defaults. If I recall correctly, you'll need to boot the PC once with the jumper in one position to clear the custom settings, then again in the regular position.

See Compaq's web site for eactly which jumper you need to set.

This came in handy when someone disabled "boot from floppy" in the CMOS on a 4000, then erased the compaq utilities partion on the hard drive so I could not enable it.

You will need to download the "F10" utilites from Compaq's web site to a floppy(s) in order to boot and access the CMOS settings if you wish to make changes to the defaults. I dont think there's any other way to access them on the 4000.

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