Windows XP Home - hibernation.

for 6-10 seconds
then press it again
it should restart fine, if not you may need to remove the hibernated settings first (run a google search on the startup error)

Look to make sure that there are no floppies or boot cd's in the drive(s). Unplug any external unnecessary devices (printers, drives, camera, etc.) try again.
If Not
Try opening the case and resetting the BIOS.
Remove the CMOS battery for 30 min, or use the reset feature (probably a jumper) and see if this helps.
If Not
Where exactly does the failure occur? Could there be an electrical problem? Unplugged Device (Internal)? Shorted out Device? Bad MB? Bad RAM? (If RAM becomes unseated this can happen).

POST process Power On Self Test and depending on who made the unit that can be a splash screen or a display of available RAM and Hard/Optical Drive/s.

If the display remaining blank [i]not even the LED on the monitor changing color[/i] I would first look at the Power Supply as it most likely took a hit overnight while unattended. This is very common with Overhead Power Grids something will get caught between the High Tension and Mains and allow the High Voltage into the Low Voltage Mains. A good PS will sacrifice itself to save the computer. A not so good one will allow the computer to die and the really nasty ones will look as if they are working when they really are not.

So if you are not getting any picture change the PS first with a [b]Known Good One[/b] a New one doesn't necessarily mean that it works properly and then see if you can get any image on the screen. Once that happens you can start to work from there.

If the LED's for the HDD & Power come on but you get no display on the monitor my first suggestion would be the Power Supply not working and having limited power output. Test with a Known Good PS before you attempt to proceed any further.

Also if the phone system is down it's possible that it took a hit and has allowed a massive power surge in through the phone lines but this only applies to DSL or Dial Up connections.

Really a bit more information here wouldn't go astray as attempting to answer a question of [b]It Don't Work[/b] has way to many variables to even start to hope to give an answer that comes close to being correct.

A better description of your problem would certainly be a good starting point.

Do the Fans run? Does the Monitors LED Change Color? Is the Unit performing a POST? Do you hear the HDD spin up? Are there any strange noises coming out from the case?

Col

Your description of the problem sounds an awful lot like the recent problems I have encountered with Dell GX270. There is a problem with the mother board where the capaciters can be defective. Eventually, the power supply can also be affected.

If you have this type of PC, call Dell even if it is out of warranty. As long as you can prove purchase, Dell will fix the problem. This is one of those 'hidden' warranty situations.

But if that doesn't fix the problem my first choice would be to swap out the Power Supply.

You don't need one that will fit in the system just something that you can connect up and test.

By the sounds of things you are getting some initial image on the monitor and it's falling over after that. Can you boot this off a Floppy and see if it runs?

If you can and it continues to run I would try the HDD testing Utility and test the drive and if it doesn't run disconnect the HDD, CD/DVD and anything else not important and see if you can get a stable display. You could have a faulty component dragging the voltage rails low and causing the problem.

I would also check the RAM as today I found 1 stick not fully seated apparently somehow it had worked it's way part way out over a 5 year period and was causing some problems. If this M'Board will run on 1 stick of RAM reduce it to that and try a Known Good Stick just to be on the safe side. If you have 2 or more sticks fitted make sure that they are all the same brand & spec and try then one at a time to make sure that they all work. If they are different brands or timing rates it's possible that the problem is arising there.

Generally speaking silly boot problems can be directly traced back the the BIOS Battery I take it that you checked the new one before fitting it? And also made sure if there is a Jumper to Clear the BIOS that's it's still in place on the right pins.

As for buying a new machine that depends on what you have available and how comfortable you feel digging around inside the thing.

But if this helps any recently I had a bad PS that would allow the fans to run and the LEDS to light up as well as the self Test Digital Display on the M'Board which continued to come up showing a Bad M'Board when it was actually a bad PS that wasn't supplying enough power to allow the poor thing to boot up. I could get it to boot about once in 20 attempts if I was lucky but it was a real problem to fault find till I tried another PS which I knew worked and the unit immediately sprung to life without a problem. That was the first Antec PS that I've ever had go bad without reason or at least in this case for a reason that I was told about.

Col