Getting computer working

[MidNightDesires]

I'm not sure if this is the place to post this. But here goes...

I bought a used computer from a friend to use as a second computer in the house. Well I hooked it up and all I get on the monitor is a box with red, green, and blue that bouces around the screen that says... Self Test, monitor is working, please check video cable, and computer.
The cables are in fine , I only have the monitor cord and harddrive cords hooked in it as well as the keybord and mouse.

I can't get it to do anything , all I get is that box bouncing around. I suppose this is why it was sold so cheap

Any chance anyone can help, and suggest what it is or could be? Do I just need to take a hammer to it and beat it, then myself for buying it?
Any help would mean alot.

[Greg]

If it's plugged in the the video card, unplug it and check that all the pins are ok and plug it back in.

Sometimes moving a computer can unseat the video card, you may have to open the box and see if it's seated correctly in it's slot.

If all of the above works out, the monitor or video card may be bad. Test the monitor on a known working system.

[vantim]

Quick Question. When you turn the computer on, Do you hear or see any lights or fans on the computer working?

[lmnobs]

If your video card is seatted properly and if you get whirring noises out of the unit ;here are some things to help diagnose your problem. and I know this may sound simple but make sure you have power to the Computer and that the power switch on back is in the on position.


BIOS Beep Codes

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What is a BIOS Beep Code?
When you power on a computer the BIOS immediately takes control of the computer and performs the P.O.S.T (Power On Self Test). At the end of the POST the computer will play an audible 'BEEP' through either the PC's internal speaker of through speakers attached to the sound card (if you have a built-in sound chip). If the POST completed successfully without detecting any problems with then system will play a single short beep to let you know the test is complete and the computer will continue to startup and load the operating system.
If during the POST the BIOS detects a problem it will normally display a visual error message on the monitor explaining what the problem is. However, if a problem is detected before the BIOS initializes the video card, or a video card is not present or not detected then the BIOS will play several 'BEEPS' through the speaker to let you know there is a problem. Depending on the type of the BIOS you have the BIOS may play beeps in a specific pattern to indicate what the problem is, or play the same beep a number of times indicating the problem. It is very important that you pay close attention to the number and/or pattern of the beeps your computer plays on startup.


Below is a table of the most common AMI, Phoenix and Award BIOS beep codes.

AMI (American Megatrends International) BIOS Beep Codes.
AMI BIOS uses beeps of the same length and pitch. The error is displayed as a number of beeps. For example, 4 beeps indicated a timer failure.
BEEP CODE MEANING POSSIBLE CAUSE
1 Beep (No video) Memory refresh failure Bad memory
2 Beeps Memory parity error Bad memory
3 Beeps Base 64K mem failure Bad memory
4 Beeps Timer not operational Bad motherboard
5 Beeps Processor error Bad processor
6 Beeps 8042 Gate A20 failure Bad CPU or Motherboard
7 Beeps Processor exception Bad processor
8 Beeps Video memory error Bad video card or memory
9 Beeps ROM checksum error Bad BIOS
10 Beeps CMOS checksum error Bad motherboard
11 Beeps Cache memory bad Bad CPU or motherboard



Award BIOS Beep Codes
Award BIOS uses beeps of varying duration. A long beep will typically last for 2 seconds while a short beep will last only 1 second. Award BIOS also uses beeps of different frequency to indicate critical errors. If an Award BIOS detects that the CPU is overheating it may play a high pitched repeating beep while the computer is running.
BEEP CODE MEANING POSSIBLE CAUSE
1 Long, 2 Short Video adapter failure Bad video adapter
Repeating (Endless loop) Memory error Bad memory or bad connection
1 Long, 3 Short Video adapter failure Bad video adapter or memory
High freq. beeps (while running) CPU is overheating CPU fan failure
Repeating High, Low beeps CPU failure Bad processor



Phoenix BIOS Beep Codes
Phoenix BIOS uses beep code patterns to indicate problems. In the table below the '-' indicates a brief pause between beeps.
Example: 1 - 1 - 2 would sound like BEEP <pause> BEEP <pause> BEEP BEEP

BEEP CODE MEANING POSSIBLE CAUSE
1 - 1 - 2 CPU / motherboard failure Bad CPU / motherboard
1 - 1 - 3 CMOS read/write failure Bad motherboard
1 - 1 - 4 BIOS ROM failure Bad BIOS chip
1 - 2 - 1 Timer failure Bad motherboard
1 - 2 - 2 DMA failure Bad motherboard
1 - 2 - 3 DMA failure Bad motherboard
1 - 3 - 1 Memory refresh failure Bad memory
1 - 3 - 2 64K memory failure Bad memory
1 - 3 - 3 64K memory failure Bad memory
1 - 3 - 4 64K memory failure Bad memory
1 - 4 - 1 Address line failure Bad memory
1 - 4 - 2 Parity error Bad memory
1 - 4 - 3 Timer failure Bad motherboard
1 - 4 - 4 NMI port failure Bad motherboard
2 - 1 - 1 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 1 - 2 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 1 - 3 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 1 - 4 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 2 - 1 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 2 - 2 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 2 - 3 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 2 - 4 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 3 - 1 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 3 - 2 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 3 - 3 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 3 - 4 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 4 - 1 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 4 - 2 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 4 - 4 64K memory failure Bad memory
2 - 4 - 4 64K memory failure Bad memory
3 - 1 - 1 Slave DMA failure Bad motherboard
3 - 1 - 2 Master DMA failure Bad motherboard
3 - 1 - 3 Interrupt controller failure Bad motherboard
3 - 1 -4 Slave IC failure Bad motherboard
3 - 2 -2 Interrupt Controller failure Bad motherboard
3 - 2 - 3 <RESERVED>
3 - 2 - 4 Keyboard control failure Bad motherboard
3 - 3 - 1 CMOS batter failure Bad CMOS battery
3 - 3 - 2 CMOS configuration error Incorrect setting
3 - 3 - 3 <RESERVED>
3 - 3 - 4 Video memory failure Bad video card or memory
3 - 4 - 1 Video init failure Bad video card or memory
4 - 2 - 1 Timer failure Bad motherboard
4 - 2 - 2 CMOS shutdown failure Bad motherboard
4 - 2 - 3 Gate A20 failure Bad motherboard
4 - 2 - 4 Unexpected interrupt Bad processor
4 - 3 - 1 RAM test failure Bad memory
4 - 3 - 3 Timer failure Bad motherboard
4 - 3 - 4 RTC failure Bad motherboard
4 - 4 - 1 Serial port failure Bad motherboard
4 - 4 - 2 Parallel port failure Bad motherboard
4 - 4 - 3 Coprocessor failure Bad motherboard or CPU.
9 - 2 - 1 Video adapter incompatibility Use a different brand of video card

[MidNightDesires]

Thank you for your replies.

I will go try out everything posted. Haven't messed with it since I posted. Thought it was best to walk away from it for awhile or else I was going to beat it with a hammer.

Yes when I turn it on, all the lights come on, fan runs and it makes a running noise.

Will post back after I play with it and see what happens.

Thanks for all the help.

[MidNightDesires]

Thank you thank you thank you!!

Well I opened it up, had no clue on earth what I was looking for or doing, so I touched around on a few things, and must of done something because it works now!! Works wonderful!!

Thanks for the fast replies and help. Glad I found this forum

Now I am off to try my luck at networking it to this one, so I am sure I will be back crying for help

[Greg]

Gald that worked out for you. Very satisfing to DYI huh?

If ya need help with that network, feel free to start another thread in the networking forum.

Cheers!