Shop computer problem, any computer guys here?

[Rpm90001]

I have a computer in my shop a 4 year old emachine I bought just for Pdf manuals. I use this daily for small engine repair and part part orders. I'm not a computer guy at all and need some help. I push the power button and it will run about 5 seconds and powers off. I removed the power supply and checked all the voltages and they are in spec , unhooked all leads to power supply and jumped green and ground and it powers up and stays running.

 

removed the mother board, plugged in the ps to the 20 pin connector and the 4 pin connector (this conector both plug in to the same spot on the mother board) jumped the power switch pins and the fans all power on and stay running. power supply and cpu fan. Here is where the issue I fell is..

 

There is another 4 pin conector with 2 yellow 12v 2 black ground wires. when I plug this plug to the mother board and jump the power button pins I get the same problem, fans will power on for 5 seconds and shut down. power supply also shuts down.

 

my guess is it will be a problem with the CPU or the mother board. Anyone Have any sugestions? I believe the ATX power supply is good.

 

Anything I can try? I would like to salvage this computer if possible.

 

Thanks,

 

Geo

[TOONGA]

are there any beeping noises associated with this shut down?

 

if so then you are getting a code from the computer thats telling you whats wrong with it.

 

are there any 3rd party devices on the motherboard?, for example a video card sound card or a lan or modem card.

 

Is the CPU fan and heatsink clean free spinning or full of dust?

 

sorry what CPU is it? eg pentium 4 socket 478 pentium 4 socket 720, AMD 486 etc

 

TOONGA

Edited November 3, 2012 by TOONGA
spelling and changed question

[Rpm90001]

No beeps or any sounds, push power button and 5 seconds later it shuts off.

 

I removed everything from the board, no ram,no Ethernet card, nothing accept CPU fan. Heat sink was full of dust, now spotless. Fan is free spinning and runs full speed with the power supply 20 and 4 pin connector is plugged in, when I plug in the 4 pin connector that is in the middle of the board , fans will turn on, speed seems slower and then shuts off in seconds.

 

 

I only see celeron dual core, unsure about speed. I wish I could give more info, I have very basic computer skills.

 

Thanks for the help.

 

Geo

[TOONGA]

the connector in the middle of the board is for a case fan not a cpu fan. the connector for the cpu fan is tied to the bios and receives a temperature signal from the CPU. From what you are describing I would say the CPU is toast sorry.

 

Try putting the ram back in and the C drive (main hard drive) and nothing else.

 

do you know how to access the bios ?

 

it will be either f2 or f12 on the keyboard at start up once inside the bios (if it boots to bios) you can check the temp settings for the CPU

 

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/fixtheproblem/ht/accessbios.htm

 

a good article on how to get into the bios.

 

good luck with it

 

TOONGA

[Rpm90001]

Thanks,

 

There is no case fan, just the one on the CPU, and the one in the power supply.

 

I can not access the bios, I can not turn the computer on, this is my problem. It shuts down a few seconds after start up.

 

I don't think the connector is for the fan, I believe it powers the processor., fan runs with out it plugged in, But power supply will shut down when I do plug it in with in seconds.

 

Thanks,

 

Geo

Edited November 3, 2012 by Rpm90001

[Loyale 2.7 Turbo]

If you has not changed anything from its hardware, I Believe it has motherboard Damage, because as Toonga said, it should emit a series of "Beep" Noises telling you if that is a Video / RAM Memory \ LAN Card Fail; and if it is the Hard Drive which went bad, the BIOS will stamp you a Message on the Start Screen; so No Noise Nor Messages usually = Fried Motherboard.

 

But I Suggest you to reassemble it again leaving the 4 pin connector that is in the middle of the board unplugged, and see if it Starts... Some motherboards could work without all the Power input plugs, because not all the Power Supplies got the other four-pin plugs.

 

Good Luck!

[idosubaru]

In the past I've bought computers identical to mine for a few bucks on craigslist and swapped in my hard drive or parts i needed to troubleshoot and repair. still have one of those computers from the late 90's that I fixed that way and it's still cranking. You can have it if you want it, I'm done with it! It's not worth shipping though. LOL

 

Also it's fairly easy to pull the hard drive and access it via other machines as an external hard drive to make sure you get all your data back. Just get a USB adapter or borrow one from a friend (i forget how expensive they are, but i'd mail you mine if you mail it back).

 

I would be sure to back up all of your important information and FSM's and such. It's really easy to have an external hard drive and have it back up stuff. Any computer in a harsh environment like that is going to have issues every now and again.

Edited November 3, 2012 by grossgary

[Rpm90001]

Thanks, Im not worried about getting the data from the hard drive, I can get it off.., I just dont want to loose the computer if it repairable. It's a low end computer... but I want to find the issue.

 

I reassembled the PC, if I leave the 4 pin 12v connector that powers the CPU unplugged the fans stay running, as soon as I plug in the 4 pin connector fro the CPU the fan will go to 1/2 speed and then shut off in 4-5 seconds. I'm trying to load test the 12v 4 pin connector. I have 3 12v auto bulbs soldered together to drain rc car batteries,, would that be ok to plug in to the connector to put load on the 4 pin?

 

Again, It does not power on long enough to get any beeps or messages on the screen.. Its shuts down too quick.

[Fairtax4me]

4-5 seconds seems too long to be a CPU issue. Usually if the CPU is shot the PS will power on for about half a second then failsafe and turn off. Probably the Mobo is shot. Will it let you power it on without the CPU in the board? It probably won't do anything on the screen but the fans should run. If they cut off after a few seconds you can probably assume the Mobo is bad.

 

Check out Geeks.com. They usually have some pretty sweet deals on cheap computer stuff. You can replace the Mobo and CPU for probably under $50. A few things need to be matched up. Form factor, ram type, do you need AGP or some kind of PCI slot for video card. that sort of thing. New board should come with all the drivers you need. Swap your accessory cards, ram, and all that jazz over and plug it in.

[ShawnW]

I often buy an drive enclosure so I can install the hard drive in it and connect it to any computer with a USB port. Helpful if the computer dies you can buy another new/used one and grab all the data off it real easily and keep the drive intact until you know you got all your files off.