minimum requirements to get bios up

BOA279

New member
hey all...whats the minimum requirements to get into the bios? It should be just motherboard, grphics card, power supply and keyboard right? Thats what I remember it to be. thanks for the input
 
Can you get not get into the BIOS without the CPU? I think I remember having a CPU error and still being able to enter the BIOS, but then again, that may have all just been a dream... 8)
 
that doesnt make sense...how do you know if you have bad ram or a bad cpu if the motherboard won't get into the bios...how does the motherboard beep error codes if it wont even get into the bios without all components attached? In my current situation, the north/south bridge fans kick on as well as all case fans and what not but it does not beep error codes and won't show anything on the screen. How am I supposed to know which component is bad if I can't get it to do anything without everything?
 
Hello BOA279. From what you say I believe the problem you are having is 'power no P.O.S.T' which means all components have power but the mainboard has halted startup because one of the tests carried out during 'Power On Self Test' has failed. This could be one or more of the following: CPU knackered or bent pins or not seated properly/ RAM faulty or not seated properly or contacts on RAM dirty or RAM socket faulty or dirty/ Mainboard faulty. As to fault elimination I personally would take out my cpu and have a look at it and check cleanliness of contacts on both cpu and socket then refit it. Next I would remove the RAM and look at the contacts along the bottom edge looking for a matt finish which would show oxidisation (bad contact). If so then a good clean with IPA (iso-propyl alcohol) and a soft brush might help. If not the very gentle use of a fibreglass pen will definatly ensure good conductivity. Next I would blow-out the ram slots with an air line/canned air or a gentle scrub with plenty of IPA and a brush, being sure to blow it very dry before power is turned on.

These are the main causes of 'Power on no POST' but it could also be any one of the peripherals attached to the mainboard such as hard drives, graphics cards, sata controllers anything really. To elliminate each component remove it from the motherboard and try in turn. I do this every day with laptops and find its usually the ram being dirty or the ram socket being dirty so start with that. If you need any more help give me a ring on 07769516161
 
thanks for the info....The rig was exactly a month old when it crapped out. I blame a poor seal (my fault) on my 775 kit with the mach. I had quite a bit of condensation in the socket and on the cpu. I keep thinking however, that amount of water would have crapped it out a long time ago. I think, in my aggitated state I took the kit apart without waiting long enough for the board and cpu to reach ambient room temp....guess we will see when the new board is here. I also saw a ton of people having almost identical problems with this board in particular (will post a new thread with details) thanks again guys.
 
name='BOA279' said:
that doesnt make sense...how do you know if you have bad ram or a bad cpu if the motherboard won't get into the bios...

The motherboard was a DFI SLI-DR which happens to have error lights on the motherboard ;)
 
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