***Computer Gurus...I Need Help***

[Jeffrey Schronce]

When I got the side off, I was surprised at how much dust was inside...loaded. So, I'm gonna take it out back and blow it out. Hope that's OK to do. I can't see any vac attachments fitting in there. LOML has one of those tiny computer vac's with all the little attachments, but the problem it hardly sucks at all. So if it's OK to blast it (gently of course) say yea or nay.

Also as I was poking around inside I noticed a small plug that has two black wires and one green wire (thin, like 22 ga.). The plug is white and has three female holes lined up. It looks like it plugs into a board right behind where the data tape is secured, sort of center of the tower. Plug is about the size of a phone modular one but not a phone plug. Anyway it wasn't plugged in. Is everything in there supposed to be plugged into something?

I hear ya! I just opened my Sony to install a new video card and was absolutely amazed at the dust! I mean it was covered. There were 10 point dust bunnies in there. I blew it out with air compressor. Do you self a favor . . . wear a dust mask.

[radhak]

Many (most?) consumer HP's use power supplies aren't standard ATX size. You may need a CFX or SFX supply. You may want to take your old power supply with you to match it up.

Also, if you can find a PC repair shop near you, you can take your power supply to them to have it tested (probably for free). And if it isn't a standard ATX size, the repair shop will more likely have one that will fit.

Good point - it's always good to double-check the actual form-factor. But for this particular model, ATX looks good, according to this page : http://www.911forpcs.com/3beatposu.html. And that's a good price, CM.

When I got the side off, I was surprised at how much dust was inside...loaded. So, I'm gonna take it out back and blow it out. Hope that's OK to do. I can't see any vac attachments fitting in there. LOML has one of those tiny computer vac's with all the little attachments, but the problem it hardly sucks at all. So if it's OK to blast it (gently of course) say yea or nay.

Also as I was poking around inside I noticed a small plug that has two black wires and one green wire (thin, like 22 ga.). The plug is white and has three female holes lined up. It looks like it plugs into a board right behind where the data tape is secured, sort of center of the tower. Plug is about the size of a phone modular one but not a phone plug. Anyway it wasn't plugged in. Is everything in there supposed to be plugged into something?

While Jeffrey does mention the air-compressor, I am always wary of very high air pressure - I have one of those air-cannisters made for dusting PCs, works ok. But I'm sure you could use your compressor at very low PSI.

As for that free small plug - you never know, it might be for some unused (unavailable) device, depending on where it originates. eg - it could be for an external video-card, or whatever. Does it come off the powersupply?

[ironhat]

*Please* use as little air pressure as is necessary to dislodge the dust. It is possible to drive some of the dust *into* the sockets where it is attached (a buddy has told me horror stories). You don't have to use canned air but keep that in mind as a guide. I like to take my laptop into the shop and blow it out with a DC hose near by so that it doesn't just lay back onto the boards. Geez, I feel for you, C.man. We had a server go down at work - two days of anger. Good luck but it looks like better heads than mine are on this one for you (a nod to radhak, for sure).

[jseklund]

Cabinetman- My first guess would be a power supply, like others have stated. HOWEVER- it isn't necessarily the case from what you are describing. My second guess would be the motherboard.

Many HP power supplies are not standard, as was previously mentioned. It may be cheaper to buy a new case and move everything over- depending on the price of the power supply that will fit if it is not ATX, etc.

Before you buy a power supply though, I would either grab one out of another computer and try it (easy test). If you are feeling a little more industrious, you can grab yourself a multimeter and test the power supply with that. Basically, what you want to do is set the MM to read voltage, put the black probe into the molex (the white connectors that go into the drives) connector hole where the black wire from the power supply goes, and the red wire into the hole were the yellow power supply wire goes. It should read 5 volts. Move the red probe to the red wire (leaving the black probe in the black wire hole) and you should see a 12 volt reading. If they are off- you've got a bad supply.

Another step to try, would be to disconnect your CD-Rom drives, disk drives, expansion cards, and even your hard drive without removing them from the case. One of these devices may be causing a short. With the hard drive disconnected, you won't get far, but you'll see the fans come on, etc.

Also- check some more simple stuff. On the back of the power supply where the cord plugs into it, there is a black switch. I have a funky power supply that works, but sometimes when it's turned off it won't turn back on. I need to flip that black switch to the Off position, let it sit for a few seconds (say 30 to be safe but not really), and then flip it back on and the computer starts up fine. Also, in the same area there is often a red switch. It says 115V on one side and 230V on the other side- make sure it is on 115V and not 230V. You can move it with a fingernail or screwdriver.

If the power supply checks out fine, the switches don't help, and the drives aren't shorting, I would look at the motherboard. I'd just hate to see you spend $20 or more on a shiny new PS and still have the problem.

[cabinetman]

It's an ATX, and I unplugged "P2" and "P3". and by the time I finally slid it back out of the housing (it was harder than heck), and got it loose, couldn't get to where the other wires were connected. BTW, "P4" wasn't plugged into anything but "P5" was. So I said "That's it". Put it all back together, and I'm going to just drop it off and let someone else do their thing. After all, isn't that what experts are for?
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