Troubleshooting a dead PC in simple steps:

Please shut down the pc, unplug the power and all the connected peripherals before carrying out the the following steps. Bulleted sentences have to be carried out before trying any troubleshooting.
Failure to do so can result in irrecoverable damages to the motherboard and / or device which are handled!

Caution:
If you have access to a Switchable, earthed power strip, please put this between the Main power and all the peripherals that are electrically connected to your computer (monitor, printer, scanner etc.).
This will prevent the computer system to be damaged by Earth related voltages that can make a pathway to ground on contact with your body, damaging the electronic circuits in the process.

Steps that are not applicable are those on which the hardware is not present. You can safely skip these steps. Shut down your computer and open the system casing.

Check that the PC speaker is working and attached to the correct pins of the Motherboard.
You would need a working speaker during one of the following operations! In case of doubt, get a speaker from another computer temporarily.
Verify that the power outlet is energised by checking that a lamp when attached glows.
Check for cracks / damages to the power cable connecting the PC. If the power plug of your computer has its own Fuse, check this too.
Check the switch on the back of the Power supply unit whether it is set to "1".When you power up the system, ensure that the PSU is working.
When you press the eject button of a DVD drive, does the DVD inserting slot slide out and does the CPU / PSU fan and hard drive(s) spin up?

· On the Motherboard you can find a CR 2032 Lithium cell, measure its voltage with a voltmeter. It MUST be ABOVE 2.5 Volts. If it is lower than that or show a Zero, replace that cell. If OK / replaced, put the cell back in, repower the system and see if it will boot.

· If there is no CR 2032 Lithium cell, it is most common that there is an Integrated RTC CMOS Battery block (black block) somewhere on the Motherboard. (You cannot test this device).It is commonly called DALLAS and has a Mechanic alarm clock icon on it.
· Search for the CMOS reset (RTC Clear) jumper and set it for a few seconds. If it is a three-pin Jumper, set it over the centre and now open the pin. UNSET it before repowering! Some Motherboards have two adjacent tin fields that have to be shorted for a few seconds. Power on the system and see if it will boot.
· If you are unsuccessful, go to the connector section where all the Front Panel connectors are connected. Look closely at what is connected to the RESET connector of your Motherboard and take it off. There could be a short circuit in the Reset switch or some foreign bodies are connected. Power on the system WITHOUT something connected to the RESET pins and see if it will boot.

FOR ATX systems ONLY-


· Take off the POWER button leads and measure the resistance with an Ohmmeter. At normal, it should measure Infinite. When pressed, it MUST measure less than 2 Ohms. If not, that button must be replaced. For the time being, put the RESET button in place if that one is still good (it does exactly the same).
· If unsuccessful, check the Power cable(s) that run(s) from the PSU to the Motherboard. Is / are they properly connected to the Motherboard? With the AT (2-connector) system, ENSURE that all the BLACK wires meet in the middle of the two connectors. Otherwise it is Instant Death for the Motherboard (and the CPU) if the PSU starts up. Power on the system and see if it will boot.
· If not, press ALL the connectors, cards and chips that are inserted in the sockets to verify / ensure that they are properly seated in their slots. It could be a card that is not pressed in completely. Power on the system and see if it will boot.
· If not either, check the IDE connections on both the hard drive(s) /DVD drive(S) and your Motherboard. Some motherboards do NOT boot if the connectors are connected incorrectly due to misplaced TTL signals. Verify and set if not: PIN 1 / colored wire should face the power connector(s) of the drive(s) and pin #1 in the slot on the Motherboard.

If the headers of the Motherboard connectors have a "hole" in one of their long sides, this is the indication that pin-1 is on ABSOLUTE-LEFT of that "hole". Applies when the Header is turned / visualised in this way that it is horizontally and the "hole" is in the lower rail. It is also an "Idiot-Proof" system with newer cables that have an extended notch on one of their long sides. Power the system and see if it will boot.
· If still no result, check if the Jumper settings for FSB and Multiplier are still correct for the CPU. Look under the Heat sink (if present)! The CPU could have been traded for a lower / defective one when others have attempted to "Repair" your system! An 8088 and an 8086 can be inserted incorrectly one way and correctly one way. An 80386, 80387 (FPU) and an 80486 CPU (and some AMD / Cyrix CPU's) can be inserted incorrectly three ways and correctly ONE way. If found in an incorrect position, (PIN 1 NOT on the Mark on the Socket) DO NOT USE THAT CPU / FPU anymore! The CPU / FPU is SURELY a goner! (and so could your Motherboard!)
· If still nothing happens, pull out ALL memory chips and reboot (if it was the memory, you now hear some beeps out of the Speaker).
· Set in ONE of the memory chips and retry.
· If no result, exchange the memory chip for another one (if any) and retry.
· If working, leave it in, insert the next untested memory chip (if any) and retry.
· If dead again you have found a defective Memory chip. Take it out.
· If dead ALL the time, put all the chips back in and advance to the next step.
· Pull out ALL PCI / ISA / AGP cards and boot it up.
· If working (you heard some beeps from the speaker), than put the Videocard card back in its original slot and retry
· If NO boot with the Videocard, that card is the cause and must be replaced for a new / good one.
· If working, repeat this for the other cards (leave known good cards in place!). Place the cards back into the slots from which they came to avoid redetection / re-installation by Windows.
· If still no positive result from any test, the Motherboard, PSU, Memory or the CPU might be defective (or any combination of these).