Computer won't turn on...

[Armethius]

Is this a memory problem?

I have a 3.5 year old HP, and one day it just wouldnt turn on. Instead of a solid green light on the back of the PSU, there is a dim blinking one. I went to the HP webstie for help, and it told me to un-plug the PSU from everything, and then plug it into the wall. I did this and got the normal solid green one, so i believe the PSU is ok. I re-plugged everything one at a time testing the light on the back of the PSU after each plug in. It only starts blinking when i connect the motherboard. Any one have any idea of what this could be? Maybe its just bad RAM?

 

[Mondoman]

It's extremely unlikely to be the CPU or RAM, since they are just solid-state parts.
Most likely it's your motherboard or power supply. Both have components (e.g. electrolytic capacitors or "tin cans") that go bad over time, especially at elevated temps.

 

[Armethius]

is there any way i can test for sure?

 

[dwesely]

Your power supply is shot. I've seen this twice.

 

[crazywheels]

Mondoman anything can go go out at any given time it doesn't matter if its solid state, caps, resistors or whatever. We have no idea what he was doing before it stopped working. he could have overclocked the hell out of it the that would be a solid state problem.

 

[Armethius]

but the HP guide says that if my power supply is making a solid green light with nothing plugged in, then its fine. I wasn't over clocking. THe power might have went out and then surged back on, but I did have it connected to a surge protector. Maybe a high temperature?

 

[dwesely]

Dude... replace the power supply. I've seen this EXACT problem - twice.

 

[Mondoman]

but the HP guide says that if my power supply is making a solid green light with nothing plugged in, then its fine. ...

If it really does say that (and not something like "if the power supply does not make a solid green light, then it is defective"), it's wrong. Power supplies often don't completely fail at once -- one part can still work while another part has failed.

 

[Armethius]

this is what it says

*
If the LED is on solid and is not flashing, the power supply is probably good and the problem is most likely caused by a defective component (processor, memory, PCI card) or a defective motherboard. Have the computer serviced, or remove the components and replace them, one at a time, to find and replace the defective component.
*
If the LED is still flashing (it should not flash with all connectors removed), plug the power cable into a different power outlet that is known to be good. If the LED still flashes, the power supply should be replaced.
*
If the LED light is now off, plug the power cable into a different power outlet that is known to be good. If the LED stays off, the power supply should be replaced.