Question:
I have a three year old homebrewed machine that I'm very happy with in
most ways, but it has intermittent problems booting. I think the
problem
developed within the last year, so maybe it indicates something has
been
damaged by a power surge or something...?
Answer:
Sounds like it's the mobo, my first suggestion would be to clear the
CMOS, and go from there. If it's doing "long-short-short" it doesn't
sound like it would be the memory. Could be processor or video. See if
you can find a video card that is cheap but will work. You can
generally find these for nearly $50 or lower. If you end you with a
new card and the system still doesn't work, you'll at least be one
part up on the new low power machine! ;)
I am no guru or anything, but I have a similar problem with my machine.
Every three or four months or so, I get a "Disk boot failure" message during
startup, during post when BIOS looks for HD.
Turns out that my problem seems to be a loosening of the HD ribbon cable on
the mobo. Just push on it a bit to seat it tighter and the failures go away
for another 3-4 months.
Don't know if it is a weak spot on the mobo or a bad ribbon or what. Just a
little push on the mobo connector.
I take it that you never discovered what the problem was.
Also, sounds as if the new parts have restored your machine to working
order. Sorry you had to spend money to correct this issue.
I have been lurking in this group and a few others for about a month now, as
I am considering building a new machine myself. Trying to get a little free
advice. Just couldn't resist adding my 2 cents when I read the post.
