Dell troubles, what should i do

[kcsupratt]

Hello All,

Needs some advice here.
I got a Dell XPS system which now is on the fritz. It seems when I boot up the system hangs.
It can be anywhere from booting XP or just booting up. i just freezes shortly booting up the system. I have swapped up the Memory and the Video Card.
I don't have an spare CPU or Power supply or MB. I think I can do all I can to try to fix the problem. i booted in Safe mode as well and no luck and the last know good config and no luck too.

Here is my question. The drives are a Sata Raid 1 drive on a Nvida controller.
Now do you think if I take the drive out and put it in a similar setup except for the CPU matching the system should boot up OK? I really don't want to lose all my data.

The next part is maybe I should just upgrade and build one from scratch like to good old days. As stated before do you think going this method I can still get my data?

If so, what would be a good setup to get these days. I have RAM, 2 Drives, 2 DVD Burners,
a GeForce 7900 GTX card.

Please suggest a good Case,MB,CPU Proc, Power Supply, and maybe an upgrade to my Video card.

Thanks for helping

 

[DSF]

How old is the Dell system? If it's still meeting your needs, I wouldn't jump straight to the idea of building one just yet.

If you disconnect the hard drive, does it still hang? (You won't enter Windows obviously, but you said some of the hangs were before it even got to Windows.)

Have you tried booting from a CD like the Ultimate Boot CD? If you can disconnect the hard drive and boot from the CD without a problem, I would suspect the HDD is the issue.

 

[cusideabelincoln]

Sounds like your Dell has a motherboard problem. However, your processor could be overheating. Was the heatsink clean? Was the CPU fan running? If you can answer "yes" to these questions, then we can pretty much rule out overheating issues.

The first thing you should do is take out the hard drive and stick it in another computer as a secondary/slave drive. From there you should be able to access your files. Alternatively, you could make a Live CD of Ubuntu, boot into the Linux operating system, and copy the files on your hard drive over to a thumb drive or external hard drive.

After you copy your files over, by whatever method you choose, then I recommend you reformat the hard drive in your Dell XPS. If you can successfully reformat the drive and install Windows, and Windows successfully boots, then you don't particularly need to buy a new computer and we can determine that your hard drive is working properly.

If you can't reformat, and your system even hangs when you run the LiveCD of Ubuntu, I would most certainly say the motherboard on the XPS is dead.

Before I recommend anything, I would like you to try what I just suggested and I need you to answer these questions:

What kind of RAM do you have (DDR or DDR2), and how much?
What processor do you have?
How much money do you want to spend?

 

[kcsupratt]

Originally posted by: DSF
How old is the Dell system? If it's still meeting your needs, I wouldn't jump straight to the idea of building one just yet.

If you disconnect the hard drive, does it still hang? (You won't enter Windows obviously, but you said some of the hangs were before it even got to Windows.)

Have you tried booting from a CD like the Ultimate Boot CD? If you can disconnect the hard drive and boot from the CD without a problem, I would suspect the HDD is the issue.

DSF,
Thanks for the reply back. I forgot to mention, I even tried to upgrade to Vista and it hung as well in the very early stages. Have not tried to disconnect the drives yet.
The Dell is a about I think 2 years old. One of the new XPS system. I think it is the 700 model.

thanks

 

[kcsupratt]

Originally posted by: cusideabelincoln
Sounds like your Dell has a motherboard problem. However, your processor could be overheating. Was the heatsink clean? Was the CPU fan running? If you can answer "yes" to these questions, then we can pretty much rule out overheating issues.

The first thing you should do is take out the hard drive and stick it in another computer as a secondary/slave drive. From there you should be able to access your files. Alternatively, you could make a Live CD of Ubuntu, boot into the Linux operating system, and copy the files on your hard drive over to a thumb drive or external hard drive.

After you copy your files over, by whatever method you choose, then I recommend you reformat the hard drive in your Dell XPS. If you can successfully reformat the drive and install Windows, and Windows successfully boots, then you don't particularly need to buy a new computer and we can determine that your hard drive is working properly.

If you can't reformat, and your system even hangs when you run the LiveCD of Ubuntu, I would most certainly say the motherboard on the XPS is dead.

Before I recommend anything, I would like you to try what I just suggested and I need you to answer these questions:

What kind of RAM do you have (DDR or DDR2), and how much?
What processor do you have?
How much money do you want to spend?

Cusideabelincoln,

Thanks for the ideas. I will give it a try, I think it might be MB problem. All the fans were running and i felt cool inside.
I have about 4 gigs if DDR2 Corsair XMS2 Memory.
The Dell was a Core 2 Duo, the older Core series. I forget the speed. Think is was 2.4
Looking to spend about less than 1K.
I think I can cover most of what I need for under 1K.

I figure the MB, CPU and Case should run me about 500 or less.
The extra 2-3 can be used for a decent Video card or keep the one I am using now.

Thanks again

 

[cusideabelincoln]

edit: NM I type too slow!

It is imperative you give us the exact model of your Dell or the specifications of the system. Looks like the Dell XPS 700 came with a Core 2 processor, which is still plenty fast.

 

[cusideabelincoln]

I think these are your options:

Option 1:
Call Dell and ask about them replacing the motherboard, or see if you can find one for your XPS somwhere else since they use a BTX-type arrangement and a normal ATX mobo won't fit.

Option 2, the cheapest:
Just buy a new case and motherboard. The Dell power supply should be ATX standard, although I'll go ahead and recommend a PSU if you can determine that it is a proprietary unit. On first search, I can't seem to find anyy information on the XPS power supply other than it's 750W.

$140 Asus P5Q Pro
$70 Enermax Chakra - I have this and it's really easy to work in. You may or may not like it, but I love it.
($$110 650W Corsair 650TX)

Option 3:
Upgrade what you initially wanted to upgrade. I would also recommend selling some of the other components; you could actually make quite a bit of money (about $100) for the E6600 processor (Core 2 Duo @ 2.4 GHz). You might also get between $75-$100 for your video card. And who knows, maybe somebody is looking for a Dell XPS 700 case + power supply.

$190 Intel Core 2 Duo E8500
$140 Asus P5Q Pro
$110 650W Corsair 650TX
$70 Enermax Chakra
$280 Radeon HD 4870
--Reuse your Corsair RAM and other peripherals.

 

[DSF]

Before you buy anything, you need to isolate which part or parts are really causing the problem. It may well be the motherboard, but I wouldn't jump to that conclusion yet.

 

[kcsupratt]

Originally posted by: cusideabelincoln
I think these are your options:

Option 1:
Call Dell and ask about them replacing the motherboard, or see if you can find one for your XPS somwhere else since they use a BTX-type arrangement and a normal ATX mobo won't fit.

Option 2, the cheapest:
Just buy a new case and motherboard. The Dell power supply should be ATX standard, although I'll go ahead and recommend a PSU if you can determine that it is a proprietary unit. On first search, I can't seem to find anyy information on the XPS power supply other than it's 750W.

$140 Asus P5Q Pro
$70 Enermax Chakra - I have this and it's really easy to work in. You may or may not like it, but I love it.
($$110 650W Corsair 650TX)

Option 3:
Upgrade what you initially wanted to upgrade. I would also recommend selling some of the other components; you could actually make quite a bit of money (about $100) for the E6600 processor (Core 2 Duo @ 2.4 GHz). You might also get between $75-$100 for your video card. And who knows, maybe somebody is looking for a Dell XPS 700 case + power supply.

$190 Intel Core 2 Duo E8500
$140 Asus P5Q Pro
$110 650W Corsair 650TX
$70 Enermax Chakra
$280 Radeon HD 4870
--Reuse your Corsair RAM and other peripherals.

Thanks for taking the time to help me. I will give a call to Dell on Monday to see if they can help troubleshoot my problem. Warranty expired, not sure if they will charge me.

As you said, maybe I can part the box out and recoup some of my money if I go with Option 4. Regarding option 4 do you think I should get a bitter PSU and a better Video card?

Thanks again

 

[kcsupratt]

Originally posted by: DSF
Before you buy anything, you need to isolate which part or parts are really causing the problem. It may well be the motherboard, but I wouldn't jump to that conclusion yet.

How would I try to isolate the MB problem? Disconnect all my devices and see if it boots.
How would I know if it might be the CPU.

Thanks

 

[cusideabelincoln]

Originally posted by: kcsupratt


Thanks for taking the time to help me. I will give a call to Dell on Monday to see if they can help troubleshoot my problem. Warranty expired, not sure if they will charge me.

As you said, maybe I can part the box out and recoup some of my money if I go with Option 4. Regarding option 4 do you think I should get a bitter PSU and a better Video card?

Thanks again

I think you meant option 3, but either way the Radeon HD 4870 is pretty much the 3rd/4th fastest single-PCIe-slot video card on the market. And that power supply would probably handle two HD4870s in Crossfire.

If you're looking for more gaming performance on top of fixing the computer, then option 3 would be the best way to go. If you are satisfied with gaming performance, then I think you should take the cheapest option - whether that be buying a new motherboard from Dell (since you're past warranty) or buying a new case and motherboard.

How would I try to isolate the MB problem? Disconnect all my devices and see if it boots. How would I know if it might be the CPU.

You would pretty much have to test each component in another system, or you could replace the current components in your system. Some question so I can get some clarity on the situation: Does the computer freeze at all before you reach the Windows loading screen? Does it freeze on the POST screen? Does it make any beeps when it's turned on?

edit: If you have any kind of spare computer, you should take out the Dell PSU and connect it to the spare and see how it runs. See if it boots properly, and then play an intensive 3D game or run a benchmark. I don't think your problem is from a faulty power supply, but this will help eliminate it from the list.

 

[DSF]

Hangs on booting/loading the OS could be a hard drive problem. That's why I suggested disconnecting the hard drive and attempting to boot from a bootable CD first, since you've already established that the problem isn't likely to be the memory or video card. If everything boots up just fine from a CD, the problem could well be the hard drive. If that's all you need to replace it's a pretty easy fix, with the only problem being your data. As you suggested, popping the drive into a different system would be another way to test.

 

[magreen]

You say you have 4 gigs of XMS2 memory? Is that rated to run at 1.8V? Cause that's all your dell can run it at. If it's rated at 2.0+ V like a lot of corsair xms2 is then voila, that's your problem.

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: magreen
You say you have 4 gigs of XMS2 memory? Is that rated to run at 1.8V? Cause that's all your dell can run it at. If it's rated at 2.0+ V like a lot of corsair xms2 is then voila, that's your problem.

Not necessarily. He has an XPS 700 series, which may be flexible to memory voltage.

 

[kcsupratt]

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: magreen
You say you have 4 gigs of XMS2 memory? Is that rated to run at 1.8V? Cause that's all your dell can run it at. If it's rated at 2.0+ V like a lot of corsair xms2 is then voila, that's your problem.

Not necessarily. He has an XPS 700 series, which may be flexible to memory voltage.

I did take out the XMS2 memory as well and still had the problem. I need to find time to disconnect the drives and boot from a CD to see if my problem is the Hard Drive.