Old compaq is having problems

[Medixen]

Hey guys,

My compaq (600mhz celeron,198mb ram, winME) has been having trouble powering down lately. A few days ago, I tried to shutdown within ME and it wouldn't work. Even the power button wouldn't shut it down. So I had to turn it off via the surge protecter. Not only that, but my compaq would turn on instantly when I switched the protector back on.
It did this a few times, which was fine because I rarely shutdown the compaq.

Today I turned off the surge protector and as soon as I switched it back on, the psu came alive and that was it. The psu's fans are only being powered. Nothing else has power to it. I still can't even turn on/off the psu through the main power button.

So my question is this, has my power button died or has the psu died? Would a dead psu still be able to power its fans? The power button doesn't work at all. Could that be the problem?

Would hate to lose all my data because of this. Any ideas/suggestions?

 

[CrispyFried]

even if the psu is dead, your data should be fine. do you have access to another psu to swap in?

 

[t3h l337 n3wb]

If you have another computer, take the hard drive out and transfer all the data to another computer, then throw that POS away and use a newer computer.

 

[CrispyFried]

Originally posted by: t3h l337 n3wb
If you have another computer, take the hard drive out and transfer all the data to another computer, then throw that POS away and use a newer computer.

what are you, a computer snob?

if it does what it needs to whats the problem?

 

[Medixen]

Sadly, I do not have access to another psu. I could always buy a $20 forton/sparkle psu from newegg I guess. I'd be extremely annoyed if I did that and discovered there was something wrong with the power button though. Very strange why it just stays in the on position.

I could transfer the data to my newer comp. I just hate letting this old compaq go. It was very useful to me.

 

[Jhhnn]

Could be a lot of things- older mobos often have problems with capacitors bulging/leaking- I'd inspect the whole thing very carefully, reseat all the plugs and cards if it seems ok...

The power and reset buttons are electrically identical- put the reset wires on the power pins on the mobo, leave the reset pins disconnected.. worth a try...

 

[Medixen]

I'll double check the connections just incase. As for switching the mobo reset wires to the power one, that's probably a good idea. However, this old compaq doesn't even have a reset switch. It's one of those damn switches that you have to push in really hard for about 5 seconds before the whole unit powers down. :frown:

Thinking about just ordering this puppy http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=270500
The compaq psu says it can't exceed 125watts. This sucker should be enough.

 

[JimPhelpsMI]

Hi, If you think the power button/switch is bad note the location of the connector on the MB from the switch, remove it and short the two pins momentarily with a small screwdriver or similar. If it works normally you have a bad switch or leads to the switch. Some PSUs do come on when you apply the AC power from the wall outlet or UPS etc. Some real often some occasionally. Good Luck, Jim