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Archived This topic has been archived. Information and links in this thread may no longer be available or relevant. If you have a question create a new topic by clicking here and select the appropriate board.

‎02-01-2013 07:11 AM

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I hate to the bother you guru's with this stuff, but I'm stuck.. As a matter of reference, you helped me a couple years ago and I haven't forgotten. Anyway, my Pavilion above (250watt PSU) was running along nicely without ever a hitch until 3 days ago. A truck took out a power pole a half mile away and we lost power at the house for about 4 hours. I did in fact have the computer plugged into a GFI power strip. It apparently didn't help, because when I went to turn on the computer, I got nothing. No noises, no beeps, nothing. Totally dead with nothing but a green blinking light on the PSU. I've seen this before on other machines and I've heard of all the tips and tricks to get the green light solid again and then the computer will turn on.  I followed the most logical tip by unplugging the main plug at the mobo while the PSU is plugged in, the light goes solid green and I plug the mobo connector back in and I can start the machine and it works perfectly. In fact, it will shut down, power up and work perfectly, as long as I don't unplug the cord from the wall outlet (or GFI power strip in this case) I've tried both. If I cut power to the computer in any way for more than a minute or so, then the green light on the PSU will blink again when I plug it back in.  I worked on the computer last night for several hours and it ran just like it used to run. I left it plugged in all night and the light was still a solid green this morning. I unplugged the power cable and made a pot of coffee, came back, plugged it in and got the "flashing green" again. I'd prefer to have the computer be 100% correct and power up no matter what the circumstances are.   With all your expertise, can you guide me on this repair? I would certainly be thankful and grateful for any advice you give me. Thank you in advance.

 

P.S. I did attempt to reset the red switch on the back of the PSU with no effect to the above symptoms.

 

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

Accepted Solutions

‎02-01-2013 12:48 PM

HP Recommended

It was a pleasure to be able to help you resolve the issue. 🙂

 

Best regards,

erico


I am a volunteer forum member, not an HP employee. If my suggestion solved your issue, don't forget to mark that post as the accepted solution. If you want to say thanks, click on the Yes button next to the "was this reply helpful?"



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‎02-01-2013 07:25 AM - last edited on ‎02-22-2017 01:02 PM by HP Administrator

HP Recommended

If you have already reset the PSU in accordance with the instructions on this web document then the PSU must be replaced with a new one. 

 

Unfortunately the specifications for your PC do not state whether it is a standard ATX PSU or a proprietary HP unit.  A replacement PSU can be purchased online from a vendor. Just do a Google search as I did to locate one with a good price. Purchasing an OEM unit from HP is  such not a great idea as the cost will be greater than if you purchased one from a vendor.

 

If you do not feel comfortable with replacing it yourself, then you can have it done at a computer shop that has certified technicians. 

 

Best regards,

erico


I am a volunteer forum member, not an HP employee. If my suggestion solved your issue, don't forget to mark that post as the accepted solution. If you want to say thanks, click on the Yes button next to the "was this reply helpful?"



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‎02-01-2013 07:50 AM

HP Recommended

Thank you, Erico

 

The PSU is a Bestec ATX-250, do you have any suggestions for a replacement? It's just a home use tower for internet, email and Office 2010 for some light Word Processing.

 

I do have one final question, if you don't mind.. Section #9 of the power supply diagnostics in the link your provided, states to remove all cables from inside the tower and shows a picture of the inside of the tower. Then the very next paragraph states;

 

  • 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.
     
    When I unplug all my cables, specifically the mobo cable, that PSU light goes immediately back to a solid green (if there is power to the PSU). The above remark confuses me slightly. Is it at all possible that I could have any additional defective components if my computers works perfectly once I plug the mobo cable back in with power to the PSU? Again, not to be reduntant, but the computer works and performs like always after a reset, but if power is removed from the PSU for more than a minute. It's a blinking green light again.
     
    Thanks for all your help, and I'll be glad to tackle a PSU replacement myself..
     
    Best,
    John
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‎02-01-2013 08:24 AM

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Hi,

 

Do yourself a big favor by never unplugging anything connected to the motherboard while it is plugged into house power. Unplug the power cord from the wall and then unplug  PCI cards or other devices.  You can verify that the hard disk is not the culprit by unplugging its power/data connectors and then turning on the PC.  

 

Unplugging the motherboard ATX connector and power connector removes a logic source from the PSU's logic cirsuits and is quite likely the reason it turned solid green again.

 

There were sources for the Bestec in the search that I did.

It may be time to consider replacing the PC as it is well over the average replacement product life (@5+ years of ownership). The motherboard could be failing.

 

Best regards,

erico

 

 


I am a volunteer forum member, not an HP employee. If my suggestion solved your issue, don't forget to mark that post as the accepted solution. If you want to say thanks, click on the Yes button next to the "was this reply helpful?"



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‎02-01-2013 08:51 AM

HP Recommended

I appreciate the advice with regards to working inside a powered up computer tower, thank you..

 

Let me see get this straight, in your first post, you advised me to replace the PSU.. Now you're advising me to replace the computer, because the mother board might be failing? 

 

I have no problem buying a new computer, but I want to be absolutely certain, that that is my only option here. No guessing...

 

Thanks for your help..

 

 

 

 

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‎02-01-2013 10:20 AM

HP Recommended

If you replace the PSU and the same thing happens  you will have wasted your money.  A flashing green led on a PSU is not exactly normal if you have already reset the PSU.  If I recall correctly from earlier in the thread you said you did it. 

 

You can veryify that the hard disk is still good with hard disk diagnostics. You can also do as I suggested in the earlier post.

You can test the memory modules with memory diagnostics.  Memtestx86+

 

If the preceding  components pass, then it is a crap shoot with either the PSU or the motherboard being the failing component. I have extra PSUs laying around to use for troubleshooting, so for me that is not a big issue, but for other people, having an extra PSU is a waste of $$ and space.  If you replace the PSU and it resolves the issue there still exists the possibility that the motherboard dies within a year or so.

 

My objective is always to make recommendations that cause no harm and that help a notebook\PC owner make informed decisions.

 

Best regards,

erico

 


I am a volunteer forum member, not an HP employee. If my suggestion solved your issue, don't forget to mark that post as the accepted solution. If you want to say thanks, click on the Yes button next to the "was this reply helpful?"



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‎02-01-2013 12:04 PM

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Thank you.. I ran over to a friends computer junk yard (attic) and found a HP parts tower with the exact same power supply still in it. I pulled it, brought it home, installed it and plugged it in. Solid green light immediately. I have the memtest86 ISO burned to disk, the RAM is fine and I check my HDD with Seatools every quarter or so. I knew they were all fine. I've had the HP running for a couple of hours now and have unplugged it a couple of times from the power supply and when I plug it back in, the PSU light is a solid green.  We're all set here..

 

I appreciate all your  help..

 

 

John

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‎02-01-2013 12:48 PM

HP Recommended

It was a pleasure to be able to help you resolve the issue. 🙂

 

Best regards,

erico


I am a volunteer forum member, not an HP employee. If my suggestion solved your issue, don't forget to mark that post as the accepted solution. If you want to say thanks, click on the Yes button next to the "was this reply helpful?"



Was this reply helpful? Yes No
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