Pc doesn't boot, no splash screen either

[Luanz]

Hi,
I have a HP Pavilion with product number D7B29EA#ABU and model number P6-2496ea.

I tried to run a repair on a HDD which was plugged externally, this took too long so I cancelled the process and rebooted my PC.

The restart was taking way too long so i forced shut down the system. I then tried to power my PC up but it fails to power up.

When I tried to turn on my PC i noticed the following:
- no splash screen, just a black screen (tried different video output on the PC but with the same result, no video)
- the "on" LED which starts as amber and then turns to blue only flickers on amber.
- the HDD is spinning and the fans are running.

I have tried resetting the BIOS to factory settings but no joy.

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

[WAWood]

Luanz

Hello;

Allow me to welcome you to the HP forums!

I read your post about your PC not booting anymore and wanted to help.

Let's try to first repair the boot loader files for Win10 and see if that gets your PC working again.

If you don't have Win10 install media, you will need it to do the repair, so create the media using the instructions in the link: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/media-creation-tool-install?ocid=ms_wol_win10

Note that when you go do download and build install media, the tool defaults to matching what is already installed on your PC (as in, Home for Home, 64-bit for 64-bit).  While you CAN change these settings, do NOT.  If you do, the resulting media will be different and will force you to enter a NEW product code!

Once you have the media, try doing a Startup Repair following the instructions in this link:
http://www.windowswally.com/how-to-fix-error-code-0xc0000185/

I know that says Win8, but the steps are the same for Win10.

IF that does not work, the situation is much more serious ... and you need to walk through the troubleshooting steps in this link to see if any of them get your PC working again:  HP Desktop PCs - Computer Does Not Start (Windows 10,8) | HP® Customer Support

Good Luck

I am a volunteer and I do not work for, nor do I represent, HP.
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[Luanz]

Dear DAWood,

Thank you for your reply and the information provided.

After atempting to follow some of the instructions on the troubleshooting scenarios  I think my problem is more ellaborate.

I have now discovered that my USB port no longer support/ read my keyboards (no PS2 connection only USB). When plugging an external drive to any of the USB ports, the drive lights up and starts spinning, not sure of any other activity as i have no video output.

The system has 4 video outputs (DVI-A + VGA on the Invidia GPU and DVI + DVI-A on the mobo). I have tried all 4 ports with different monitors also but no joy.

I also unplugged the RAM out of the system hopping that the system will indicate the missing component acustically or otherwise but there was no response at all. the system just carried on with the same procedure as before.

The only activity that I can notice on the system is:

- The LED on the power button of the PC flickers in amber colour for less than a second.

- The CPU, GPU and PC fans start running.

- The HDD start spinnig.

I have also removed the HDD from the system and plugged it in externally to my laptop to atempt save my data. The device appears on the Device Manager but not available on Windows Explrorer for me to access it.

I also tried booting from a working HDD with the same windows version installed on it but no change in behaviour.

I would classify my self as an intermediate user and I am usually able to solve most of my PC issues but this one has got me pulling my hair.

Any help, from any of you will be much appreciated.

Look forward to hearing from you. 

[Luanz · Accepted solution]

Hi All,

After a bit of research i came to a conlusion that the above symptoms were caused due to a corrupted BIOS.

I run a BIOS reset procedure several times but only started having results after a 24 hour BIOS reset.

For those who are unfamiliar with the BIOS reset procedure, please see steps below:

1- Power the machine down.

2- Remove all USB connections to the machine (appart from the keyaboard and mouse dongle)

3- Unplug mains power from the system.

4- With the cable unplugged, press amd hold down for 3-5 seconds the power button on your machine.

5- Remove BIOS battery from the motherboard.

6- Remove jumper from pins 1-2 amd fit over pins 3-5 (for HP Pavilion p6-2496ea, for other models please refer to motherboard manual).

7- Typically you would leave the machine in this state for 15-20 minutes and then follow the rest of the instructions. if a 20 minute reset doesn't work try a 8 hour or 24 hour reset (leaving the machine with the reset jumper on).

8- Fit the batery in.

9- Remove jumper from reset pins and fit to the default pins, 1-2.

10- Plug mains into the system.

11- Switch the machine on, you should have a booting system.

I hope the above helps you guys, it certainly worked form me.

Good luck.