Powering on problem

[fordguy]

Hi, I am having trouble with my computer. I have everything plugged into a power strip and in the morning I flip the switch on the power strip and then press the ON button on the tower. Often the tower just beeps once as usual and freezes solid. If I push the "reset" button on the tower a few times it will finally turn on and once it gets to the clouds everything is fine. This didn’t used to of happen. I always shut the machine without problem and with no errors.

Windows 98SE

 

[wooglin]

Does it do the same thing if you do not shut off the power strip? Try moving the PCs power cord from the power strip to a wall outlet. Don't remove the PC from the power grid after shutting it off. Leave it connected and it should start normally when you press the power button.

 

[fordguy]

I have an uninterruptable PSU, should I still try it?

 

[wooglin]

Plug the tower directly into the UPS then

 

[fordguy]

so, I should plug the tower directly into my UPS? Then, do I move the UPS power plug to another outlet?

 

[wooglin]

UPS's are designed to be always on, keeping the battery fully charged and conditioned. The tower, whether on or off, should always be plugged directly into the UPS for full protection.

As the tower will always be connected to the power source, it should not have the startup delay/issue you described.

 

[fordguy]

So, what are you saying? You don't have an answer for my problem?

 

[wooglin]

I'm going to work on the assumption that this problem has nothing to do with the power strip. Unfortunately this was what I focused on from your first post.

Possibilities:
-failing Power Supply Unit, doesn't have the juice needed to spin the HD's fast enough to POST
-failing HD's, sticktion at boot, not spinning up in time to POST

I used to have a similar issue related to the Q-Fan controller in the bios of my Asus mobo, fixed by disabling q-fan control.

Lots of possibilities, hard to diagnose without knowing your system specs, age, environment, plus verbatim what is happening on screen during the failed boot attempts.

 

[fordguy]

Oh, if you want to know my system specs there are the ones right here:

600 MHz. Intel or AMD processor.
64 MB of memory.
VGA Monitor.

 

[wooglin]

Ooooo fun.
I'm going to stick with the failing PSU guess. If it's a standard ATX size you should be able to find a fairly cheap replacement to try out for less than the cost of a happy meal. OK, might be a slight exaggeration.