I have a P.C that intermitantly fails to boot up . It doesn't run the memory test completely and displays less than 32mb also it says the keyboard is locked or not present. On doing a diagnostic test with checkit the system board failed the real time clock on the motherboard . Does anyone know if this is a fixable fault or is it a new motherboard needed? Also it will not run partion magic the pc locks up .
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real time clock failure 1
- Thread starter bdux
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If the RTC battery fails the normal failure mode is back to Jan 1, 1980 or thereabouts and you get an error message saying setup is bad. Once you go to setup and change things, then the machine should be good until you power cycle (off for a minute then back on) the machine.
Once power is established and not removed you should be able to do a hot boot or restart without the RTC battery being involved at all.
If it fails on the hot boot then I would suspect memory problems. Try reseating the memory.
If it is a RTC problem it is not worth the effort. The battery may be changeable. If the battery looks like a nickle, then you can buy replacement at Office Depot. Get the right size. I have changed the clocks, the clock crystals, and the soldered in batteries, but I have the parts and tools and I won't do it anymore except the battery.
Your Partition Magic problem shouldn't be related. What operating system are you using and can you boot into it from a floppy?
Once power is established and not removed you should be able to do a hot boot or restart without the RTC battery being involved at all.
If it fails on the hot boot then I would suspect memory problems. Try reseating the memory.
If it is a RTC problem it is not worth the effort. The battery may be changeable. If the battery looks like a nickle, then you can buy replacement at Office Depot. Get the right size. I have changed the clocks, the clock crystals, and the soldered in batteries, but I have the parts and tools and I won't do it anymore except the battery.
Your Partition Magic problem shouldn't be related. What operating system are you using and can you boot into it from a floppy?
- Thread starter
- #4
It is definitely failing on a cold boot when the machine has been off overnight . But when the reset button is pressed it will boot up without the keyboard is locked or not present error coming up and the memory test will run ok on the screen . I am running win95 ver b on the machine it is a pentuim 166Mhz with 32 mb ram . Is the battery mentioned the same battery that holds the cmos settings memory which is a cr2032 round flat battery or is it a different battery for the real time clock . I will have to kill the cmos as the cmos is password protected and I do not know the password . I haven't had to change the settings but I am thinking of getting in to the cmos so I can see the time and date setting as the server sets the windows date and time on log on .
Unless you have something special using a Dallas chip it is the same battery. I've never seen two on a M/B but there's always the first time.
Pull the battery and let it drain overnight before you put the new battery back in.
And if you get a keyboard not there error after you restore cmos defaults look to the keyboard lock switch as a possible cause. Usually it ties to a 2 pin header that is shorted by the lock switch. But I don't think it will be a problem. And the password protection will probably go away also.
Pull the battery and let it drain overnight before you put the new battery back in.
And if you get a keyboard not there error after you restore cmos defaults look to the keyboard lock switch as a possible cause. Usually it ties to a 2 pin header that is shorted by the lock switch. But I don't think it will be a problem. And the password protection will probably go away also.
Every thread posted has given good information, but to simplify your response and hopefully solve the problem, let's use those threads in this order:
1: Unplug the battery (new or old). Wait 12 hours.
2: Pull all the memory sticks and reseat them.
3: Verify that there is no jumper wire from the KB lock jumper
4: Re-install the battery (new).
5: Boot the system and go into CMOS, making sure all settings are correct, and to your preference.
6: Restart the system, and send us a thred to let us know. (Us because we all want to see this problem solved.)
7: If your system still will not reboot after these steps, I believe a new MB will be the next step.
Mark
1: Unplug the battery (new or old). Wait 12 hours.
2: Pull all the memory sticks and reseat them.
3: Verify that there is no jumper wire from the KB lock jumper
4: Re-install the battery (new).
5: Boot the system and go into CMOS, making sure all settings are correct, and to your preference.
6: Restart the system, and send us a thred to let us know. (Us because we all want to see this problem solved.)
7: If your system still will not reboot after these steps, I believe a new MB will be the next step.
Mark
The answer just may be in the motherboard it self I have seen this issue happen with a cold or bad solder joint causing a short that keeps clearing the CMOS AH but not right away the PC has to on for some time to heat up the components and cause the short. [sig]<p> Glenn<br><a href=mailto: glenns@wtco.net> glenns@wtco.net</a><br><a href= Glenn & Jims Bass Fishing Site</a><br> [/sig]
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