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OlyWater

3 Posts

18356

August 16th, 2015 12:00

Vostro 1014 Power/start issue

My Vostro 1014 yesterday started responding to a press of the power button by a single quick flash of the caps and scroll lock LEDs, and of the CD drive LED, but no start.

I initially thought the battery was discharged, and connected the power supply. The battery charge LED came on blue for about two seconds and then went off.

I've tried disconnecting the AC and removing the battery, then pressing and holding the power button for thirty seconds, and then trying to start either from battery or from AC power alone, and from both together. Same behavior by the computer.

It did finally start normally once last night, but it wouldn't restart from sleep in response to pressing the power button this morning. Same symptoms as before the last normal start.

Any suggestions on what to try next?

DELL-Rishi

4 Operator

 • 

2K Posts

August 17th, 2015 21:00

Hi OlyWater,

Does the system overheat? Were there any bluescreens/crashes on the system before this issue occurred? What is the OS installed on the system?

Update the BIOS from support.dell.com - http://dell.to/1kGWIcI - enter the service tag and select drivers and downloads and run the BIOS update.

Restart the system and keep tapping on f12 key and select diagnostics. Run the test and make a note of any errors that you might possibly encounter and reply with the error details.

Check the reliability history for any possible hardware events - see this link - http://bit.ly/1NBWyD4

Keep us updated.

OlyWater

3 Posts

August 19th, 2015 07:00

No overheating, BSODs or crashes prior to issue emerging. It's Win7 SP1, patched thru the July 2015 update cycle. Given the nature of the problem, the remainder of these suggestions can't be applied; they require that the machine starts first. If it does by chsnce light up, I'll give them a try. However, it looks to me more like a failing electro-mechanical component jwhich intermittently decides to work.

OlyWater

3 Posts

August 19th, 2015 21:00

I removed the control panel cover to get a better view of the power button/switch assembly. And determined that all three LEDs are doing a single quick flash when the power switch is pressed. The service manual says that this LED flash pattern pre-POST indicates a system board error, requiring a board replacement.

DELL-Rishi

4 Operator

 • 

2K Posts

August 20th, 2015 15:00

Hi OlyWater,

Thank you for the update.

Good that you managed to isolate the lock led pattern.

We can help setup a paid service call, in which case, kindly send me the service tag and your contact details through a private message.

If you wish to order the parts yourself, you could contact http://www.parts-people.com/ and order the parts through them.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

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