1 Rookie
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22 Posts
2
17279
March 12th, 2023 23:00
XPS 13 (9310) fails to start-- blinking white or orange LED
My Dell XPS 13 (9310), which was working fine for about two weeks with Windows 11 and MX linux (dual boot), now refuses to boot. The Dell logo appears, and the front LED flashes white or orange, but it never goes beyond that.
I have tried the following:
1) Long press the power button, while hitting the F12 function key (both while plugged in and on battery alone). Never got to the BIOS.
2) Opened the case, and disconnected the battery (apparently, there is no longer a CMOS battery). Pressed the power button for 30 seconds, reconnected the battery, and tried again. Same disappointing result-- not booting.
3) Tried to boot with the AC adapter connected, but the battery disconnected. Did not boot.
What are my options? The machine is out of warranty (bought it on eBay). Any information will be greatly appreciated.
It seems that many people are having similar problems with this highly-rated laptop. Why is it highly-rated?
DELL-Nat M
Community Manager
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3.2K Posts
0
October 25th, 2024 16:58
Hi all,
If you're experiencing power issues with your laptop, please don't hesitate to contact our support team. You can use the Get Help Now chat feature located at the bottom right corner of the page.
The chat button is marked with a help icon for easy recognition, as shown in the image below:
AdrianG001
4 Operator
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4K Posts
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March 14th, 2023 01:00
Hold down the "D" key, push the power button, release the power button, wait 2-3 seconds and release the "D" key
The laptop should go through an LCD test of solid White, Red, Green, Blue and Black 2 or 3 times.
After completion it should try to automatically boot 2 or 3 times.
venik212
1 Rookie
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22 Posts
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March 14th, 2023 01:00
Thanks-- it did go through the color test, and then went endlessly into its favorite dance-- 6 white LED flashes and 3 amber ones, indicating: System BIOS Flash incomplete. If I were Dell, I'd be embarrassed-- similar problems have been plaguing the XPS for years, and they are still here. It is a nice looking paper weight for $1500...
If anyone knows what to do, please don't let me guess.
ejn63
10 Elder
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28.7K Posts
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March 14th, 2023 04:00
Your system supports a BIOS recovery.
https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000132453/how-to-recover-the-bios-on-a-dell-computer-or-tablet
venik212
1 Rookie
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22 Posts
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March 14th, 2023 12:00
I did try the BIOS recovery as described in your post, but it failed ( I forgot to mention it in my original post.) The 6 white 3 amber flashes appeared again. I would have thought that SOMEWHERE on the disk there would be a safe place that Dell could use for the resurrection of the laptop, but, alas, they'd rather sell me more expensive "support".
I am all out of ideas about how to save this brick...
venik212
1 Rookie
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22 Posts
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March 14th, 2023 13:00
The problem is that the BIOS recovery screen never appears... The USB has the correct BIOS file on it, but the laptop never swallows it... ;-(
ejn63
10 Elder
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28.7K Posts
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March 14th, 2023 14:00
Does the backlight on the keyboard come on when CTRL-ESC is held?
venik212
1 Rookie
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22 Posts
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March 14th, 2023 14:00
Yes, it does. But the BIOS recovery screen never comes on. Instead, it starts flashing the white/amber flashes, and after a few cycles it gives up.
ejn63
10 Elder
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28.7K Posts
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March 14th, 2023 15:00
Have you:
Disconnected the AC adapter and disconnected the battery from the system board, and held the power button for 30 sec? Then try powering up again.
venik212
1 Rookie
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22 Posts
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March 15th, 2023 09:00
I tried that early on, and it did not help. I am beginning to suspect the Mother Board ;-((
floschlongdong
1 Message
0
April 17th, 2023 13:00
Hey,
I have the same exact problem! Did you find any solution yet? If so I would be extremely grateful if you could help me out!
venik212
1 Rookie
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22 Posts
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April 17th, 2023 13:00
Sadly, I was unable to revive it. I returned it, and bought another (identical) machine, which-- so far-- has been fine (although I cannot get it to suspend when I close the lid.
I really feel bad about this situation-- these are expensive, highly rated laptops, and it is very frustrating to have them die like that. It casts a very bad light on Dell and its support.