Computer won't turn on and charger doesn't work when graphics card is in.

[Marakai]

I have an Alienware x17 r3. I'm having an issue in which when I place the GPU in the laptop, the laptop won't turn on at all (no keyboard backlighting or anything). Also, when I plug the charger into the wall, the blue LEDs on the charger will light up, but they go out when I plug it in to the laptop. Just to experiment, I tried to boot it up without the graphics card. There was a myriad of flashing colors, and eventually, my computer beeped 8 timesand never booted up. What's the issue? Thanks!

 

[webworkings]

Well there could be a few things going on there. The charger may be going (especially if it is an after market one). If it is not allowing enough power to get to the device, you will get problems turning it on. It will also give you problems trying to charge the battery.

In regard to the beeps...

Beeps at start up.

8 Beeps on startup means the LCD on system has failed (or is failing). 6 on startup would mean it is your GPU.

You might want to try running a LCD Test, as well as a Pre-boot System Assessment.

So now you are probably thinking "How to run these tests?"


First, turn off your laptop.

For the LCD Test...

1. Hold down the 'D' key and then turn on your laptop
2. Keep holding down 'D' and you should see color bars on your LCD.


Again, turn off the laptop...

For the Pre-boot System Assessment...

1. Hit the 'F12' key immediately after turning on your system.
2. From the options displayed, choose 'Diagnostics' .

This will tell you if there are any errors that you need to address/fix.


Other beep codes....

NOTE: Due to the fact that different manufacturers with this BIOS have different codes, the beep codes may vary.

Below are the AMI BIOS Beep codes that can occur.

1 short - DRAM refresh failure
2 short - Parity circuit failure
3 short - Base 64K RAM failure
4 short - System timer failure
5 short - Process failure
6 short - Keyboard controller Gate A20 error
7 short - Virtual mode exception error
8 short - Display memory Read/Write test failure
9 short - ROM BIOS checksum failure
10 short - CMOS shutdown Read/Write error
11 short - Cache Memory error
1 long, 3 short - Conventional/Extended memory failure
1 long, 8 short - Display/Retrace test failed
two-tone siren - Low CPU Fan speed, Voltage Level issue

Below are Award BIOS Beep codes that can occur.

1 long, 2 short - Indicates a video error has occurred and the BIOS cannot initialize the video screen to display any additional information.

1 long, 3 short - Video card not detected (reseat video card) or bad video card

Beeps repeating endlessly - RAM problem.

Repeated high frequency beeps while PC is running - Overheating processor (CPU).

Repeated beeps alternating high & low frequency - Issue with the processor (CPU), possibly damaged.

Dell beep codes

1 beep - BIOS ROM corruption or failure
2 beeps - Memory (RAM) not detected
3 beeps - Motherboard failure
4 beeps - Memory (RAM) failure
5 beeps - CMOS Battery failure
6 beeps - Video card failure
7 beeps - Bad processor (CPU)

Below are general IBM BIOS Beep codes that can occur. However, because of the wide variety of models shipping with this BIOS, the beep codes may vary.

No Beeps - No Power, Loose Card, or Short.
1 Short Beep - Normal POST, computer is ok.
2 Short Beep - POST error, review screen for error code.
Continuous Beep - No Power, Loose Card, or Short.
Repeating Short Beep - No Power, Loose Card, or Short.
1 Long and 1 Short Beep - Motherboard issue.
1 Long and 2 Short Beeps - Video (Mono/CGA Display Circuitry) issue.
1 Long and 3 Short Beeps. - Video (EGA) Display Circuitry.
3 Long Beeps - Keyboard or Keyboard card error.
1 Beep, Blank or Incorrect Display - Video Display Circuitry.