[TheReborn20]

hello, recently ive dug myself into a bigger hole than i thought. after dealing with a virus outbreak, i decided to tackle my Internet problem. after thinking i had deleted a vital system component. i used system restore and after that, my PC restarted non stop it would start with company logo, progress bar, XP loading and then back to the logo, i tried safe mode but it wouldnt do anything. so i read somewhere that it could be a RAM problem, so i switched out ram chips. then it wouldnt start at all, so i decided to go back to square one and reinstall my old chips in the order they were in, and it wont restart at all. so now my PC powers on, but teh red loading light on the front stays on and noting happens on the monitor, except for teh monitor light blinking. so i thought it was teh display and switched from my graphics card to the integrated one but still no dice. so now im pretty much stuck. please help

[dan_mccartney]

So if I am getting this correct, you are saying that nothing happens when you try to start your computer up. You may be having a problem with your Mother Board. Also check that your Watts going into your computer is correct. You can check that from the back of the Power Supply. It is the red switch. Can I get some specs on your computer as well please?

[TheReborn20]

watts are currently @ 115 should i switch to 230

pc specs

Custom computer MSI mobo 2001
Nvidia GeForce FX 5200 Graphics card
2 sticks pc100 or 2100 i cant remember 512 mb ea
monitor Samtron CRT
Intel Pentim 4 proccesor 1.4 Ghz i think

ask for anything else
thank you

[dan_mccartney]

Hmm...Try switching the watts. I doubt it is going to do anything. Before you do that, unplug your system and hold the power switch for 10-15 seconds and then try rebooting. That gets rid of any excess charge in the computer. Sometimes causes problems.

[TheReborn20]

nope nothing

[dan_mccartney]

Unless someone has an idea, I am going to say that you are in need of a new MOBO. But someone else might have something else for you to try.

[TheReborn20]

my main problem are my art programs (photoshop, flash, etc.) would it be possible to recover them from the hard drive or are they specific to the mobo (others have told me those kind of programs only work on one computer)

[dan_mccartney]

You should be just fine it that department. I wouldn't worry about that at all.

[TheReborn20]

well thank you for all your help ill try recovering those programs to my second pc. thank you again

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by dan_mccartney

Also check that your Watts going into your computer is correct. You can check that from the back of the Power Supply. It is the red switch.

Originally Posted by TheReborn20

watts are currently @ 115 should i switch to 230

Originally Posted by dan_mccartney

Hmm...Try switching the watts. I doubt it is going to do anything.

Uh... WTF??? Yeah, it could very well do something: it could cause your machine to go up in smoke. That's not WATTS, that's the switch for the supply voltage. 115V in North America, 230V in Europe. Luckily in NA, switching it to 230 will probably just mean it doesn't power up... switching it to 115 if your power is 230V will probably cause a meltdown.

Please, please, don't give anyone any more advice if you don't know what the hell you're talking about!

[Soundy]

Okay, back to the original problem...

First (and assuming that playing with the power supply voltage switch didn't kill something), have you put the RAM modules back exactly as they were before? Some boards require certain slots to be populated first, or they won't boot. Make sure the modules are all seated solidly, as well as any other cards (video, etc.)

Second, you can try doing a CMOS reset - check your motherboard manual, there will be probably a jumper on the motherboard somewhere for this. You just short the designated pins for a few seconds to clear all the BIOS settings.

Third, if it still doesn't power up, try unplugging the drives and any other unnecessary components - this will help narrow down if it's a power issue.

Fourth, IF you get it to boot, you can try doing a "repair install" from your Windows CD (assuming you have a proper Windows CD, rather than a "recovery" CD).

Fifth, most software, especially larger packages like Photoshop and Flash, you can't simply "move" to another system, as they create numerous registry entries, update some system files, and place other files of their own in different locations. Your actual photos and other such "project" files can be moved over, and you may be able to migrate your customizations, but the programs themselves will have to be reinstalled from your original discs (or legitimate downloads) if you're going to a new system.

Now if it's just the motherboard, it's likely possible to just put a new board in, or to move your hard drive(s) to a new machine, and have things work as before with some slight tweaks. However, if your machine was badly corrupted with viruses, I'd suggest it's a good time to back up everything important, then format the drive and reinstall everything fresh. You do, of course, have proper legitimate copies of Windows and all your software?

[TheReborn20]

ok, Tried CMOS reset, no dice

unplugged the drives nothing happened

finally, the hard drive, i am nervous about putting in the hard drive from the bad PC into my good one, because the whole reason i got into this mess was from a bad virus attack, how can i back up my new PC?