[code][color purple]NO BOOT for150 seconds[/code]

[RustyDWO]

HELP PLEASE,

Since a friend of mine tried to play a music-cd (downloaded from the internet) in my machine it just refuses to boot when powered on.
With the attemp to play that CD it already went wrong because the player would not start completely. The program started (? The window opened) but did not start to produce any sound.
Since then the whole PC refuses to start it seems.
It take 150 seconds at the moment to start the boot. And then it start by trying the CDrom player a few time and then it boots like nothing is wrong.

I checked all internal disk cables and it can't be the battery.
I did a ad-ware check and registry clean-up but those should not have any effect at primairy boot-up (memory count). Right?
My only idea, at first, was the BIOS.
However I can't find anything strange here.


Any suggestion is appreciated as long as it's not about restart with FDISK or re-install.
btw I'm running W98lite version.


Marc

 

[JennITChick]

150 seconds is not that bad a boot-up time with Windows 98. And it would pound the CD-Rom drive a few times on boot-up if the BIOS is configured to try to boot from the CD-Rom first.

Basically, I don't see anything wrong here. Jennifer Sigman
Barely employed

 

[RustyDWO]

Jennifer,

Its not the boot-up time thats 150 seconds!
It take 150 seconds before its starts. My mintor gives the message that there is no signal, the selftest doesn't start etc. like there is no power at all.
But believe me I checked that and there is..

Marc

 

[Crustyoldbloke]

Could you boot from Windows menu in boot log mode, step by step and see what errors show up. Boot with CTRL key pressed and choose from the menu. Error! Keyboard not attached. Press F1 to continue........??????
Phil
Please tell me if the answer I gave was helpful or a bus ride out. Without your feedback I won't know.

 

[RustyDWO]

Phil, (and everybodu else)

No errors show up.
As soon as the boot starts; selftest etc. the sequence is fine.
The problem is that it stays dead for 150 seconds after turning on the power!

Marc

 

[Win98User]

Hi,
Have you tried to boot with the cd-rom tray/s out - That is when you boot make sure all the cd-rom trays stay ejected until windows boots to the desktop. This is to see if the startup is buggering about with the cd-rom drive overly much.

Also, if you have a recent backup of your system I would suggest that you first back up your current system and then restore the previous backup - If it is still playing up you know you have a hardware fault and not a software problem.

Regards.

 

[mainegeek]

If you have a NIC installed, make sure the network
cable is attached. An unattached cable can sometimes cause
added time at boot as it searches.

 

[Win98User]

The only other thing that springs to mind is that an add-on card-such as the graphics card (or maybe memory)has been dislodged .

I would suggest (before the previous post) that you take out your add-on cards and then put them back in - DON'T just open it up and press them down - take them out and then put them back in.

Regards.

 

[RustyDWO]

To All,

Have tried all the hardware tricks like removing add-on cards, network connections, disconnecting hardware etc.

I'am afraid to even think about it but if its not the BIOS the only thing left for me is the MotherBoard.

PLease any suggestions about the BIOS that can have been changed by a virus or something.

 

[mainegeek]

Maybe try running ide auto detection again in the bios.

 

[RustyDWO]

mainegeek,

It has always been like that, I'm getting hopeless.

 

[mainegeek]

The slow boot or the bios settings?

 

[Crustyoldbloke]

Whether or not, you can see anything strange in the BIOS, I would be inclined to set it back to DEFAULT SETTINGS (even if you've never changed anything at all), remember to save, and try again. Treat your children well. They get to choose your nursing home!
Phil
Please tell me if the answer I gave was helpful or a bus ride out. Without your feedback I won't know.

 

[RustyDWO]

Mainegeek,
The bios settings, the very long wait before boot is only a few weeks.

Phil,
I did already, no succes.

 

[RustyDWO]

To all,

Maybe it helps to mention that if I do a reboot the problem is gone.
So its only the first boot after a few hours off!

 

[mainegeek]

It sounds like it is trying to detect something each
time at boot. Have you tried it with the data and power cables removed from just the cdrom(s)?

 

[Win98User]

You seem to be waiting for someone to tell you what I suspect you already know.

That if you believe it is a BIOS problem the only thing left to do is to flash the BIOS, either with the same BIOS or a newer version - Please make sure that you follow all instructions that accompany the BIOS upgrade.

Other than that, why can't it be the CMOS battery? I often find that when people say "it can be" it all too often is.
;-)

Regards.

 

[Win98User]

Gosh, you posted a lot of extra info before I had completed my previous post.

If you have any devices such as printers and scanners etc attached to your machine, make sure that they are unplugged before you boot.

Also, it sounds a little bit more like a problem with your PSU - Try to borrow one and plug it in and see.

Regards.

 

[RustyDWO]

To all,
Cables from CDrom reomved - I tried no succes.
If its the battery should it not automatically go to the setup at start-up?
PSU (??) but than a voltages used only for the MoBo. Does that exist?

Marc

 

[Win98User]

No, a faulty CMOS battery does not cause the BIOS setup to automatically appear.

"PSU (??) but than a voltages used only for the MoBo. Does that exist?"

Please translate

Thanks.