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First post, by abyss

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The sound problem was fixed( I needed to have speakers hooked up) and the cd rom problem is fixed ( I was using a cd rom the cd rom drive couldn't read) There is a new problem that has come up however. When the computer starts up I get a message saying cmos checksum error. It still works perfectly fine if I push F1 to continue but I don't know if the problem could get worse. The computer is a 100 mhz IPC select series computer if that helps.

Reply 1 of 17, by MiniMax

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It is probably the battery the supplies power to the little CMOS RAM module that is dead/flat.

Normally, when you go into the BIOS setup and adjust the time, date, boot sequence and other stuff, the settings are stored in the CMOS RAM module with a checksum value. When the PC is booted after a power-down, the BIOS code will read the values of the CMOS RAM, recalculate the checksum and compare it with the old value. But if the battery is dead, the values will be garbage, and the checksum will be garbage - and you get that Checksum Error message.

Replacing the battery can be easy - or it can be almost impossible. It depends on the type of battery used. Some are soldered into the motherboard and almost impossible to replace. Others are like simple watch batteries, a shiny coin-looking thingy that you can buy in any supermarket, and quickly replace.

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Reply 2 of 17, by abyss

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Will bad problems happen if the battery is replaced because I really am not sure if the problem could get worse. If nothing serious can happen from not replacing the battery than I really don't see the point in it being replaced but if serious problems can occur than it would be replaced.

Reply 3 of 17, by Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman

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abyss wrote:

Will bad problems happen if the battery is replaced

Nope.

Never thought this thread would be that long, but now, for something different.....
Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman.

Reply 4 of 17, by Malik

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It is most probably a battery replacement solution. Just make sure to revert to all your previous bios settings after you replace the battery.

5476332566_7480a12517_t.jpgSB Dos Drivers

Reply 7 of 17, by Malik

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If you don't replace it, you'll get the same error on and off again till the battery has no more charge. When the battery goes off, your system will always show the error message and your system will always revert to it's default value. Just change the battery or get someone to do it.

5476332566_7480a12517_t.jpgSB Dos Drivers

Reply 9 of 17, by MiniMax

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Until the F1 key wears out!

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Reply 10 of 17, by Anonymous Coward

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I'd definitely replace the battery. Eventually when they get old they'll spill battery acid all over the PCB which can render the system inoperative. The barrel style batteries are most prone to this problem, but I believe it can also happen to the "watch" batteries as well. I personally have never seen a Dallas clock battery leak before, but those are an entirely different problem altogether, since they can be almost impossible to replace depending on the model. The best situation is where you have a board with a jumper header for an external battery. It's usually a four pin header near the keyboard port. Some motherboards have the option for either integrated or external battery.

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Reply 14 of 17, by Anonymous Coward

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I would start with a philips head screwdriver if you are dealing with a non proprietary PC casing. Then I'd take a photo of the insides so that we can try to figure out where the battery is located and what type it is. Hopefully there aren't too many cables cluttering things up inside since it sounds like you're not too confident about unplugging anything.

"Will the highways on the internets become more few?" -Gee Dubya
V'Ger XT|Upgraded AT|Ultimate 386|Super VL/EISA 486|SMP VL/EISA Pentium

Reply 17 of 17, by MiniMax

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A simple test. Power-up, enter the BIOS setup, set the time and date, save, exit, and power-down for 1 hour.

Power-up, and check that the time and date is correct (and that you don't get a checksum error).

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