CaptainTER06 wrote on 2024-04-18, 08:52:

Hello :) I'm new here, I don't really know if this is the right place to ask, but I've got a HP Pavilion 6357 from 1998, but the […]
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Hello 😀
I'm new here, I don't really know if this is the right place to ask, but I've got a HP Pavilion 6357 from 1998, but the machine won't do its POST and boot. I know the machine was working before, but one random day, it decided to stop working.
I don't have much info on this computer, but this is what I can give (specs):

Motherboard: https://theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/asus-p2l98-xv-hp-oem
RAM: 32MB SDRAM
CPU: Intel Celeron 333MHz Slot
GPU: ATI Mach64 4MB PCI
PSU: I don't know much about it, but I know for sure that it works.
No expansion card is attached to this computer currently.

I also want to say that before it stopped working, I had to shut down the machine using the Power button because of Windows 98/Me freezing. Someone on a Discord server suggested that it could be a corrupted BIOS, but as I'm not an expert in that domain, I don't know if that's the case.
Thanks for reading all that 😀

Welcome to Vogons 😀

How long has the system been sitting unused...some boards are known not to POST with a dead coin cell battery?

Probably also worth checking the board for any visible signs of bloated / blown capacitors.

Thank you!
This machine has been sitting in my house for approximately 2 months since it stopped working. I've replaced the coin cell this morning, and the machine still refuses to boot.
I've also checked the capacitors, they all seem fine.

CaptainTER06 wrote on 2024-04-18, 09:17:

Thank you!
This machine has been sitting in my house for approximately 2 months since it stopped working. I've replaced the coin cell this morning, and the machine still refuses to boot.
I've also checked the capacitors, they all seem fine.

Although the system doesn't POST, does anything happen when you apply power - cpu / case fans spin, board components get warm to the touch?

How did you test to confirm the PSU as OK?

Is your 32MB SDRAM 1 x 32 or 2 x 16 (if latter try each stick separately in both slots)

When I press the Power button, the PSU fan spins, and nothing else. The machine has no HDD, but it should display a video output at least. The CPU gets warm when being touched a few minutes after power on, and I've tested the PSU in another machine to confirm that it was all working properly. My stick of RAM is 1 x 32MB. The case has no fans and the CPU has a heatsink, so nothing that could come to life except the PSU fan...

CaptainTER06 wrote on 2024-04-18, 10:25:

When I press the Power button, the PSU fan spins, and nothing else. The machine has no HDD, but it should display a video output at least. The CPU gets warm when being touched a few minutes after power on, and I've tested the PSU in another machine to confirm that it was all working properly. My stick of RAM is 1 x 32MB. The case has no fans and the CPU has a heatsink, so nothing that could come to life except the PSU fan...

I'm assuming you've tried a separate PCI or AGP video cards? (has the ATI Mach64 failed ?)

Was 98/ME freezing a common occurrence on the system or just this time (did a component failure perhaps cause the freeze?)

Do keyboard LEDs seem to respond at power-on / same for floppy drive (with or without disk)?

I've tried a NVidia GeForce4 MX420 and FX5200 AGP cards, but still nothing. The freezes were due to a failing RAM stick, which I threw away when i discovered that, a couple days before the machine stopped working. This machine is missing the FDD, and no LEDs are lighting up on the keyboard when pressing the power button, only the Power LED is green on the computer itself.

CaptainTER06 wrote on 2024-04-18, 10:53:

I've tried a NVidia GeForce4 MX420 and FX5200 AGP cards, but still nothing. The freezes were due to a failing RAM stick, which I threw away when i discovered that, a couple days before the machine stopped working. This machine is missing the FDD, and no LEDs are lighting up on the keyboard when pressing the power button, only the Power LED is green on the computer itself.

Is the current stick an original HP twin of the failed one or just something you had to hand.?

The one I currently have is a HP original 32MB stick, but the failing one was a 256MB one I found on a garage sale.

CaptainTER06 wrote on 2024-04-18, 10:59:

The one I currently have is a HP original 32MB stick, but the failing one was a 256MB one I found on a garage sale.

Probably time then to get the board out of the case for a closer visual inspection - also get some detailed pics to post here and maybe the more eagle-eyed here might spot something.

If it is a corrupted BIOS, the board doesn't seem to have a force (boot floppy) recovery option so you'd either need a chip programmer, try a hot flash or buy a pre-programmed replacement online.

I'm gonna take the board out of the case whenever I can, but for the chip replacement, I don't have much money, so I don't know if I will be able to afford one 😒 Plus where I live, no one sells those chips, and I absolutely do not know how to desolder a chip and flash it again... What kind of pictures do you want me to take?
Also, if you look at the link I sent in my first message, there's a socketed chip between the PCI and ISA slots. Could it be the BIOS?

CaptainTER06 wrote on 2024-04-18, 11:35:

I'm gonna take the board out of the case whenever I can, but for the chip replacement, I don't have much money, so I don't know if I will be able to afford one 😒 Plus where I live, no one sells those chips, and I absolutely do not know how to desolder a chip and flash it again... What kind of pictures do you want me to take?
Also, if you look at the link I sent in my first message, there's a socketed chip between the PCI and ISA slots. Could it be the BIOS?

Just full-on shots of the main board areas - cpu (without celeron), memory slots (without ram), main chips (intel & ATI), 20 pin ATX power - should be enough to start.

That socketed chip (with the 1.04 sticker) is the BIOS.

I'm gonna do that, the motherboard is just a little hard to remove from the case. This also applies for the CPU.

After removing the motherboard from the case, it magically came back to life and worked like it used to. Weird 🤣All I did was unplugging and plugging back the ATX 20 pin cable...

Good to hear 😀

Anyway, thanks for helping 😁

I've ran into such "ghost" issues many times in the past with old systems.
Quite a few of these I resolved by simply pulling out all of the hardware and re-seating everything.

Of course, I always try the simpler things first, like checking if CMOS battery voltage is good (with the battery still in the system & PSU unplugged, to make sure the battery voltage doesn't drop with a load) and doing a CMOS reset.