I have just started having problems with my computer. When I power it on, I get an “Intel Inside” splash screen, then nothing else happens. Nothing about testing the BIOS, counting available RAM, anything at all.
I am running an Intel D101GGC motherboard, and although it’s probably irrelevant, Windows XP Home.
Thanks for any input.
Do you get any ‘beeps’?
If so what ones.
Does the Intel splash screen just stay there until you turn it off? If so my guess would be bad motherboard or power supply.
Try hitting ESC repeatedly when it comes on to see if the splash screen will go away and show you any more diagnostic information. Also try hitting F2 to get into the BIOS settings.
Here’s what I would do to troubleshoot:
[ol]
[li]Disconnect all external devices connected to the system, like printers, USB flash drives, and even the keyboard and mouse.[/li][li]Disconnect all internal devices connected to the motherboard, like add-in cards, hard drives, DVD drives, etc.[/li][li]Take the RAM out. This should cause a beep code. If you have more than one stick of RAM you can try using just one stick at a time. If you don’t receive a beep code then it probably isn’t the RAM. Be aware that some motherboards of that vintage require the RAM slots be populated in a specific order.[/li][li]Hook up a different power supply.[/li][/ol]
If all that fails to uncover the problem it’s most likely a bad motherboard or processor.
Find (or Google) your motherboard manual and figure out how to turn-off the graphical splash-screen… whatever text is underneath it will probably help diagnose the problem.
You could try unplugging all your USB devices except your simpliest keyboard and mouse-- I’ve actually had this exact problem happen to me when I had a defective USB hub plugged-in.
A single beep right before the splash screen comes up.
My keyboard and mouse are wireless, which complicates matters some. They never initialize.
Maybe some background. I have a built-in card reader on this system. I have found out that if I eject the SD card, the reader shuts down until I restart the computer (so, to go from one SD card to another, I have to reboot the computer).
Yesterday I was helping my wife shuffle files around from one card to another. After several restarts in a row, the system began to behave in the manner described above.
If the motherboard isn’t getting far enough to initialize your wireless keyboard, it might not initialize a wired USB keyboard either. But I think your best bet is to beg/borrow/steal one-- you’ll never be able diagnose this issue without entering the BIOS screen.
Spec (pdf).
May be of some use.
I found a USB keyboard, and it is not able to affect what happens, no matter which buttons I press.
Oh, well. Tomorrow is payday; I’ll bring it to a local computer doctor.
The bios section starts on page 61 and says something about a ‘configuration mode’
Normally, you hit a key (generally ‘del’) to get into the bios. This board uses ‘del’ too. But you might need to change a jumper on the mother board if that isn’t working.
Reseting the bios or flashing it with an update are other options and it should explain that in the manual.
My go to move is always reseating RAM and video card, and disconnecting most everything else. Failing that, here’s a good tutorial on clearing your CMOS using jumpers:
eta: if none of that works, it could be the power supply (try swapping one to check - this is basically a huge pain in the ass) or, even more remotely, complete crap-out of the thermal paste between the cpu and motherboard (causing instant overheat and system lock)
That looks like a good video, but you should really take out the button battery first THEN jumper the reset. I like how it’s clearly labeled on his m/b. Older ones will call it CLRTC (clear real time clock). Also, you need to pull the plug since the off switch doesn’t really kill all power - but he probably mentions that.
This board is weird though. It uses that jumper block for a couple different things. The section the OP want is on page 45 of the pdf
Don’t do that, it ain’t worth it. Just the fact that it’s running WinXP tells me all I need to know - it’s time for a new computer. Any money you put into that old POS is too much. A new desktop PC is cheap, specially if you don’t need/want a new monitor.
You’re thinking, “but what about all my data?!” Well, that’s why you have backups of all your important stuff, right? 
But seriously, if you’re like most people, you don’t, and that’s why you aren’t willing to just let that old crappy PC rest in peace. (Dude, you have to reboot just to swap SD cards - LET IT GO!)
Well, never fear, because all you really need is this hard drive enclosure, or another one like it you buy locally. (Just make sure it takes an 3.5" IDE drive, which is almost certainly what your old PC has.) Assuming that your HD is even still alive, you take it out of your old computer, pop it in the enclosure, then plug the enclosure into a USB port on your new, shiny PC. Now you can copy whatever you want/need from your old PC’s HD to the new one, and then you can use the old drive as a place to save backups of stuff for your new PC.