A defective onboard video!

Its an ECSP4M800 motherboard and it was bought almost two years ago,the system performs a POST test and base by its single beep sound plus the keyboard is responding when I press the NUM or CAPS lock button, I can tell that the system is normal . The only problem is that it has no video going to the display monitor.

I tried to install a known good monitor but the problem still the same. I install an AGP card on its AGP slot and the display comes in and tested that the unit is working fine. It was confirmed that it was a defective on board video device that is causing the problem.

Reset Button Did It Again!

Just a few days ago, again I happen to encounter a black-out CPU cause by a shorted reset button.If you troubleshoot the unit without disassembling or unplugging all front panel switches, chances are you will be mislead into believing that you have a defective motherboard.

Micro switches in CPU's accumulate dirt or stuck overtime(especially on cheaper CPU Casing) and will cause short circuit on front panel micro switches,it could be the power button or the reset button, and in this case its the reset button initiating a continuous reset of the motherboard as the CPU is turn on.

Next time when you encounter a black-out CPU, replace key components(mem,PS,processor) and still did not work, then this maybe your case.You can clean micro switches by dropping small amount of alcohol or spraying a contact cleaner on the top portion of a micro switch while repeatedly pushing the switch, if the latter still cause problem to the system you may opt to replace or just disable the particular switch.

Simple steps in deleting WGA notifications!

Good day to all my readers!Its been quite a while that I have not updated my blog,cause I been kinda busy for the past couple of weeks.

Today I will discuss a solution to one of the most common problems end-users and PC repairman encounters in a PC and this is the WGA(Windows Genuine Advantage)notification.Huge volumes of PC around the globe(especially from 3rd world nations)has an unlicensed Windows XP installed in it,and some of it automatically downloaded this small WGA apps from Microsoft server informing you that "you may be a victim of piracy.....blah...blah..." during startup and its annoying.

There are options in combating such situation,you either buy a license copy of XP(expensive one),reformat your hard drive and re-install everything(long process) or delete this notification thing and everything will be back to normal(recommended).

Their are different ways in disabling WGA notifications but some of them are confusing and has hard to follow steps, making it difficult for an end user to perform.Just recently I just found out an easier way to get rid of WGA notifications and I will share it with you(in case you don't know yet).

Following three simple steps, now you can get rid of this bugging Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) notifications:

1. Reboot Windows in safe mode (hold the f8 key while booting and you will get the option to boot in safe mode-just after POST)

2. Open Registry Editor (regedit.exe) and search for wgalogon folder and delete it. IMPORTANT-You should backup up the registry beforehand, in case something goes wrong.

3. In your windows directory search for files wga* and delete them(all).

You are done,reboot your system and everything should be back to normal.

'Till on my next post,happy weekend!

Disabling a Write Protected BIOS Chip!

A BIOS Chip is one of the most important part of one's PC, without it a PC never works.BIOS chip seldom breaks down that's why a lot of us dont mind its function. The moment you encounter a "BIOS check sum error...." or suspect a hardware incompatibility,then you will start to remember how important BIOS is in a PC system.In such a situation the next you will think to do is to flash(replace the program) your BIOS via a utility provided by your board manufacturer.

What if your BIOS chip is write-protected?
BIOS can be write-protected via the software(by entering cmos setup) or via jumper setting on your board.But some manufacturer(refer to manual) don't provide jumper setting on their motherboard, so one option left is to write-enable it via CMOS setup,but the last solution mention above is only good if your BIOS setup is still accessible, in cases where you have a "Bootblock situation......" then it is impossible to enter your CMOS setup.

In this case your last option is to write-enable your BIOS chip directly,you have to disable the write-protect pin in order to flash your BIOS chip succesully.So, next thing you must do is to look(search the net) for the pin layout of a particular BIOS chip in order to bypass the write-protect pin.If your BIOS chip is similar to the figure shown above then you may proceed in write-enabling your BIOS.You may short it exactly as what it was shown in the figure,it will be easier to insert a thin wire in between the BIOS and the socket pin if it is socketed.

After putting a thin wire jumper on your BIOS chip you may now proceed in flashing your BIOS and it should flash successfully otherwise you wrongfully jumper your BIOS chip or has some non BIOS related problem of your motherboard.Remove the jumper after successfully flashing your BIOS chip.

Note:
This trick was successfully tested on the BIOS of a XPC Shuttle CPU, it may work on similar BIOS chip as other claim it, but don't held me responsible in case something worst happen on your motherboard.Its only a last resort solution before replacing a motherboard.If you don't want to take the risk I suggest that you try to order a BIOS replacement from your motherboard manufacturer or have it repaired to them.