24/7 PC suddenly not working, clicking noise - any ideas …

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  • chris_j_hunter
    Automated Home Legend
    • Dec 2007
    • 1713

    24/7 PC suddenly not working, clicking noise - any ideas …

    our HA 24/7 miniITX has been fine for ages - until today …

    it's an EPIA EK 10000G, and the screen is blank and its making a very regular ticking noise at something like 0.6s intervals …

    the noise is a bit like something light is catching a slowish fan …

    first thought was that the hard-drive had failed in some way …

    we've had the lid off & lifted the DVD & HD drives out (still connected) and removed the IVC 200G camera digitiser card (no longer connected), so we can see & hear things separately …

    both the CPU & power supply fans seem to be running normally …

    the DVD drive was uncooperative, until we unplugged its IDE cable, after which pushing its button did eject its disc …

    we can hear the (SATA) HD drive whirring normally …

    in other words, the clicking noise has to be coming from the buzzer on the motherboard (reflections make it difficult to locate the sound but, having separated things, it’s clear this is the case - putting a finger onto the buzzer makes it quieter, too) ...

    we reconnected the DVD drive & tried removing the RAM card - no change, still the clicking …

    lots of Googling, yields no clues …

    so, please, any ideas ?

    Chris
    Last edited by chris_j_hunter; 27 November 2014, 08:30 PM.
    Our self-build - going further with HA...
  • Vangelis
    Automated Home Guru
    • Sep 2009
    • 131

    #2
    Can you access the BIOS? Can the motherboard see all the peripherals?

    Check the PSU outputs under load i.e check the volts with a meter when powered up (obviously respect there will be mains voltage!)

    Vangelis

    Comment

    • chris_j_hunter
      Automated Home Legend
      • Dec 2007
      • 1713

      #3
      no, even with pressing Delete during start-up, to enter BIOS mode, the screen stays blank & its power LED stays orange, never changing to blue …

      did try unplugging & replugging most connectors …

      miniITX boards are fairly popular, SFAIK, so was surprised Googling brought no ideas, and the manual has no trouble-shooting section, either, which also seems odd …

      will check PSU outputs - need to open it up again, and work out what's what, lead-wise !

      thanks

      Chris
      Last edited by chris_j_hunter; 27 November 2014, 11:31 PM.
      Our self-build - going further with HA...

      Comment

      • Vangelis
        Automated Home Guru
        • Sep 2009
        • 131

        #4
        If the PC has an on-board monitor connector (as opposed to a graphics card), try plugging the monitor into that on boot

        Sounds like it's failing its POST which could be terminal

        If the clicking noise starts immediately after you turn on then this doesnt sound good either

        Vangelis

        Comment

        • chris_j_hunter
          Automated Home Legend
          • Dec 2007
          • 1713

          #5
          no graphics card, so already in that situation ...

          will get a chance to open the top again this afternoon, and will then check voltages on the power supply ... the clicking does start pretty much immediately, and SWMBO says she thinks it could be a capacitor failing to keep charge ... seems logical and, if so, the power supply would seem a likely location !

          Chris
          Our self-build - going further with HA...

          Comment

          • chris_j_hunter
            Automated Home Legend
            • Dec 2007
            • 1713

            #6
            OK, separated it out again - voltage from the external power supply seems fine (steady 19.4Vdc, under load) …

            it’s a bit tricky to check the internal power-supply board - its connectors do too a good job at protecting the terminals !

            but … trying it with & without the various add-ons (or should that be add-ins) it clicks once & then is silent & then checks-out the DVD drive, when we have the HD disconnected …

            reconnecting the HD, and trying again, it clicks away - putting a finger over the buzzer to reduce its noise to v.quiet, and putting the HD to our ear, we can just hear it clicking internally …

            ie: seems it's the HD repeatedly hitting its stop, and the buzzer is simply relaying the sound …

            hmm, if we bought a new one, could be reload Windows XP using the codes we used for the failed one … ?
            Last edited by chris_j_hunter; 28 November 2014, 09:09 PM.
            Our self-build - going further with HA...

            Comment

            • Vangelis
              Automated Home Guru
              • Sep 2009
              • 131

              #7
              Sounds like disk stiction in that case.....

              Remove the HD. Give it a tap on the side a few times with something hard

              Replace and retry. Weird your not seeing BIOS as you don't need a disk for that? Some maybe your motherboard is still on its way out

              Vangelis

              Comment

              • chris_j_hunter
                Automated Home Legend
                • Dec 2007
                • 1713

                #8
                no monitor connected - cable not long enough, it being fixed in Node0, and the separated PC being on the worktop in the kitchen !

                PS: tried tapping the HD with a screwdriver - hard as we dare (so not silly) - no change …
                Last edited by chris_j_hunter; 28 November 2014, 09:36 PM.
                Our self-build - going further with HA...

                Comment

                • Vangelis
                  Automated Home Guru
                  • Sep 2009
                  • 131

                  #9
                  Hmm. Just for reference, the last time I encountered a server with disk stiction, I kicked it to resolve the issue. Maybe try holding the drive and giving it a firm level tap on the kitchen work surface (at the end of the day getting data off a failed disk without forensic equipment is nearly impossible)

                  Ok, so another plan. If you have a laptop with cd writer, download and burn an ISO boot image of Linux (Redhat or Debian), then plumb the computer back together, but do not connect the HD. Put the cd in the tray and see if it will boot off CD? This should tell you definitively if it's the HD or not

                  Vangelis

                  Comment

                  • chris_j_hunter
                    Automated Home Legend
                    • Dec 2007
                    • 1713

                    #10
                    unfortunately, our laptop doesn’t do CDs or DVDs ... but we do have the disc on which Windows XP came, so tried that instead ...

                    we contrived to move the separated PC back into Node0, and connect the screen ...

                    without the HD connected, it now wouldn’t start - front panel button works, and the optical drive whirred etc, but the fans stayed off & the screen stayed dark ...

                    with HD connected, we get the clicking again, and starting-up with & without Delete pressed on the keyboard makes no difference (fans come on, clicking starts, but screen stays dark) ...

                    inserting the Windows XP disc into the slot, without the HD, it’s taken from us & spun up, but screen stays dark & nothing happens, fans stay off ...

                    insert the disc with the HD connected, it’s not taken from us & not spun up, but the fans come on & we get the clicking ...

                    hmm, not sure what this all means - if we get a new HD, will it all work as it should, and will MS allow us to load ‘XP onto it & get going again ...



                    Chris
                    Last edited by chris_j_hunter; 28 November 2014, 11:13 PM.
                    Our self-build - going further with HA...

                    Comment

                    • Vangelis
                      Automated Home Guru
                      • Sep 2009
                      • 131

                      #11
                      Hmmm still sounds odd. Without the HD you should still get to BIOS and your not, so this could still mean an issue with the motherboard

                      Ref the PSU, although you say you are getting 19volts that seems a little high to me. Expectation is that you have a variety of voltages at the connector where the PSU cable meets the motherboard, and then you will get the standard 12v and 5v where the PSU connects to the HD etc (the white 4pin connector) - you should be able to find the correct voltages via Google

                      For simplicity, check these at the plug without it connected to the motherboard, then try and do the same when it's insitu and under load

                      If any of these are wrong, the motherboard will fail POST and could start doing weird things such as not enabling VGA / HDMI for the monitor and spinning up the disk properly (which will initially take the most current)

                      Vangelis

                      Comment

                      • chris_j_hunter
                        Automated Home Legend
                        • Dec 2007
                        • 1713

                        #12
                        hmm, agree , it's all a bit odd … and it did start-up (ie: fans got going) without the HD connected before we moved it back to Node0 - IIRC, anyway …

                        the external power supply says 19Vdc out on its label, so 19.4vDC seemed OK …

                        did try to remove connectors on the internal power supply board, but they wouldn't release - will have another go tomorrow …

                        thanks again

                        Chris
                        Our self-build - going further with HA...

                        Comment

                        • bradsalmon
                          Automated Home Jr Member
                          • Mar 2010
                          • 12

                          #13
                          Chris,

                          I've only read through quickly so ignore me if I am way out but have you checked the monitor on another computer just to ensure that it works.
                          I remember years ago I had strange results like yours until I realised that the monitor had broken as well as the harddrive and that explain why I thought I couldn't get into the BIOS settings.
                          Made more sense when I plugged the computer into a spare monitor for testing etc.
                          Good luck,
                          Brad

                          Comment

                          • chris_j_hunter
                            Automated Home Legend
                            • Dec 2007
                            • 1713

                            #14
                            Brad -

                            thanks - the monitor's LED goes blue when we power it up then, after a second or two, changes to amber, to indicate no signal - so it seems to be OK ...

                            will do some more probing around, with our multimeter, when get a moment, later today ...

                            building the PC in the first place was a new experience for us, as is now trouble-shooting it - so we're being quite cautious !

                            we're also looking for what to replace it with, if we have to - our set-up keeps the miniITX running at 95+% CPU, so something with more headroom would be good (we've some CCTV cameras that need plugging-in, too) ...

                            Chris
                            Our self-build - going further with HA...

                            Comment

                            • Vangelis
                              Automated Home Guru
                              • Sep 2009
                              • 131

                              #15
                              ~95% CPU is always likely to lead to issue (not just with cooling!)

                              There are some neat NUC Intel platforms that offer very small form factor at a reasonable price. Oh and SSD plus lots of RAM would be a no brainer (check to see what your current constraints are)

                              Vangelis

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