[olug] Hardware problems on an HP desktop

[Rod Hurley]

I second the power supply notion.  Especially since a power supply is
very inexpensive and easy to replace. 

>>> bbrush at unlnotes.unl.edu 02/25/04 08:56AM >>>

This is just kind of an expansion on why I think it's the power
supply.

Although most people aren't aware of it, power supplies are fairly
sophisticated.  There is a circuit in them (called the power good
circuit)
which monitors the 5V output.  As long as the output is within
tolerance
(which is fairly tight) everything is fine.  If the output falls out
of
tolerance the power good circuit shuts off all output.  This prevents
the
PS from ruining equipment by supplying too much or too little voltage.

In your case it's entirely possible that the PS is borderline and on
some
boots it gets the output within tolerance and some it doesn't.  The
capacitors and inductors in the PS do degrade over time, and in
commercial
supplies they aren't the highest quality components to start with
since
they have an expected service life of 2 to 3 years.

Bill

olug-bounces at olug.org wrote on 02/23/2004 11:11:59 PM:

> Well, swapping out the memory didn't help.
>
> I've considered the power supply, but I (irrationally?) deduced
thatif
there's
> any kind of power to the system, then the power supply must be
alright.
> Obviously, Bill, you think otherwise.  I have a spare power supply
> so I'll give
> that a go.
>


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