I'm trying to get a Dell power edge 2850 to start up, but all it does is beep, 1 beep followed by 3 beeps, but nothing comes up on the screen. I found that the error code for the beeps is a monitor driver issue. How do I get this thing to start up so that I can update the drivers?

Dell beep codes:

If your computer beeps during start-up:
Run Dell Diagnostics to identify a more serious cause.

Beep Codes Your computer might emit a series of beeps during start-up if the monitor cannot display errors or problems. This series of beeps, called a beep code, identifies a problem. One possible beep code (code 1-3-1) consists of one beep, a burst of three beeps, and then one beep. This beep code tells you that the computer encountered a memory problem.
If your computer beeps during start-up:
Dell Diagnostics to identify a more serious cause.

Contact Dell for technical assistance.




Code Cause 1-1-2 Microprocessor register failure 1-1-3 NVRAM read/write failure 1-1-4 ROM BIOS checksum failure 1-2-1 Programmable interval timer failure 1-2-2 DMA initialization failure 1-2-3 DMA page register read/write failure 1-3 Video Memory test failure 1-3-1 through 2-4-4 Memory not being properly identified or used 3-1-1 Slave DMA register failure 3-1-2 Master DMA register failure 3-1-3 Master interrupt mask register failure 3-1-4 Slave interrupt mask register failure 3-2-2 Interrupt vector loading failure 3-2-4 Keyboard Controller test failure 3-3-1 NVRAM power loss 3-3-2 Invalid NVRAM configuration 3-3-4 Video Memory test failure 3-4-1 Screen initialization failure 3-4-2 Screen retrace failure 3-4-3 Search for video ROM failure 4-2-1 No timer tick 4-2-2 Shutdown failure 4-2-3 Gate A20 failure 4-2-4 Unexpected interrupt in protected mode 4-3-1 Memory failure above address 0FFFFh 4-3-3 Timer-chip counter 2 failure 4-3-4 Time-of-day clock stopped 4-4-1 Serial or parallel port test failure 4-4-2 Failure to decompress code to shadowed memory 4-4-3 Math-coprocessor test failure 4-4-4 Cache test failure

how many beeps you have?if three short beeps its you RAM failure..try to reinsert you RAM or replaced it a new RAM..if theres a long beep..its your video card..

the beeps are post during post the very first work is done by the ram,all the memory in the ram is first transferred to the hard disk,and remains active untill turned off.

make sure that your RAM is securely seated

One bad lead can cause a computer to continue on a cycle or to shutdown or fail to detect your hard drive

Test all leads that attach to your hard drive including electrical extensions,IDE,SATA

the leads from your ((motherboard to your hard drive)) make sure they have a secure connection and are not faulty or just replace them they could be faulty

a computer needs its connections to continue its cycle and to have and end to function
obvisously the beeps are windows searching for some hardware it could be RAM cd/dvd hard drive or motherboard all of these must have secure connections for the computer to work
make sure all leads that are attached to your drives dvd\cd 3 1/2 inch floppy have secure make sure the connections and are not faulty even the electrical extensions or just replace them they could be faulty a computer needs its connections to continue its cycle and have an end so any faulty leads will end up with a computer error
hope this helps

here are the beep codes for your exact dell model. this should give you a starting point on finding out what the problem is.

Beep Codes Your computer might emit a series of beeps during start-up if the monitor cannot display errors or problems. This series of beeps, called a beep code, identifies a problem. One possible beep code (code 1-3-1) consists of one beep, a burst of three beeps, and then one beep. This beep code tells you that the computer encountered a memory problem.
Reseating the memory modules may fix the beep code errors in the following table. If the problem persists, see "Contacting Dell" in your Owner's Manual for instructions on obtaining technical assistance.
Code
Cause
1-3-1 through 2-4-4
Memory not being properly identified or used
4-3-1
Memory failure above address 0FFFFh

If you hear one of the following beep codes, see "Contacting Dell" in your Owner's Manual for instructions on obtaining technical assistance.
Code
Cause
1-1-2
Microprocessor register failure
1-1-3
NVRAM
1-1-4
ROM BIOS checksum failure
1-2-1
Programmable interval timer
1-2-2
DMA initialization failure
1-2-3
DMA page register read/write failure
3-1-1
Slave DMA register failure
3-1-2
Master DMA register failure
3-1-3
Master interrupt mask register failure
3-1-4
Slave interrupt mask register failure
3-2-2
Interrupt vector loading failure
3-2-4
Keyboard Controller Test failure
3-3-1
NVRAM power loss
3-3-2
NVRAM configuration
3-3-4
Video Memory Test failure
3-4-1
Screen initialization failure
3-4-2
Screen retrace failure
3-4-3
Search for video ROM failure
4-2-1
No time tick
4-2-2
Shutdown failure
4-2-3
Gate A20 failure
4-2-4
Unexpected interrupt in protected mode
4-3-3
Timer-chip counter 2 failure
4-3-4
Time-of-day clock stopped
4-4-1
Serial or parallel port test failure
4-4-4
Cache test failure

Try holding Fn + End with battery and power cord out and while still pressing Fn + End plug only power cable back in and try to power on.

I don't understand the beep code you describe, but the 2850 has many beep codes to help understand what is going on.

First ... Identify the beep. Does the beep start as soon as you power it on, or after several seconds? What is the pattern of the beep - is it a repeating set of beeps - 3 sets of beeps between 1 and 4 beeps ... like 1 beep-3 beeps-2 beeps, or 3 beeps, 3 beeps, 1 beep? Or is it a steady repeating beep - about once per second?

Second ... is the LCD panel on the server blue or orange? If orange, what is the error code(s) it is scrolling?

If it is a steady, once-per-second beep, it is probably your RAID controller. Does the system boot to Windows/OS ok? If so, use (or install) OpenManage Server Administrator (Managed Node from Dell's Support Site) to check the Hardware Logs and check the RAID array (under Storage/Virtual Disks). If it is not booting to the OS, then go into CTRL-M to see what the status of your array is.

Your memory modules are faulty (or dirty). Try them one by one and clean the both the modules and slots with alcohol (or Contact Cleaner).

Lack of video signal is usually 1 of 3 things, Power supply (PSU), Video card or Motherboard (mobo).
Situation #1: If you get a blank screen and no sounds or movement it either indicates that the power supply unit (PSU) has failed or something on the motherboard has failed, preventing normal startup.
Situation #1A: You might get some power lights coming on and some fans spinning but the video output does not happen, usually indicates that motherboard or PSU is going out or has gone out. Occasionally it will be due to a weak (damaged) PSU.
Situation #2: If you get sounds (normal Windows startup sounds) and lights but nothing on the screen then it indicates a failed or loose video card.
Always try a different power outlet that you know is working. (Eliminate the easy stuff first!)
If it is out of warranty, try opening up the case, with the power off, of course. If you have Sit #2 and have a video card that you can reseat (take out and then put back in) try that. If it is onboard video then you may have to buy a video card for it.
Also take this time to inspect the capacitors on the motherboard (they look like tiny soda cans) and check for tops that are bulging, swelling or leaking anything. Capacitors should be perfectly flat on top. If you find these then your motherboard is bad (well technically the capacitors on your motherboard are bad). The bad caps will need replacing to fix (not a job for an amateur). If it passes the visual inspection then it may just be your power supply is bad. Notice that a bad PSU does not mean you are getting no power, just not enough to start and run the computer.
A few years ago a company stole the recipe for making capacitors and started making their own capacitors at really cheap prices. The stolen "recipe" was not complete and not correct so these caps started failing after about 2-3 years of use. Emachines, DELL and Gateway were the computer companies most affected by the bad capacitor issues, although any of the big companies could have the same problem. These bad caps also affected power supply makers.
Do you hear anything else during startup, beeps, fans or drives spinning, lights on the front or back of computer flashing or lit up? Do you hear the Windows starting sound?
Let us know more then we can troubleshoot better. Do you have the 4 diagnostic (A,B,C,D) on the rear of the machine? What is the front power light on the CPU doing?

could be the cpu, its prolly the only thing you havent tested. or the power supply.

• Bad video card - 1 long and 2 short beeps
• Bad power supply - 1) continuous beeps, 2) non-stop short beeps
• Bad memory - 3 short beeps
• Bad Motherboard - 1 long and 1 short beep
• Disk drive related problem / Video card problem - 1 short beep then nothing happens