my Dell Optiplex gx280 will start up fine and run for about 30 mins to 1 hour at times. It then completely just shuts off and im left with a blinking orang power light. I then have to hold in the power button to shut it off completely. i can start it right back up but then it will only run for a few minutes and the do the same. I need to let it sit off for awhile then i can run it for another 30 mins
It happens because the power supply is overheats and computer goes to standby. The power supply is 160w or lower. Specially it will happen if you put more devices in such as video card or sound card. So the only solution you have is to place a small 1or2 fans toward the power supply to make it cooler. And 1 more thing the power for the fans should come from other sources.
Posted on Dec 29, 2008
6 long beeps Dell GX280 -- unsolved Please help auntie! I have four PCs model RB-DT-OL-Dell GX280 – they are fairly thin and light, you can open them like a suitcase. They worked just fine, then all of a sudden I’ve heard 6 long beeps on startup of one PC, and nothing was on screen. Fan became noisy, like vacuum cleaner, and moved so violently, it scared me away. I googled out one advice – to disconnect bios battery for 10 minutes and then put it back. Computer worked well for about 30 minutes, then again screen turned black and fan moved too fast. I put that pc aside and used hd for another computer. But in several days a second gx280 gave me exactly same problem with 6 long beeps, and soon I noticed that fan gets a little noisy on the third one. It’s getting serious now. Any ideas? Please.
buddymc
Rank: Guru
Rating: 93%, 21 votes
Hello,
You may have some machines with the bad capacitor problem. Check out saome pictures from my web site at www.ccl-la.com/badcaps.htm Open your computers and see if you have any capacitors that look like the pictures. The Dell GX270's and the GX280's have the problem. There are several places on the internet that can repair your boards if you find that this is the problem. I hope this helps.
Buddy
Corporate Computer
www.ccl-la.com
Over 21 years providing PC and printer support/repair
__________________________
Couldn’t wait to get back to work on monday to check capacitors out, but they look good, like brand new batteries – flat and shiny. What else can i do to save my gx280s? Anyone in the world? Please!
I had 1 long beep, 3 faster beeps, then 2 beeps *I think*, and also my fan was going crazy fast - like someone else said "a vacuum cleaner"...
Well, I reseated the memory and problem was gone - it did seem like the memory was kind of "loose" - perhaps from shipping (bought this used).
The link to Dell's website was good for the beeps AND the "ABCD" codes reading on the back. Thanks very much! God Bless.
Posted on Aug 07, 2009
I have optiplex GX280 tryed to change the boot order, it changed but infornt of CD BOOT it shows (Not present) but the DVD Rom is working, just want to reinstall windows
when the pc in post usually on dells bios there is a boot menu option it is usually f12
if you don't know what your doing in the bios it is not a good place to test your skills after pressing F12 just choose cd rom for boot
Posted on Mar 24, 2009
I have a Dell Optiplex GX280 that is having startup issues. It appearsto be a thermal issue as the fan comes on mostly at full speed and make a whirling sound on switching and does not boot.
I just repaired two Gateway systems with similar behavior (turn on power, fan runs at full speed, no boot), and both needed replacement system boards. (These were a different model, but the symptoms are typical of a dead system board.) I got the boards from a company called Blue Raven Technology (www.blueraven.com).
Before deciding the main board is bad, try another power supply to make sure that's not the problem. Also you might try clearing the CMOS memory on the system board (either by moving a jumper usually found near the backup battery, or by removing the battery itself). Sometimes corrupted CMOS data will keep the system from booting.
Posted on Nov 16, 2008
bought a new 80gb sata hd and wanted to do a clean install of Windows XP. have the cd drive 1st in boot sequence. turn machine on, it goes through initial dell setup, then screen goes black. i cqan hear the hd and the cd drive working their little tails off, but nothing happens. eventually, all goes silent and i'm stuck with a black screen and a silent computer. any ideas. I've tried everything i can think of, short of taking it to my local repair shop and spending 30 bucks for them to fix it.
Hi there
hey if you boot into bios and you need to make sure that the computer will recognize the hard drive and that the jumper that is on the hard drive is set as either master or slave depending on what you want than make sure that of the parameters are right and apply it. than restart the computer and than see if the cd will now boot and you should be able to continue from here ok
best regards mike
Posted on Mar 07, 2009
How can i reset my dell optiplex 280? To factory settings without the recovery disk? i got a nasty virus and need to wipe it clean. Is it possible?
Here is a place to get the restore disks for way less. http://www.overlapsystems.com
Posted on May 06, 2010
I Have the exact same problem with my GX280 Dell. High speed fan and no boot-up. Did you ever find the problem with yours?
Same problem... orange power light, fan starts slow and builds up to very high speed.
I removed my video card and SIMMs --> it beeped on boot and the fan did not speed up.
Put one SIMM back in --> booted fine, pressed F2 to view BIOS. Memory reported fine.
Put all SIMMs back in --> all fine now.
Posted on Mar 17, 2009
I can't find out how to enter the BIOS on my dell GX280. I have tried F2, F8, F10, F12 & DEL
Hi there.
If this does not work try another usb keyboard in the same port.
Good luck and thanks for using FixYa!!
Posted on Apr 22, 2009
Computer won't boot, orange lights are lit at the usb ports. beeps a bunch when power is re-supplied. There has been a real high fan speed when doing large AutoCAD drawings until now. Will not boot at all just beeps and lights. Any suggestions?
Thanks
system halted my pc help
Posted on Feb 25, 2010
My pc will not turn on. When I hit the power button, the power light blinks an orange color, and does not fully power on no matter how long I leave it blinking. I have attempted unplugging and repowering but nothing. Can anyone help???
You may have a firmware or hardware problem, You may have to take it to a local PC repair store or contact the make of your computer
Posted on Jul 19, 2009
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