Booting problem - Toshiba Netbook NB200

ng

Maybe try an OS with more uptime :) I've no idea re the fault, best to ask on sci.electronics.repair.

Perhaps strangely, uptime has never been a problem. The only time I reboot is following installation of MS updates.

OK, thanks.

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Graeme

A little more infomation perhaps? Anything on the screen, does it do the initial POST, any error messages?

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Graham.
%Profound_observation%

In message , Graham. writes

Sorry. Absolutely nothing. The power light comes on, but the screen does not react. No messages, no beeps, nothing.

--
Graeme

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It sounds like uptime is one half of the problem. Frequent updates result in downtime each time. Hopefully you've fixed it now, if not though I'd simply switch off autoupdates if its not a security critical machine, or if it is, try a few linux live CDs to see if something more stable suits you. Mint 7 is a good replacement for xp, and can happily keep running weeks at a time with a 2G swap partition (the bigger the swap, the more uptime). Support has ended for 7, so no updates, and seldom any reason to reboot.

NT

Personally I dunno. Apparently others have gotten their units to boot by freezing them (in a real freezer) before booting up.

This looks interesting from

" Re: Toshiba NB200 won't boot I have found a fix for this. I do computer repair for a living and have now repaired two nb200's with this fault. Here's how:

1) Get the computer to post and boot. There's a few ways to do this if it will NEVER post. You can leave the computer off for around 2 months. I had one which never posted no matter what I tried. After leaving it sit around for about 2 months, I tried again and it posted and booted, but once it warmed up again it wouldn't post again. You can also try putting it in your car overnight to cool it down, or lastly you can try the freezer trick. Once you have it booted to windows, DON'T restart or power down as it may not post again. 2) Download the latest BIOS update for your NB200 which is v2.1. Make sure it's for the correct part number which can be found on the back of your nb200. 3) Connect your power lead and make sure the nb200 has at least 50% charge. 4) Install the v2.1 BIOS update.

Both nb200's I have repaired like this would only post intermittently before this v2.1 BIOS update. As I mentioned, 1 of them wouldn't post at all for two months. Both nb200's were initially running the v1.2 BIOS. Immediately after this v2.1 update, both nb200's post and boot every time, even when i have left them running near a heater in a hot room. Basically fixed.

You can find out what BIOS version you have on the main page of the BIOS setup screen.

So, get it to boot, and flash to the latest bios update."

--Winston

In message , Winston writes

Thanks for that. Yes, I followed that advice, upgraded the BIOS and it has behaved perfectly since then.

Cheers,

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Graeme

Both the solutions (freeze or leave for long time) sound like ways of clearing the BIOS (freezing car radios used to be a way to clear their security codes!).

If there is an accessible battery (probably not) then pull it and leave for a week might do the same job. Or there may even be a way to force clearing the BIOS on boot.

Paul DS

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Talking bollocks.

The BIOS is in Flash memory. You don't want to clear that.

MBQ

I don't think he is actually.

I think you will find he is referring to the BIOS Data Area data which are held in a small amount of storage maintained in battery backed CMOS RAM.

It has nothing to do with the Flash memory used to hold the BIOS program code itself.

The BIOS Data area is typically copied to main ram (at 0040:0000h) during system boot. It contains (as well as other stuff) the equipment list, and configuration of the basic hardware like what drives are attached, the base address of serial ports etc.

--
Cheers,

John.

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I know that. He should refer to things properly.

The code in the Flash *is* "the BIOS". When you update "the BIOS" you are updating the code in the Flash, not the contents of the "CMOS" as it is sometimes referred to.

MBQ

Yes I realise all that. However I got the impression (admittedly reading a little between the lines) that Paul was really referring to the CMOS battery backed storage rather than the flash, since corrupt CMOS data can bork a machine on startup... however I will let him confirm one way or another.

--
Cheers,

John.

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That would make a lot of sense. The CMOS RAM needs power to retain its contents and it is likely kept going by a lithium battery. Lithium batteries put out less power when cold, and if allowed to cool in a freezer will stop completely causing the memory to reinitalize when restarted.

Geoff.

--
Geoffrey S. Mendelson,  N3OWJ/4X1GM/KBUH7245/KBUW5379
In 1969 the US could put a man on the moon, now teenagers just howl at it. :-(

Then they would be cleared every time they sat outside for fifteen minutes in some places. -40F was common when I lived in Alaska.

--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.

It makes a lot more sense to remove the lithium cell and short out the battery holder.

--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.

There is a difference between an explanation making sense, and doing it. :-)

Besides, that may not be possible, it may be an integrated CMOS chip and battery.

Geoff.

--
Geoffrey S. Mendelson,  N3OWJ/4X1GM/KBUH7245/KBUW5379
In 1969 the US could put a man on the moon, now teenagers just howl at it. :-(

Many motherboards have a jumper for doing just this (easier than removing the cell from its holder). Laptops not always as easy.

--
Cheers,

John.

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I haven't seen them since the early Pentium days. (Late '90s) In fact, I have pulled the cover off some of those old Dallas RTC modules to remove the dead cell and installed an external socket for the new cell. It was mounted on a small piece of perf board and screwed to one of the blank filler plates. That was over 10 years ago and I don't remember seeing any, since then.

I used CapStore RAM to replace those annoying battery backed 2k*8 modules. It had flash RAM, Static RAM and a supercap to allow it to write the contents of the static RAM to the Flash RAM when power was lost. On powerup, it wrote the contents back to the Static RAM. That was for a communications system we built for the space station. Those lithium cells were banned from all aerospace equipment built for NASA.

--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.

I've repaired hundereds of desktop computers. :)

I have a fairly new Dell laptop with a bad cell. You have to take the damn thing into over 20 pieces to get to it, when it would have been simple to put it under one of the covers on the bottom, or under the battery pack.

--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.