Question Clicking, consistent boot loop (on & off every second or two)

[faresk]

While my machine was on, I saw a dead bug on the inside of the front glass panel. I removed the front, then put it back. In order to push the front glass panel covering the fans back into place, I had to push hard for the brackets to click so the front panel would stick in its place.

The computer froze completely. I am in a bit of shock, I have removed the front panel before and put it back in and that's never broken anything.

The screen was still on, all components still on and running, but it was frozen. I held the power button to force it to turn off.

Upon turning it back on, it started clicking on and off. It won't boot back up.

I've switched the PSU off, disconnected the power cable and waited 10 min. Reconnected everything. Still won't work.

In the video below, you can see (and hear) the clicking. Note I only push the power button once at the start.

Video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K6FG1P7NoxWwEAZk12z83v7sKlk4Ztq3/view?usp=sharing

Specs:

• Intel(R) Core™ i7-9700K
• Corsair Hydro Series H100i Platinum RGB
• 256GB Seagate Barracuda 510 M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
• Corsair Vengance 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4/3200mhz
• Corsair Vengeance Series 650M 650W 80+ Silver
• Case: https://www.cyberpowersystem.co.uk/images/cs/onyxia/cs-450-127_400.png

Please help, thank you.

 

[Lutfij]

While my machine was on
Yeah, you should never operate on the computer's internals while the computer is powered up, regardless of what the task is.

I would advise on powering down the entire system, disconnect from the wall, and make sure the system was as is, prior to what you did with the front panel. That being even a stray cable that was pushed in place. The video's taking time to come up...

Welp, looks like the PSU is having trouble powering up the entire system, which explains the click(I can't see an HDD in your specs.

 

[faresk]

I do have several HDDs and SSDs connected. Do you think one of the cables may have come loose?

 

[dudio]

I suspect there is a bad connection or short somewhere that's causing the PSU to shut off when it detects it. Quite likely a wire is being pinched by the front panel, or a connection has come loose.

 

[faresk]

I can start unplugging things one by one, starting with all non C:/ storage (because that's an NVMe SSD), then the GPU.

Will the multiple attempts to switch the PC on (which includes unplugging the cable when something doesn't work and trying again) damage it?

 

[faresk]

Good news! Here's what I've tried so far.

• Unplugged all rear USB, display and audio cables. Connected to power. Switched PC on, still in boot loop, as shown in video.
• Unplugged all non-C:/ drive storage (2 SSDs, one HDD) from power and SATA. Unplugged the GPU from power (but did not remove it of the motherboard Cables still connected to the motherboard, but not connected to the actual drives. Connected to power. Switched PC on, still in boot loop, as shown in video.
• Completely unplugged and removed WiFi PCIe module and GPU. Checked all USB 4 and 5-pin connectors on motherboard. Switched PC on, still in boot loop, as shown in video.
• Unplugged power cables from fan controller. And it WORKED!

I'm reconnecting everything back slowly. I think we've fixed it through!

 

[faresk]

In order to be 100% sure, I booted the PC without connecting the fan controller. Worked fine. Reconnected the fan controller. The PC turned on, did not bootloop, but there was no signal on the monitor.

Unplugged the fan controller, now the PC is stuck in a bootloop again... even though the fan controller is unplugged.

I'm going to start over.

 

[faresk]

Right now, the only things connected to my motherboard are the NVMe SSD and the cooler. There's nothing else, and it's still stuck in a bootloop... this is started to feel hopeless.

I have no idea why I replugged the fan controller. I should have just let the damn thing work. 🤦‍♂️

Any other tips or ideas?

 

[faresk]

I'm going to keep updating this thread just in case a stranger like myself comes across this issue with similar specs.

Advice from the support team from the place where I bought the PC:

• Turn off the PC, take out the RAM, and turn it back on, it should beep. (it did for me!)
• Turn the PC off, put the RAM back in.
• Turn the PC back on, and it should boot up normally. (it did for me!)

I haven't yet plugged anything back in. I'm pretty scared to, so I'm waiting for their support to reply back with next steps and instructions.