As title states, my computer has begun a strange behavior. It will turn on, with an audible click sound, and then that click sound will be all that happens. Every few seconds, it will click again. The computer never reaches POST. The click is most likely coming from the motherboard, as I've tried swapping in and out every other part combination, and its the only constant (also no spinning disks and I verified the optical drives were not the source).
I originally thought it was a problem with the PSU, so I ordered what was basically the same model (it's same manufacturer, wattage, and connectors, just with a slightly different product name/ID). I swapped out the PSU, reconnecting everything with the new PSU, but the same problem occurred.
What's perplexing is the "fix"; When I remove all RAM and start it up again, the machine POSTs normally (with the repeated NO RAM beeping). If I then put RAM back into the slots, and reboot, the machine starts up 100% normally with no problems. What I've found, however, is that if it is shut down again, then it will begin the same clicking problem once more. I don't get why it runs perfectly only after taking RAM out, booting, turning it off, putting RAM back in, and then rebooting.
I have narrowed the machine problem source down to the motherboard or the processor. Thought it was RAM, but today I got new RAM in the mail (same speed and capacity but different brand) and verified that it does not fix the problem. You still have to remove and re-seat RAM for the system to boot up. Given I have 4 sticks of RAM, that's pretty darn inconvenient.
I am concerned about what to do next. I would guess the mobo is the problem, but then it starts up perfectly after this RAM remove-and-re-seat step, so I am cautious to try and replace it. An additional level of complexity for me is that this is an 8 year old machine; I am running a windows 7 build from 2014, and the motherboard I used is out of production. I am not looking forward to the prospect of having to replace the motherboard, especially if it messes with my Win7 license. I absolutely do not want to upgrade to a newer version of windows by any means, not for this system. Can anyone offer advice on how to proceed from here?
I originally thought it was a problem with the PSU, so I ordered what was basically the same model (it's same manufacturer, wattage, and connectors, just with a slightly different product name/ID). I swapped out the PSU, reconnecting everything with the new PSU, but the same problem occurred.
What's perplexing is the "fix"; When I remove all RAM and start it up again, the machine POSTs normally (with the repeated NO RAM beeping). If I then put RAM back into the slots, and reboot, the machine starts up 100% normally with no problems. What I've found, however, is that if it is shut down again, then it will begin the same clicking problem once more. I don't get why it runs perfectly only after taking RAM out, booting, turning it off, putting RAM back in, and then rebooting.
I have narrowed the machine problem source down to the motherboard or the processor. Thought it was RAM, but today I got new RAM in the mail (same speed and capacity but different brand) and verified that it does not fix the problem. You still have to remove and re-seat RAM for the system to boot up. Given I have 4 sticks of RAM, that's pretty darn inconvenient.
I am concerned about what to do next. I would guess the mobo is the problem, but then it starts up perfectly after this RAM remove-and-re-seat step, so I am cautious to try and replace it. An additional level of complexity for me is that this is an 8 year old machine; I am running a windows 7 build from 2014, and the motherboard I used is out of production. I am not looking forward to the prospect of having to replace the motherboard, especially if it messes with my Win7 license. I absolutely do not want to upgrade to a newer version of windows by any means, not for this system. Can anyone offer advice on how to proceed from here?
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