[SOLVED] Laptop booting with a rude, random , persistent beep

[okrobie]

This is an HP DV7, I7-2630QM, 6GB, 250GB laptop. When it boots it does this beep which is a single long beep of at least 10 seconds or sometimes more. I also get a text message on the lower left of the screen which says to touch the Esc key to bring up the startup menu. Nothing changes when you push the Esc key, but when it decides to quit the beep, it boots as normal into Windows as if nothing had happened. It doesn't allow access to the Fn keys, and I can't find a way to get into the BIOS. I have done all of the suggestions in the Sticky pertaining to power up problems. Different power source, re-seat memory, replace memory etc. This item does not yet have a battery. One is on order.

Any suggestions?

 

[SierraArgo]

I am going to assume that the beep is an error code of some description (known as a beep code) I would google "Single long beep on (my computer here)" and see if there is any documentation for this code. Also, when you say the laptop doesn't have a battery, do you mean it has no Li-ion battery, or no cmos battery?

 

[okrobie]

Hi SierraArgo, thanks for the reply. I forgot to mention that I had not found any documentation for "Long Beep Code" in any Google search. I meant to specify that it is the power battery that is absent.

Edit: On the subject of batteries, maybe it wouldn't hurt to put in a fresh BIOS battery

 

[BFG-9000]

With AMI BIOS, a long beep is for no media detected, so it would make sense to ask you to press a key to select a device to boot from.

If your HDD is taking an unusually long time to spin up, that would indicate it's on its way out--so test with another disk installed. If that fixes it, consider this an opportunity to upgrade to SSD now when they are at record low prices.

 

[okrobie]

Hi BFG-9000, Thanks for the reply. Your diagnosis sounds spot on, but I tried putting an SSD in and got the same result. I also tried booting from a bootable USB drive but even though it eventually booted, it had the long beep and the same onscreen message, "hit the escape key for the startup menu". I have a similar machine which is available as a parts donor, but it is an I5 cpu. Can you suggest any parts I might try? How about the BIOS chip? You'll have to tell me what it looks like because I can't identify it. I appreciate your help.

Edit: I can't replace the BIOS battery because it is the encapsulated, shrink wrap type with the little Molex connector and I don't have a replacement for it, even on the donor machine it has the coin type.

 

[okrobie]

Well... I was finally able to get into the BIOS by banging on the F10 key immediately after power on. I found that the BIOS had been set up to boot from the network. When I changed the boot sequence, the beeping went away. Only problem was that it wouldn't boot from a bootable USB drive. I tried several that easily boot on another machine, but not on this one. The BIOS would recognize the USB drive, and I changed the boot sequence to put it at the top of the list. I was also able to see it when I booted into F9 mode, but when I selected it and hit enter, it didn't boot, just sat there. When I went into the BIOS Legacy boot was enabled. After trying everything else, I thought it might be a good idea to disable legacy support. (Big mistake) Now it won't do anything. The Fn keys don't work and I can't get back into the BIOS. Since the beeping is cured, should I start a new thread for the new issue? Thanks, Jim

EDIT: I unplugged the BIOS battery and reset the BIOS to default so I'm back to where I started, beep and all. Still won't boot from the USB stick, but I'm sure I can get it soon. I'll keep you informed. Thanks.

 

[okrobie]

I think it's time to put this thread to rest. I'm now booting without the beeping. Thanks BFG-9000. Couldn't have figured it out without your help.