[SOLVED] Plugged in, not charging Dell e6230

[Benjamyne]

I got a used Dell e6230 for now while I wait for another to arrive.
But the next day i noticed it was not charging and instead showed plugged in, not charging.
I'd like to resolve this since it's generally in a usable condition and then give it away to a student as a beginners computer.

So I tried the hard reboot and it fails to power up. It will instead try and fail over and over until I turn it off from the power switch, then leave it for about 10-20 seconds and try again. It will then power up and show that time and date is not set up plus a few others that come after a total loss of power. But it will also show that the power adapter wattage cannot be determined, battery may not charge. The diagnostics screen shows that the charger is unknown. But the charging problem persists.

I tried to boot without the battery and it tries to start up but fails immediately and goes off like it lost power.

I could not get the exact adapter that came with it. i got another one with the same wattage 90W 19.5v 4.62A but saw no change.

I haven't tried re-seating the RAM sticks yet, but I'm hoping I don't have to do that. Laptops are rather small for me to take apart.

I got a temporary solution to the problem, but I'm not sure what it means for this laptop.
I though that maybe there could be a problem with the charger or the power jack.
So I cleaned both with a tooth brush and tried pulling up the metal contacts in the jack using a needle.
I charged normally after that. But the problem came back when I unplugged the charger from the wall socket and back about and hour later.

Then I thought I'd try cleaning he hole for the signal pin. I cut a bristle from a brush and poked and wiggled it around in the hole.
The battery charged again only for the same problem to occur again later.

I now wonder if the problem is the power jack.
I saw a video on how to remove it, and you have to take apart the entire lower portion of the laptop just to get to it.

What do you think?

 

[wavoyi]

Symptoms
Dell laptop shows the message "plugged in not charging" when you hover over the battery icon (Figure 1). However, the battery will charge outside the operating system (such as system BIOS or the one time boot menu).

Figure 1: Plugged in, not charging message.

NOTE: Check to see if there is a hotkey to disable the battery. Some Dell laptops have an optional hotkey on the keyboard that will disable charging. For example, Fn+F2. If your computer has this option, use it to enable charging. To learn more about hotkeys, see the User Manual of your Dell laptop.

Cause
Battery-related issues can be caused due to an aging battery, battery reaching its end of life, AC adapter not working correctly, and so on.

Resolution

Verify AC adapter functionality
To ensure that the Dell battery is getting charged correctly, the AC adapter must be working correctly. Verify that the laptop can recognize the AC adapter.

NOTE: Dell recommends using the original AC adapter that was shipped with the laptop.

NOTE: Ensure that the AC adapter that is connected to the computer meets the minimum wattage that is required for the computer to charge the battery. Many high end computers require higher capacity AC adapters such as 150 W, 180 W, 210 W AC adapters.

NOTE: Dell laptops docked to E-Port series, or other docking stations must use the AC adapter that was shipped with the docking station. These AC adapters have a higher capacity that is based on the additional power requirements of the docking station.

To verify that the laptop is recognizing the AC adapter correctly:

1. Restart the computer.
2. At the Dell logo appears, tap the F2 key several times until the message Entering Setup appears.
3. Verify the AC Adapter Type in the BIOS options.
   • If the AC adapter type is None - Verify that the ac adapter is connected to the laptop and the wall outlet.
   • If the AC adapter type is Unknown - See the Dell knowledge base article How to Troubleshoot AC Adapter Issues on a Dell Laptop.
   • If the AC adapter type is recognized correctly, go to the next step.

Charge the battery in BIOS mode or with the laptop turned off
There are several settings in the operating system like power management settings, device drivers, that may impact the performance of the battery. Charging the laptop battery outside the operating system (when the laptop is powered off) helps isolate hardware-related issues.

1. Turn off the computer.
2. Try one of the following combinations:
   • When the laptop is turned off, charge the battery for some time.
   • Or, restart the laptop and tap the F2 key to enter the BIOS or System Setup. Allow the battery to charge.
3. Verify if the battery charge percentage has increased.
4. Restart the computer, and go to the next step.

Run the Dell hardware diagnostic test
Running a hardware diagnostic test helps identify what the issue may be and provide you with troubleshooting steps to help resolve the issue. Dell offers both integrated and online diagnostics. It is essential to run a hardware test on the laptop or the battery to identify which device is causing the issue.
To run an online hardware test on the battery using Dell SupportAssist, browse to the battery diagnostics page.

NOTE: Running an online hardware diagnostic test on the laptop requires you to download and install the Dell SupportAssist application.
To run the Dell Pre-Boot System Assessment test:

1. Turn on the computer.
2. At the Dell logo screen, tap the F12 key several times until the One Time Boot Menu appears.
3. Use the arrow keys on the keyboard to select Diagnostics and press the Enter key.
4. Follow the on-screen prompts and respond appropriately to complete the diagnostics.
   1. If the test passes, go to the next step.
   2. If the test fails, ensure to write down the error code and validation code, and contact Dell Technical Support.

Check the battery health status
Checking the battery health status helps determine if the battery is operating correctly or if it must be replaced. Battery health status can be checked both inside and outside the operating system. See the Dell knowledge base article How to Check Battery Health Status on Dell Laptops.
NOTE:

• Battery life is mostly determined by the number of charge and discharge cycles. This is also due to the consumable components inside a battery.
• Battery capacity is the amount of time the laptop can run on a fully charged battery. It is normal for all types of batteries to lose some battery capacity and battery life over time. Every time a battery is charged or discharged, the battery loses a small amount of battery capacity. This behavior is considered a normal characteristic of a rechargeable battery and is not covered by the warranty.

If the battery health status is normal, go to the next step.

Update the BIOS and Dell Quickset
The BIOS is firmware that is embedded onto the system board (motherboard) of the computer. Updating the BIOS to the latest version helps the computer recognize the AC adapter correctly. Updating the BIOS to the latest version requires the laptop to be powered by the AC adapter and battery.
WARNING: Dell laptops must have their battery that is installed and connected to the AC adapter before you begin to update the BIOS. Some Dell laptops must have at least a 10% battery charge before you begin the BIOS update.
To update the BIOS to the latest version, see the Dell knowledge base article Dell BIOS Updates.

CAUTION: If the battery charge is less than 10%, you may be able to force the BIOS to update from within the DOS environment. A failure during this process will cause permanent damage to the system board of the computer. Users must proceed at their own risk. Dell shall not be liable for any loss, including but not limited to loss of data, loss of profit, or loss of revenue, which customers may incur by following any procedure or advice set out in this article.
Dell Quickset
Dell Quickset is a suite of software applications that provide enhanced functionality to your Dell computer. The Dell Quickset utility provides easy access to configure settings for power management, the battery health meter, and other functions on most Dell laptops. It provides easy access to several functions that would normally require several steps. Some of the features that you can access using Dell Quickset include:

• Disable or enable battery charging.
• Change Function (Fn) key behavior.
• Configure wireless shortcut key.

Installing or updating the Dell Quickset application can help resolve issues with battery charging. Download and install the Dell Quickset application from the Dell Drivers & Downloads website. Dell Quickset application can be found under the Application category.
NOTE: The Dell Quickset application is available and supported by select Dell laptops. If Dell Quickset is not available for your Dell laptop, go to the next step.

Run Windows Troubleshooter for battery issues
You can run the Windows Hardware and Devices troubleshooter which is built into Microsoft Windows. The Hardware and Devices troubleshooter is available in Microsoft Windows 10, Windows 8 or 8.1, and Windows 7.
To run the Hardware and Devices troubleshooter:

1. Press the Windows key + R key.
2. In the Run dialog box, type Control and press the Enter key.
3. On the top-right corner, in the Search box of Control Panel, type Troubleshooter and then click Troubleshooting.
4. Under System and Security, click Power.

NOTE: You must log in to Windows with an account with administrator privileges. If you get any prompts from User Account Control while running the Hardware and Devices troubleshooter, click Yes.
If running Windows Troubleshooter did not resolve the issue, go to the next step.

Uninstall and reinstall Microsoft ACPI Battery driver

1. Press the Windows key + R key.
2. In the Run dialog box, type devmgmt.msc and press the Enter key.
3. In Device Manager, click > or + sign next to Batteries.
4. Right-click Microsoft ACPI-Compliant Control Method Battery and click Uninstall.
5. Click OK to confirm uninstalling the driver.
6. Restart the computer.

 

[Benjamyne]

Thanks for your reply.
I printed it out and went back home to try them out.
But the laptop has been charging normally again. Even after I removed the charger twice.
I'll wait for the error, try the steps above and let you know.

 

[Benjamyne]

Now I got another problem with the laptop.
It wont start up showing errors PXE-E61: Media test failure, check cable
PXE-M0F: Exiting intel boot agent.
No Boot Device found. Press any key to reboot machine.
Doing that just repeats the same thing.

So I did the diagnostics and it shows Hard drive not installed.
I did the hard reset, took out the hard drive and put it pack and still nothing.
At one point I plugged it into a working laptop via the USB port and could open the drive and view the files with no trouble.

Eventually I swapped the hard disks with the working one and they both started up.
They both showing preparing devices for about 2 minutes, completed start up and logged.

I expected the first disk to fail in the working laptop but it didn't.
Or the drive of the working laptop to fail in faulty laptop.

But when I swapped them back, it back to it's same errors while the working laptop worked normally.

So now I'm wondering what is really the problem with the e6230.
Should I just clone the hard disk and into an SSD?
It has HDD.

 

[ilian359]

It looks like this laptop is very unstable and you should get rid of it.

 

[Benjamyne]

Well, I have a bit of financial pressure right now. Might have to bear with it for now until I can buy new stuff again.

Meanwhile, I cloned the HDD to SSD and so far it's working and charging fine.
I'll observe it for another week and see. I don't know if something along the way may have solved the problem.

 

[ilian359]

These are 2 different problems. That's why I said the laptop's unstable. I wish you to have no more troubles with the laptop.

 

[Benjamyne]

Ok, thanks.