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Troubleshooting Your Computer 3-11
T
roubleshooting Procedures
This section provides troubleshooting procedures for
built-in components (such as the display) and for external
devices that connect to the computer (such as an external
monitor). Before performing any of the procedures in this
section, see “Basic Checks” found earlier in this chapter
and read the safety instructions at the front of this guide.
Then perform the appropriate troubleshooting procedure
for the component or equipment that is malfunctioning.
NOTES: When you see the question “Is the problem
resolved?” in a troubleshooting procedure, perform the
operation that caused the problem to see if the problem
still occurs.
Before you begin any of the troubleshooting procedures,
make sure the Quiet Boot option is set to Disabled in the
Main menu of the Setup program. See Chapter 2, “Cus-
tomizing System Features,” for information on using the
Setup program.
Troubleshooting a Wet Computer
Liquids, spills and splashes, rain, and excessive humidity
can cause moisture damage to the computer. If the com-
puter gets wet or if condensation forms on the computer
because of humid conditions, use the following
procedure.
1. Turn off the computer, and disconnect it from the
AC adapter. Then disconnect the AC adapter
from AC power. Turn off any attached periph-
erals, and disconnect them from their power
sources and then from the computer.
2. Remove any installed batteries.
Wipe off each battery, and store it in a safe place to
dry.
3. If the options bay slot is wet, remove the device
from the bay. If the PC Card slot is wet, remove
any PC Cards. Put the device and cards in a safe
place to dry.
4. Ground yourself by touching one of the metal
connectors on the back of the computer.
5. Turn the computer over, and remove the two
screws securing the hard-disk drive.
6. Pull the hard-disk drive straight out of the com-
puter. The memory module cover will now lift off.
7. Remove any installed memory modules from
their sockets on the system board.
Carefully spread apart the inner metal tabs of the
memory module socket just far enough for the mem-
ory module to disengage from the socket (the
module should pop up slightly). Then lift the mem-
ory module away from the socket.
IRQ12 Generated by the keyboard controller to
indicate that the output buffer of the inte-
grated touch pad or external PS/2 mouse
is full
IRQ13 Used by the math coprocessor on the
microprocessor
IRQ14 Generated by the hard-disk drive to indi-
cate that the drive requires the attention of
the microprocessor
IRQ15 Reserved
Table 3-4. IRQ Line Assignments
(continued)
IRQ Line Used/Available
NOTE: For the full name of an abbreviation or acronym
used in this table, see the Glossary in the online System
User’s Guide.
WARNING: Perform step 1 of the following proce-
dure only after you are certain that it is safe to do
so. If the computer is connected to an alternating
current (AC) power source, Dell recommends turn-
ing off AC power at the circuit breaker before
attempting to remove the power cables from AC
power. Use the utmost caution when removing wet
cables from live power.
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