On Thu, 1 Sep 2016 11:16:54 +0100 Bev Nicolson lumos@gmx.co.uk wrote:
Are these instructions ok?
http://www.wikihow.com/Replace-the-Battery-in-Your-PC
That's the kind of info I'd need. Step by step with pics if possible!
Bev.
On 01/09/16 11:03, Noel Galer wrote:
This seems to be simply a matter of the CMOS battery on the motherboard that maintains the NVRAM / BIOS settings running low. The matter of surge suppressors seems to be a red herring as the date of that thread is 2003. However, something seemed to be causing corruption of the CMOS, since a simple removal and replacement would not otherwise have cleared it permanently if the battery was actually low. Although probably not caused by a surge suppressor in your case, the CMOS could still be corrupted and removal / replacement / noting settings and reloading them might still work. However, the battery is probably near the end of it's life anyway and they are about £1 to buy. As an engineer I would have no issue changing the battery but can understand that others may be reluctant to do so. There therefore seems to be two choices for you, take it to a shop and pay for the battery to be replaced specifying clearly that they record the settings, clear the CMOS and restore settings again afterwards. Or do it yourself. If you decide to do this, I recommend using a loop of 'Sellotape' firmly stuck to the flat top of the battery before removal, this is for you to hold whilst releasing the clip that secures the battery. This will help prevent the battery slipping out of your hand and landing across exposed conductors / components, which if there is any life in the battery, could otherwise damage the motherboard.
Best regards,
Noel
I would echo Noel's comments and make just one change. I would never unplug the computer from the mains before removing the side panel and touching the frame to ground yourself. Where is that static electricity to go if you've removed the plug? Once you've done that, you can then safely remove the plug from the wall or perhaps more easily accomplished, remove the plug from the power inlet on the machine. That way, you're still holding on to the machine thus not generating any more static.
You might also want to investigate options for clearing the CMOS memory. How to do that depends on the motherboard in the machine.