Why won't my computer turn on? - Common Computer Questions

There are many possible reasons your computer won’t turn on so you will need to perform some troubleshooting steps to figure out the cause.

The first and most obvious step is to check the power cord and make sure it’s properly attached to the wall and the back of the computer. Also make sure there are no cuts on the cord which would prevent it from working and also be a fire hazard. Make sure there is nothing crushing the cord like a piece of furniture. Another thing to test is the outlet by plugging something else in there to assure the outlet is not bad or a fuse has blown.

Next you can look at the power supply to see if it has gone bad. The power supply takes the power from the wall and converts it for use for your computer. Before going too far check the switch on the back of the power supply next to where it plugs in. Most power supplies have on/off switches on the back of them. If you feel comfortable working inside the computer then you can replace the power supply with a new one. You can pick one up for around $50.

Another thing to check is the power button on the case itself. The power button can be bypassed by a fairly simple procedure which is to short the power jumper on the motherboard. This will act as if the power button has been pressed and start the computer without using the power button. Just find the jumper that most likely says PWR that has a wire connected to it from the case. Then take off the wire and take a small flathead screwdriver and make contact with both pins and see if you have the same issue with the computer not starting every time.

The worst case scenario is a bad motherboard. The motherboard gets its power from the power supply to run all of your hardware such as your hard drive etc. If there is a problem in the circuitry then none of your components will get power and the computer will not boot. This may not be easy for most people to diagnose and will most likely require the computer to be looked at by a professional.

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