Newbie with a power problem...

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D.J.Tone-Def

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:) Hi,I'm a newbie here.I'm principally a drum and bass music artist/producer,in my spare time,and I also build/cobble together starter internet ready systems,for friends family,(all self taught.)
I have an odd problem with a Compaq Deskpro XL 590 P1 system I'm playing with-It will not switch off!
The only way to power the unit down is to unplug the damn thing.Tried using the Compaq configuration utility to see what power options there were-no luck.Power supply will not operate if removed from the computer and power lead plugged in-but as soon as leads are plugged back into mobo,it comes to life.
Looked closely at the board for any jumpers or something that might be out of place but no. I'm unsure as to the early history of the unit and whether it may have been used as a server?:confused: And perhaps they made some adjustments?
I'd really apreciate any suggestions you peeps could give.
Thanks!:D
 
if it won't shut off thru the normal shut down procedure (start button>shutdown) then its a software problem more than likely. the reason the power supply won't turn on when removed from the mobo because the mobo is actually the switch for it and windows shut down process is the one that flips the switch.
 
Have you tried shutting it down via holding the power button for 5 seconds? Like jak said, what happens when you just go to start> shut down , absolutely nothing, it just sits there or what? Perhaps it is a software issue or perhaps there's a setting in the BIOS. I know there's settings for keyboard wake ups, wake on LAN, and you can change what the power button does when hit so that's one option too
 
Hi,thanks for your replies.
My problem is not a software one;this problem existed even before I installed the O.S.
I can shut down from windows to the "it is now safe..." screen,however the power switch-a rocker type old fashioned thing,does not turn the power off.
I swapped the switch itself for another similar,but to no effect.
The switch,unlike a lot of ATX power supplies,only has two wires attached from the power supply itself,usually there are four i believe.
I would try another power supply-Ihave several,but there are three bundles of cables that attach to this mobo,unlike my others,which seem to have only two.
I was just hoping that there may be some sort of hardware or bios config I could alter,rather than go through the hassle of sourcing an identical supply.:confused:
 
Why are you trying to switch it off from the power supply and not the button on the front of the computer?
The wires coming from the front panel from the power switch is only 2 wires. Usually blue and white I believe. These connected to your motherboard is what allows the computer to be turned on because it sends a signal the the PSU to turn on basically. Does the front panel button not work or is it simply not present?

Also if that button doesn't work have you tried holding it down for 5 seconds to see if it powers off? Have you gone into the BIOS and tried changing the properties for the power button because you can make it so the power button does something else besides turn the computer on or off, so it could even possibly be disabled so that the normal power button couldn't be used.

Considering if all above info is non-applicable. It sounds like you have a "test-psu' so to speak. I've made one before and basically you use it to test fans and such without having to plug your PSU into the motherboard and have the motherboard send the signal to the PSU to give power. To make a PSU into a test PSU a couple wires are cut from the normal 20pin connector that goes to your motherboard. A green and black wire. Those two wires are then connected together thus creating a PSU that will power on when the switch is on.

So it sounds like essentially it was turned into a test PSU and they took it even further to unwire the switch from the back of the PSU resulting in a PSU that basically is on forever.

Here are the directions on how a test psu is made so you can perhaps get an idea of what may have happened to your PSU.

http://www.casemodgod.com/mod_test_psu.htm

Look to see if wires have been cut from the 20pin connector, the green and black one mentioned in the article. If they are, then theres your reason for the PSU coming on as soon as it's plugged in. Then you'll need to look at your PSU for the switch wires and I guess reattach them accordingly. The Test PSU mod does NOT have any effect on the switch and the basically the switch is the only thing that allows you to turn it on and off so now in your instance, what's going on with the switch remains a mystery.

Someone must have modded it so that it just remains on at all times. Check that test psu article to get a little idea of possible wiring and recheck wiring for the switch.


EDIT: I just noticed something else

Ihave several,but there are three bundles of cables that attach to this mobo,unlike my others,which seem to have only two.

What bundles are you talking about? For a normal AMD Based machine there's the 20pin connector that's 2 rows of 10 with oddly shaped holes, and a square 4 pin connector that also connects to the mobo that powers just the processor. On most newer PSU's it also has a 3rd wire, but I believe this is for Intel Based machines, but they put it there so you can use the power supply for either Intel or AMD. The 4pin connector I'm talking about doesn't look like your normal 4pin molex connector which is 4 pins in a straight line. The one I'm talking about is in a square shape. 2 connectors ontop of 2 to form a perfect square. The Remaining bundle if I'm assuming we're thinking of the same one is not needed and you shouldn't really worry about it, especially if your board doesn't need it. I'm pretty sure there's no motherboard that requires 3 power connections to it..only 2...there are only 3 connections so that it is compatible with both Intel and AMD based machines
 
There are three bundles.
The one marked P1,has nine wires,of many colours
The second marked P2,has eight wires;four red,four black.
The third,marked P8 AT,has ten;one white/brown striped wire,
one white/black striped wire,four black and four brown wires.
ALL are plugged into the mobo.
The switch I am referring to IS the on/off power switch.-as I said it is an old pentium 1 Compaq Deskpro 590,with an old fashioned rocker switch on the front
RS-001A.jpg

Similar in appearance to this.
It's not like a modern PC switch,that you can hold down for
5 seconds!;)
Thanks for the link to that mod site though mate,much appreciated.
The two wires connected to the on/off switch are red and black btw.:D
 
Yeah I realized after further reading the post that you meant the actual switch on the PSU and not the computer. And damn...those wire bundles you described don't seem familiar at all. And you said this came out of a pentium 1 compaq computer ahhh stupid me. Should have known. The stuff I was talking about is completely new PSU's. Sorry about that :(

Hmmmm.....well did you see anything that would lead you to believe it was modded similar to the test PSU I was referring to? Has anyone done anything with this PSU in the past or did it basically come straight from compaq into your posession?

This does seem awfully strange that the power switch is nonfunctional. It has to be wiring somewhere, unfortunately with computer makers like dell and compaq they don't make anything to standard form so if any mods were done then it'll probably be hard finding the problem at this point.

Well man I'm really at a loss here. I'm sorry I couldn't help you with your problem. If you figure it out let us know so your knowledge can benefit future people. I just fux'd up my BIOS the other day and just wrote a nice long article on various ways to fix it. Maybe you could do the same :)
 
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