Total failure after RAM upgrade

[Polar Light]

Hi there,

I just got a call from a friend who tried to upgrade the RAM on his
computer, after installing the new memory, the computer just wouldn't start.
He then took out the new chips and replaced the old ones but it's still the
same. The power comes on, the fans make noise and the monitor says there's
no signal so presumably both the power supply and monitor are working fine,
however, the BIOS screen doesn't come up and there are not bleeps.

He says he's checked the connections and they're all OK and the system was
working perfectly before.

Can a motherboard be killed just by installing new RAM?

Any ideas much appreciated.

 

[darklight]

Hi there,

I just got a call from a friend who tried to upgrade the RAM on his
computer, after installing the new memory, the computer just wouldn't
start. He then took out the new chips and replaced the old ones but it's
still the same. The power comes on, the fans make noise and the monitor
says there's no signal so presumably both the power supply and monitor are
working fine, however, the BIOS screen doesn't come up and there are not
bleeps.

He says he's checked the connections and they're all OK and the system was
working perfectly before.

Can a motherboard be killed just by installing new RAM?

Any ideas much appreciated.

take out the mother board battery for 30 seconds then replace and reboot

 

[Ken]

Hi there,

I just got a call from a friend who tried to upgrade the RAM on his
computer, after installing the new memory, the computer just wouldn't start.
He then took out the new chips and replaced the old ones but it's still the
same. The power comes on, the fans make noise and the monitor says there's
no signal so presumably both the power supply and monitor are working fine,
however, the BIOS screen doesn't come up and there are not bleeps.

He says he's checked the connections and they're all OK and the system was
working perfectly before.

Can a motherboard be killed just by installing new RAM?

Any ideas much appreciated.

Have him look carefully at the RAM connectors to make sure he did not
damage (bend pins so that they now are shorting) them.

 

[Paul]

Hi there,

I just got a call from a friend who tried to upgrade the RAM on his
computer, after installing the new memory, the computer just wouldn't start.
He then took out the new chips and replaced the old ones but it's still the
same. The power comes on, the fans make noise and the monitor says there's
no signal so presumably both the power supply and monitor are working fine,
however, the BIOS screen doesn't come up and there are not bleeps.

He says he's checked the connections and they're all OK and the system was
working perfectly before.

Can a motherboard be killed just by installing new RAM?

Any ideas much appreciated.

If you install RAM with the power on, that can kill it.
(Unplug A.C. for safety, and observe ESD precautions when installing
RAM. Clip a wrist strap to exposed metal on the computer case,
to bring yourself and the RAM, to the same potential as the computer.)

Antistatic Wrist Strap $6.99
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2479151

If you get the RAM in the socket crooked, or not fitting properly
in some way, that could do it. Some sockets are a tight fit, and it
is possible the RAM wasn't fully seated.

If it is Athlon64/FX/X2, the processor could be damaged (as the RAM
interface is on the processor). In that case, the motherboard might
not be affected. If it is Intel, where the Northbridge chip has the
RAM interface, then the motherboard might be bad. About all you can
do, is try stripping the computer down, and see if the symptoms
change. A motherboard with a CPU installed, and power supply connected,
should be able to beep the computer speaker, when started (because
missing RAM and missing video card will cause the BIOS to beep). If
still no response, the CPU may not be executing the BIOS for some
reason. While you can try clearing the CMOS, since you know the
cause of the problem, the CMOS might not make any difference to
the symptoms. What you try replacing next, will depend on the
CPU type.

Paul

 

[Mike Walsh]

There is always a chance to do harm any time you open the PC case. The most likely things are a bent contact on the DIMM slot, something knocked loose e.g. a power plug, or a motherboard zapped with static electricity.

 

[Rod Speed]

I just got a call from a friend who tried to upgrade the RAM on his
computer, after installing the new memory, the computer just wouldn't
start. He then took out the new chips and replaced the old ones but
it's still the same. The power comes on, the fans make noise and the
monitor says there's no signal so presumably both the power supply
and monitor are working fine, however, the BIOS screen doesn't come
up and there are not bleeps.

He says he's checked the connections and they're all OK and the system was working perfectly
before.

Can a motherboard be killed just by installing new RAM?

Yes, there are a variety of ways you can get that result.

One obvious possibility is to not UNPLUG the system from the mains.
Modern systems have standby power on the motherboard even when
they are turned off and you can kill a motherboard by unplugging stuff
with the standby power still applied.

Some motherboards are installed with bugger all support in the ram
socket area and some ram can be a surprisingly tight fit in the socket
and its definitely possible to flex the motherboard so much that you kill it
in the process of installing the ram if you arent careful. What you should
do in that case is support the motherboard properly when installing the ram.

Its obviously theoretically possible to be such a butcher that you
force the ram in the wrong way around and kill the socket that
way. You have to be pretty rough, but some combinations of
socket and ram can be a pretty tight fit the right way around,
so it has happened.

Its possible to produce static damage as well but its not that common.

Worth resetting the cmos to check that that isnt the problem
and worth checking that he didnt just dislodge one of the other
cables like the square 4 pin 12V power connector if it has one.

 

[paulmd]

Hi there,

I just got a call from a friend who tried to upgrade the RAM on his
computer, after installing the new memory, the computer just wouldn't start.
He then took out the new chips and replaced the old ones but it's still the
same. The power comes on, the fans make noise and the monitor says there's
no signal so presumably both the power supply and monitor are working fine,
however, the BIOS screen doesn't come up and there are not bleeps.

He says he's checked the connections and they're all OK and the system was
working perfectly before.

Can a motherboard be killed just by installing new RAM?

Yes. If power is on, or ram is bad, or not seated properly when power
applied. Usually, no.

Any ideas much appreciated.

A fellow came in just yesterday, with the same symptoms, he removed
some RAM, to identify it, so he could buy more. And when he replaced
it, it was dead. But when I opened up the case, there was a whole row
of bad capacitors. So no way he killed it unless it was already
terminally ill.

So look for bulging or leaking capacitors anyway.Capacitors look like
little soda cans.

 

[Alex Harrington]

Any ideas much appreciated.

It's possible they've pushed dust in the slot. Get a can of compressed
air and blow the slot out to ensure it's clean. Visually inspect the
chip to ensure it's clean too and then reseat and try again..

Alex

 

[Guest]

I destroyed a motherboard when installing memory because I had to push
so hard to get it in, the MB contacted the metal case. When I powered
it up, BANG.

 

[kony]

I destroyed a motherboard when installing memory because I had to push
so hard to get it in, the MB contacted the metal case. When I powered
it up, BANG.

PCChips used to make a few boards that were like that, the
solution was to put a magazine edge behind the board, or a
pencil... the first time. After noticing that problem, the
final fix was to put rubber adhesive stick-on "feet" behind
the board on the motherboard tray, which is something I
sometimes still do just to help when boards stick out past
the mounting studs and have sockets in the area that might
flex the board if cables were plugged in.