Frightening problem!!!!!Thinkpad T30 hard to start up.

[capnmoench]

So, I have a new issue. My T30 is not at all reliable on startup. I have to unplug it, plug it back in, remove the battery, reinstall the battery. Basically fumble with it every which way to get it to start up after it is shut down. I have a 2.4 Ghz CPU, Updated BIOS, 2.0 Gb RAM, and Windows XP Professional. When I hit the power button the screen backlight lights up half of the time, the battery and moon symbol flash, go out, then just the battery symbol stays on. The other lights flash once like normal then just the power "Z" light stays on. Nothing else happens. The CPU fan does not come on. Neither disk drives (HDD or DVD) come on. I can hear the pop of the speakers coming on. That's it. The other half of the time, it is the same thing, but I don't even get the backlight for the screen coming on. I have tried reverting back to my old RAM. Didn't work., I tried reinstalling my 1.6 Ghz CPU. Didn't work. Messed with the fan plug. Didn't work. Put everything back together as I have it now and it still didn't work. Reseated the CMOS battery and nothing. plugged it in and nothing. Unplugged it and plugged it back in and VOILA!!!! it works again. What is wrong with it? This is the most I've done to get it to work again. I usually just reset the battery in it several times and then it starts working again. This time I tried to narrow down my problem as I'm getting annoyed with this hiccup. Any suggestions would be great. Thanks, Capn'

[emeraldgirl08]

Oh geez! One thing after another eh. You've been doing all kinds of things to your comp. If nothing else works you may need to do a factory reset. I'm still fumbled on why my comp can play things w/o a hitch on low VRAM (16 mb) and system RAM (768 mb) and yours cannot.

Have you tried things w/o the dock? I don't have a dock w/my T30. It's just a guess but that may be the problem.

[lifrancis]

I am surprised that you have so much problem with your T30. For my overseas travel, I prefer to take my T30 rather than my T41. It may be heavier, but it can take a lot more physical abuse than the delicate T40 series.

[capnmoench]

@ lilfrancis, Sorry to disappoint you. Not helping much though. I have kind of narrowed it down to a system to get it going. I unplug it and plug it back it while cycling the power key with it unplugged, then plugged in until it starts. Usually takes 5 or more times. I noticed something and have to make a correction to the original post. If is not starting correctly I DO NOT get all of the lights. The far left symbol that flashes with the hard drive DOES NOT COME ON. What does that mean? Who knows? @ emeraldgirl08, What do you mean by a system reset? BIOS? Defaults? Thanks, Capn'

[emeraldgirl08]

Sorry for the vague ref. I meant hitting the F11 key on startup.

But then again what do I know? I'm fairly new at this

I just think if all else fails do a backup and restore your comp to factory settings. If I went through all kinds of mods, updates, and tweaks I'm pretty sure my system would be a little schizo by now. Just be glad your comp has an F11 in it. I erased mine by being hasty about my Ubuntu setup!

[capnmoench]

Well I didn't see your post until now, but I figured I would give setting the BIOS to factory defaults yesterday morning before work. My thoughts were it couldn't hurt. Test 1: passed. I started it up this morning without a hitch. Only time will tell though. It's one of those tricky bugs. By that I mean it only happens if my computer is shut down for several hours. If I shut down and start up again right away there is no problem. I will fire my comp up again when I get home and let everyone know after I get home from work. If it does not do it again, I'm considering it fixed. Knock on wood. Don't wanna jinx myself Thanks, Capn'

[emeraldgirl08]

Hope it all works out for you now! I have to do a system restore when I receive my disks today or tomorrow. I'm feeling a mixture of "ugh" and "cool."

The sooner the better though

[capnmoench]

Well I considered it fixed as it started up 3 times without a problem, but this morning it was up to the same old stuff. So frustrating when you think you figure something out and you didn't. Well, any other suggestions would be great. Thanks, Capn'

[terrysin]

been having the exact same problem with 2 of my T30. always need to power on and off a few times before it booted up. didn't have a solution yet as well ...

[tracker]

Hi Guys ,

just reading about start up problems with T30 and i have one with this issues..it worked out to be RAM slot issues..which is common among T30....Search it on this forum ...If the contacts are intermittent ,it will fail to start up or start sometimes or not at all ...turn up your speaker vol while you fiddle around next time ...do you hear beeps ?

Apply pressure on ram area and try again.

set bios to do mem test or run free ram test programs to see if it finds anything..when you happen to get it running.

good luck!

[capnmoench]

I believed my RAM slots to be good since I do check and see if I have the full 2 GB at times. I figured what the hell, and tried pushing on the RAM panel while starting the computer and it turns out it is a whole lot less of a guessing game to get it started while doing that. I'm thinking about resoldering the contacts on the board to see if that works, or if it looks too small to resolder, I may pay to have it reflowed. When I get around to doing it, I'll post back with results. Thanks

[astinsan]

Remove the ram from the slot closest to the side that has the palm rest. This is the slot that usually fails. Do not apply pressure. This will cause bigger issues (you could distroy the motherboard). If the computer starts without issues anymore then you knowhave a bad slot. If not try the other slot.

Reasons that it should be the memory slot?

When you turn on your computer it runs the computer bios software. If a card is loose but detected but not attached in all places, a program can be put into an bank that is unaddressable (because its path has been severed) it will lock the system up. Just like if you pulled a old game cartridge out of one of those old game machines.

Fumbling with pulling batteries could cause the joint to reattach to the board letting it start.

[QcMarque]

So I picked up a T30 off ebay that was having a "no video" problem (through the LCD or VGA)... turns out it's not posting or anything. Power it on, no beep, no screen flicker, battery and moon leds flash, then go out and the battery light comes back on. I've swapped the ram to the other slot, and still nothing. This is sounding similar to the issue the O.P. is having.

I have a professional IRDa station - should I go ahead and reflow the ram slots? I could use that or my iron with a micro tip and some flux... thoughts?