Thinkpads Forum

My W510 does not start anymore. When I Switch it on all I get is a light Grey Screen. Nothing else happens. No error, no boot-menue. Pressing F1 or F2 does not make any difference.
I took out the harddisk and it's the same error. No "can not find operating System".
Connecting an external Monitor does not help.

Any hints what to do now?

Try these:

1. The 10 to 30 second salute:
Disconnect the AC adapter and remove the battery.
Press and hold the power button for at least 10 seconds (30 seconds is better).
Reinstall battery and reconnect AC adapter, then power it up.

If it boots, good.
If not, go to #2

2. Play around with RAM slots:
Disconnect the AC adapter and remove the battery.
Remove all RAM sticks.
Connect AC adapter or reinstall battery. Personally, I prefer the AC adapter because it's easier to connect/disconnect.
Power it up.
A beep error code should come from the speakers, signifying a memory error. Check the Hardware Maintenance Manual to see if the beep code you hear corresponds to a memory error.
If there is no beep, or the beep error code is not related to RAM, then it's highly likely that the system board is malfunctioning.

If there is a memory-related beep error code, install 1 RAM stick on the first memory slot. If it boots, grab a bootable image of a memory test tool (memtest86+ or similar), burn to a blank disc (or to USB flash drive if you know how to), then run the memory test on the laptop. Make sure to complete 2-3 test passes. If any errors are found, then the RAM is defective.

If you have more than 1 RAM stick, test it as well.

Thanks everybody.

Took it to a shop. They opened it and found a display cable dislocated at the hinges. Works again fine now.