X31wont start after battery going flat

[steveT2]

Just wondering if anyone can help with my X31, I let the battery go flat today, when i pluged it into the charger and pressed the on button it tried to start up, but nothing, when i hit the start button i am getting the three geen lights (next to the start button) lighting up with two going out and leaving the one green light on next but one to the start button (round circle with a Z in the middle) with maybe six bleeps, i can here somthing (maybe the fan?)but nothing else............Help

Apoor description but hope the above makes some sense

Thanks
Steve

[rkawakami]

Welcome to thinkpads.com!

The round circle with the Z is the power LED. It should be on whenever the system is powered up. Going to the left, the next LED is the Caps Lock indicator (upward pointing arrow with an A in the middle). It will turn on for a couple of seconds when power is applied and then go out. To the left of that is the Num Lock indicator (upward arrow with a 1). It will also turn on for a couple of seconds and then go out. The fourth LED to the left of the power button is the Hard Disk access light. It should briefly flash on and then off, before the Caps Lock and Num Lock lights go out. This is the normal procedure.

Any beeps which occur during power up usually indicates a problem with the system. The exact number, the length of each beep (a short versus a long one) and any pauses in the beep sequence will tell you (in most cases) what type of problem has been detected. A table of beep symptoms and their meanings can be found in the Hardware Maintenance Manual (HMM). The one for the X31 is here:

http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... MIGR-44018 (an Adobe PDF file)

There does not seem to be any error condition that results in exactly six beeps (see page 68 of the HMM). The closest ones are five short beeps (system board problem) or the eight beeps (memory error). The eight beeps occur in a specific sequence which is usually named "1-3-3-1" here in the forums. That stands for one short beep (1), a pause (-), three short beeps (3), another pause (-), three more beeps (3), pause (-) and a final beep (1).

Given that your battery has gone dead, I can suggest that you remove it and try powering up the system using just the AC adapter. If the system operates normally, then you could try charging the battery for a couple of hours with the laptop off and see if that solves your problem. If not, then you may need a new battery. My own X31 has almost the same problem. If the battery is installed, pressing the power button starts the system up but only for about 1/2 second. The Power, Caps Lock and Num Lock LEDs flash, the fan spins but the system shuts off. However I am not getting any beep errors. If the battery is removed, then the X31 boots and operates fine. I know that the battery is dead (measures near 0V) but I haven't gone out and replaced it yet.

[steveT2]

Just tried to start it up again, The beeps are as mentioned in the reply; Quote; the eight beeps (memory error). The eight beeps occur in a specific sequence which is usually named "1-3-3-1" here in the forums. That stands for one short beep (1), a pause (-), three short beeps (3), another pause (-), three more beeps (3), pause (-) and a final beep (1).
The Hard Disk access light doesnt seem to light up?

Any fix?

Just out of interest i have a older X31 which i could use for spares if needed? The fault with it was the monitor stopped lighting up (When held to the light you can still make out the images)

Thanks

[rkawakami]

The memory error can be verified by doing the following:

- On the bottom of the system, there's a panel about 10cm x 8cm. Remove it. You will find 1 or 2 memory modules installed in sockets.
- Check to see that they are fully locked into the socket(s). When properly installed, the module should be parallel to the laptop motherboard. Gently push on the center of the module. If you hear/feel the module "click" into place, then that might have been your problem. In that case, put the cover back on and try to start the system. If it works you found the problem. If not...

Then if you have two modules:

- If it appears that the modules were firmly in their sockets, then remove one. The modules are held in place by two metal arms along each side of the module. Push the arms away from the module to the side, the module should "pop-up" slightly and remove it. Put the cover back on at boot the system.
- If the system works, then the module you removed may be defective. Turn the system off, swap the modules and start the system again. If you get the 1-3-3-1 beep code then the module that's now in the system is bad.

If you only have one module:

- Take the module out and put it in the other memory slot. Start the system. If it works, then you could have a problem with the socket that is now empty.
- If it still doesn't work then odds are that the module is bad. You could either try the module in another system which uses the same type of memory or buy/borrow a PC2100 (266Mhz) or PC2700 (333Mhz) replacement.