Switched Motherboards, Now Have RAM Issues

[kc27]

I had two 1gb sticks of RAM in my T30 and it ran fine. I recently had to replace the motherboard. Now, the 2 gb of RAM that worked great before doesn't even boot the laptop. The fan runs, but the laptop never boots.

As a test, I tried just 1 stick of RAM. That didn't help, no matter which slot I tried. If I try to boot with no RAM in the laptop, I get a 1-3-3-1 beep sequence.

I pulled out an old 512mb stick of ram. That works fine in just one of the slots, the one toward the center of the laptop.

Does this mean the 1gb sticks are not compatible with this particular motherboard? What about the 512mb of RAM that only works in one of the slots? The dead slot issue?

Any ideas on this would be appreciated.

[Harryc]

You have at least one dead slot on that new board, possibly two. I can't see why one T30 board would see the 1GB stick and not the other unless the slots were bad.

[tfflivemb2]

Yeah, the odds are good that one of the slots is dead. As for the 1GB sticks not working, it most likely needs a BIOS update to recognize the single 1GB sticks. Initially, the T30s were only set to recognize 1GB (2x512MB). With updates, the system was able to use 2GB (2x1GB)

[kc27]

Thanks for the info about the bios updated required for the larger memory. This motherboard was advertised as having both slots functioning, too.

I've since discovered a second issue, where the T30 runs only when connected to AC power. I am using a known good battery with about 1:15 minutes of run time when fully charged. The laptop's "charging battery" indicator is lit, but the battery never gets charged. Additionally, the the BIOS loses its settings every time the AC power is disconnected, again using a known good CMOS battery. I'm going to send the motherboard back, but just for my own information, what do the above power symptoms indicate is wrong?

[tfflivemb2]

It sounds like there just might be a short in the board somewhere. Maybe it was flexed during shipping. Was it carefully packed? Now, this is just a shot in the dark.

Hopefully, the seller won't give you too much grief and you can get a decent replacement, or your money back.

[kc27]

Just wanted to bring some closure to this post:

I checked the BIOS, and it was already at the latest version. Realblackstuff of this forum advised me to clean the contacts on the DIMMs with a pencil eraser. Once I did that, the T30 recognized the 2gb of RAM.

The battery issue resolved itself after having the laptop plugged into AC power overnight. Apparently I had overestimated how charged the battery was, and wasn't patient enough..