Dell Optiplex cold start issue

[carmen617]

So I have a family member on the other side of the country who I support remotely. He bought, on my advice, a Dell Outlet refurb Optiplex 5050 to replace an old consumer grade desktop. I installed it for him and all seemed well, but shortly after I left it started having a problem during cold boots only. He reports that the system flashes the Dell logo splash screen about 35-50 times prior to booting. This ONLY happens on cold boots, and I don't see anything in the event logs that point me to what might be happening. I've fully updated the system with the latest BIOS and any Dell updates on their site. I've removed an external drive, so the only peripherals attached to the system are his mouse and keyboard. I've checked for problematic Windows Updates.

The system has a 3 year warranty with Dell, so I can call their support, but wondering if anybody has seen this issue before and has some suggestions before I head down that route.

 

[HCHTech]

Sure sounds like hardware to me. Time to make that warranty call.

 

[ohio_grad_06]

Have you checked for bios updates? Have had a few issues with Dell laptops at work where they had sleeping issues. Sometimes bios updates seem to help. So might be a good starting point.

Also is his power stable? I ask because I have a Polaroid 49 inch TV in my basement. Yes I know Polaroid isn't the best tv brand, I got it for 200 bucks new. So it's good for watching football and some video games.

But anyway, with my tv, I notice sometimes my tv will have issues changing inputs. I've also had slight issues with a PlayStation connected there. But if I unplug them and plug them back in, no issues. So I'm thinking my outlet in that spot may have slightly low voltage since I don't have that in any other spot in the house. Might be worth checking also.

Does he have Dells onsite warranty? We have that at work and it's great. Though I remember once when their tech accidentally bent a case panel piece and I had to point it out before he left it that way.

 

[Sky-Knight]

I'd start with a BIOS update, if that doesn't clear it, RMA the thing.

 

[carmen617]

Have you checked for bios updates? Have had a few issues with Dell laptops at work where they had sleeping issues. Sometimes bios updates seem to help. So might be a good starting point.

Also is his power stable? I ask because I have a Polaroid 49 inch TV in my basement. Yes I know Polaroid isn't the best tv brand, I got it for 200 bucks new. So it's good for watching football and some video games.

But anyway, with my tv, I notice sometimes my tv will have issues changing inputs. I've also had slight issues with a PlayStation connected there. But if I unplug them and plug them back in, no issues. So I'm thinking my outlet in that spot may have slightly low voltage since I don't have that in any other spot in the house. Might be worth checking also.

Does he have Dells onsite warranty? We have that at work and it's great. Though I remember once when their tech accidentally bent a case panel piece and I had to point it out before he left it that way.

Up to date on BIOS, electrical outlet new, and i replaced three crappy old power strips with one brand new high quality strip when I installed the computer. Yes, it has Dell's onsite warranty, but of course they want to run though the paces (diagnostics, no problem, system reinstall, pain in the neck to do remotely) prior to acknowledging a hardware issue. This is very annoying for me because I timed this purchase around a trip out west so I could get this all set up - older relative, obviously not tech savvy.

 

[Porthos]

Does this have a SSD? Disable fast start and see what happens either way.

 

[carmen617]

Does this have a SSD? Disable fast start and see what happens either way.

It has an SSD. Will give that a shot, nice easy thing to try, thanks.

 

[Markverhyden]

In theory it should not happen. After all it's a Dell Refurb dude!!!!! LOL!!!

Don't be surprised if the CR2032 is dead really low. Had that happen more than once with a refurb, most recently two months ago. I'd also strip down the plugins to the minimum. KB, Mouse, Monitor.

 

[carmen617]

In theory it should not happen. After all it's a Dell Refurb dude!!!!! LOL!!!

Don't be surprised if the CR2032 is dead really low. Had that happen more than once with a refurb, most recently two months ago. I'd also strip down the plugins to the minimum. KB, Mouse, Monitor.

Already stripped down to the minimum. I would be surprised if anything was wrong with the CR2032, it's not an off-lease, 3-5 year old machine. It's a refurb from the Dell Outlet, fundamentally a new machine, either overstocked or (more likely) a return. So they are usually just fine, but can have irritating underlying issues that led to the return - have had Dell replace more than one motherboard on an outlet purchase. That's what I'm afraid is happening here.

 

[NJW]

... or (more likely) a return.

Tech: I had a bit of a problem getting this to start from cold.
Super: Does it run okay? Restarts okay?
Tech: Yes, no problem.
Super: Ship it!

 

[NETWizz]

I would reset the bios setup to factory settings, too just making sure the boot device is set to UFI or Legacy (whatever)... it MUST match what it was to boot MBR or GFI partitioned disks.

Also inspect for bulging capacitors though at this point that is unlikely.. On the back, are there any status lights, 1234? or any other indicators?

https://www.dell.com/support/articl...diagnostic-indicators?lang=en#2012_to_Present

On the latest ones, the power-light blinks out codes.

You probably want to run dell diagnostics for the Dell support thugs because certainly they are going to ask you to do that. There is probably a reason this one was a refurb, lol...

***

If it passes Dell's diagnostics, I would run it overnight with MemTest 86+. That said, my guess if I made a stab in the dark is "bad motherboard." You might want to test the voltages of the power-supply under load simply meaning you check each rail to make sure they are in spec.

 

[ohio_grad_06]

Also if you are there and it takes a standard power supply, you might try a different power supply on it just to see if it acts different. Maybe the dell power supply is having issues.

 

[carmen617]

I'm not there, managing this from the other side of the country. I demanded a replacement motherboard, was told a tech would come "with the parts", email also warned that any data on the drive would be destroyed.

Hate doing this remotely, as it's going to take some doing to get a new system set up over the phone to the point where I can log into it, but at least something is going forward.

 

[Sky-Knight]

Windows 10? Don't forget about Quick Assist! The client side of that coin doesn't even need an MS login, though you'll need one. If Win10 boots and is online, you can remote to it. Assuming someone on the other end has enough of a clue to search for quick assist, and type in some numbers.

 

[johnrobert]

I haven't read any of the answers but it has to be the power supply