Interesting P.O.S. system boot issue, need advice.

[MikeTheTech]

Hi everyone, thanks for checking in.

Basically, I am working on a Point of Sale system (all-in-one touchscreen PC) and it just won't boot. When I plug the power cord in (which also seems to be the PSU to an extent) it hums, but nothing else happens; no hard drive movement, no fans, the power button does nothing (not even a flash of the screen, beep, or POST,) and I can't seem to figure it out.

The most obvious seems to be the PSU, but it lights up fine. We also tried switching the power source with another Point of Sale system, and it didn't fix the issue. The exact same thing happened.

I'm thinking it must be the motherboard or CPU. Any advice you could give me would be highly appreciated, I don't want to have my client purchase one part, and then find it was the other all along.

Thanks guys (and gals!)

-Mike Rodriguez

 

[ComputerStop]

I would normally try a standard power supply tester on it, if the internal power supply is good then it may be the motherboard (check for raised capacitors or obvious damage).

 

[MikeTheTech]

Since it's a smaller POS model, the PSU is actually more like a laptop, as it's only a small adapter with a PSU in the center of the cable. We tried two different ones. Both worked on one machine, neither worked on this one.

As for the motherboard, it seems like the culprit. However, I couldn't see any raised/bulging capacitors or damage, aside from an odd metallic dust that seems to be scattered around various components and the motherboard.

Do you think it would most likely be the motherboard, and not the CPU?

 

[Alan22]

What's the make & model of the POS system?

 

[MikeTheTech]

http://www.livepos.com/2010/Hardware.aspx

The POS system is really vague (no logos or identifying marks besides a generic label on the back,) but that's the vendor I was told.

The label on the back of the PC says:

"Name: Panel PC
Model: PE41D
Input: DV19V, 3.42A"

On the LivePOS site, it looks like the Easy Touch 100.

 

[Alan22]

OK, thanks for that. One thing I find very common with those types of systems is overheating. I'm willing to bet that when it was taken apart the vents were blocked with dust and any fans were covered in dust also.

In any case, I'd recommend calling vendor support and see what they have to say about it. Even if the system is out of warranty you may get someone helpful who can tell you the most common causes of the issue the system is experiencing.

 

[MikeTheTech]

Yeah, I've been back and forth with the POS company with not much luck. They seem very adamant about asking "Why are you fixing it? Why don'y you pay for our support and get it replace by us, for free?" Their support costs quite a bit, and the company doesn't want to pay it.

However, they basically said the motherboard is a custom form factor, and therefore unreplaceable, and that I won't be able to help them because they won't sell me a replacement. Sooooo, they are calling the company now to try and get a replacement and see what the cost would be. Guess I won't be doing the repair after all. :/

 

[MrUnknown]

Those POS vendors are a real POS.

 

[MikeTheTech]

My thoughts exactly. lol

 

[Alan22]

Yeah Mike, that's one of the issues when someone purchases a proprietary piece of hardware. They are at the mercy of the vendor, and sometimes the vendor is at the mercy of the manufacturer.

In my area there was a company selling all-in-one POS systems. I thought they manufactured the systems, but they didn't. They were generic systems manufactured by some company in China. All the company in my area did was slap their brand on it. I started getting calls from people 2.5-3 years after they purchased these systems and never extended the warranty after the initial year because it cost too much. In a few cases I got the vendor to repair the systems, but the repair took several weeks! I found that they had to send it back to the manufacturer for repair because even they couldn't get parts for it.

Lesson learned. The product may look nice, but what will happen when it breaks? People tend to not think about that until it happens.

 

[MikeTheTech]

Exactly, I just hate having to tell a client, basically, "I can't fix this."

Oh well, it's not my fault, I suppose.

 

[ZenTree]

I'm sure you tried this but just wanted to check as it wasn't specifically mentioned, did you eliminate the power switch from the equation?
If you're getting power through to the board then next step in the process is the power switch. I'm not trying to patronise, I just know from personal experience when I've overlooked this, spent a while going through the motherboard, attached devices etc and then thought "let's try shorting the switch pins".

That said, I've a pet peeve with regards to compact units for the exact reasons mentioned in this thread. We sold some all in one elonex systems quite a few years back and all I was thinking was "I am not looking forward to that coming back in". Needless to say, the one that did was a complete and utter *$&£

 

[MikeTheTech]

I'm sure you tried this but just wanted to check as it wasn't specifically mentioned, did you eliminate the power switch from the equation?
If you're getting power through to the board then next step in the process is the power switch. I'm not trying to patronise, I just know from personal experience when I've overlooked this, spent a while going through the motherboard, attached devices etc and then thought "let's try shorting the switch pins".

That said, I've a pet peeve with regards to compact units for the exact reasons mentioned in this thread. We sold some all in one elonex systems quite a few years back and all I was thinking was "I am not looking forward to that coming back in". Needless to say, the one that did was a complete and utter *$&£

Yup, tried a bunch of troubleshooting on the power switch (which was also one of the reasons it was so hard to open the case, the wire was really short and connected towards the center of the motherboard.) No luck.

 

[ZenTree]

Ah. Another joy of the compact unit, the just about long enough cabling...