PC won't POST until I clear CMOS?

[peterb]

You need to fix the RAM problem first and then see if the problem still exists. Trying to diagnose two fauolts at the same time is a pointless! Best way to test the RAM is by substitution. If you have more than one RAM stick, you could try testing them one at a time to see if the faults apply to one stick or more (but I'd still recommend replacing them in pairs to be sure they are of the same spec)

[SavageCore]

I got replacement RAM and that fixed the problem, thanks for the help.

[desoto0311]

Anyone come up with a solution to this besides the RAM issue? I tried everything in the three pages here for by BRAND NEW Shuttle sd30g2. (Except I have no jumpers; only cmos reset button.) Here's exactly what's going on with me and the gear I used. Everything seems to be totally compatible and I have no issues in windows or anything; just the cmos reset issue.

Could I/Should I try reflashing the bios? (whatever that is, lol. The system came with a 'winfalsh' utility that I'm assuming would do that after I download the latest bios from shuttle?)

CPU - (2.66ghz core 2 Duo e6750 lga775)
Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor

Case/Motherboard (shuttle xpc SD30G2)
Shuttle SD30G2 Plus Intel Socket T(LGA775) Intel 945GC 2 x 240Pin Intel GMA 950 Barebone - Barebone Systems

Memory (x2 1GB Corsair valueselect ddr2 667mhz pc2-5300)
CORSAIR ValueSelect 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300)

CD/DVD Burner - ASUS DVD/CD 2MB Cache SATA 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe

Harddrive Maxtor DiamondMax 21 STM3250310AS 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s

** Component install seemed to be a breeze and everything looked intact. I didn’t change jumpers or modify ANYTHING**

Here's one difference between some of the other posts:
When I FIRST booted the machine I got nothing but a blinking cursor in the upper-left corner. I unplugged the machine, reset CMOS (button) and plugged & powered it back on. I got the standard chksum error, went into bios and loaded optimal values and saved & restarted. So I disconnect the power, reset CMOS again, and power on. Same chksum error just like the others on the thread.

So if I hit “F1” to continue and do NOT go into the bios, I can access my drives. In fact, I have successfully setup windows, installed programs and ‘messed around’ in the OS while using the “remove plug & reset cmos” method on any/all restarts.

What are my options! The sad thing is this is soaking up all my free time and I was building this as a 'favor' for a friend, lol. So of course I have to get a piece of crap with a burnt out bios chip or something, right?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[peterb]

Where is the CMOS reset button (first time I have heard of a button to rest the CMOS - it is such a rare requirement)

[Gunbuster]

I gave up on mine in the end, but it was 2nd hand.

I would probably RMA it if I were you. I checked the CPU list for that shuttle and there is not specific bios needed for that setup.
Shuttle Global - Home

[Blitzen]

Its probably your PSU. There were a number of seasonic S12 PSUs that had problems with Asus boards, exactly as you describe.

Also, test your RAM with memtest test 5, on each stick individually, for about 3 hours each. Do this in all the slots with both sticks.

Clunk has already given you the most likely answer.
Try a new/different PSU.

[desoto0311]

**UPDATE**

Thanks for the help on this. I found something interesting on another forum about shuttle's lack of "fondness" for particular types of ram. Anyway, I called Shuttle tech support twice. (They were VERY cool, btw. I don't know how they make $$ with how easily their hospitality *could* be exploited by people with 20 year old machines, lol.) and was ultimately led down the path of flashing the bios. (what a friggin' mess that was without a floppy. Thanks bootdisk!)

Anyway,all is well now. It works like a charm!

Thanks again for the assist. In the future I won't assume buying 'new' means buying 'updated', lol. In all fairness to myself, I was kind of scared s**tless about flashing my bios. I hadn't done that since my old 486dx and it was scary back then, lol.

UPDATE YOUR BIOS FOLKS! (And make SURE you have EXACTLY the right bios update for the exact motherboard. Model ##'s are laid out so poorly sometimes and I grabbed the wrong file.)

[trackit]

Hi!

i have the exact same problem. Asus A8N-E board, athlon 64 3500+ CPU, kingston RAM etc. This setup worked fine for 2,5 years but now i have the same problem as you guys. No post/boot or anything until i reset CMOS with jumpers. Then it boots fine until i save (even if no changes) in BIOS. After that no post/boot again. Right now im operating my comp without CMOS battery cause its cumbersome to reset the jumper all the time.

I have replaced almost everything except CPU. I replaced motherboard, ram, PSU, GPU, disconnnected ALL drives and PCI cards and still nothing. So i guess its have to be CPU issue. Too bad i dont have spare one to swap it. If some of you do have spare CPU then i think its worth a shot.

The only strange thing is that comp works fine after CMOS reset, so in this point of view CPU has to be fine... very strange , very strange

[Gunbuster]

Well I have the old Athlon 939 that I had in that failed setup. Would you like to give it a spin? Give me a PM if you do.