PC fans activate upon switching the PSU yet the screen remains inactive.
PC fans activate upon switching the PSU yet the screen remains inactive.
I have an old Dell Inspiron 537s setup with 4 GB RAM and a Core 2 quad CPU running on a Thermaltake TR 2 600W power supply. I'm attempting to convert it into my first NAS. The board isn’t in a case yet, but when I connect the PSU and power it on, all fans—CPU cooler and PSU—start spinning up without any issues. However, no display appears, even though I’ve connected it via VGA through the integrated GPU. My 980 Ti is also not showing up. I’m wondering if a short circuit somewhere on the board might be causing both the startup problems and the lack of display. Or could another component be faulty? Thanks for any guidance!
Consider checking the CMOS reset first, as it might resolve the issue.
I attempted a different PSU and noticed the fans didn’t spin initially. After resetting the CMOS by removing and reinserting the battery, I had to short the correct pins on the motherboard before the fans started. Once that was done, the fans eventually turned on but still lacked display functionality. When I powered down the PSU and restarted it, it returned to its old behavior—fans spinning immediately. It seems there might be an older Intel Core 2 Duo in the closet, possibly with some DDR2 RAM. I’m unsure if it’s worth searching for that specific CPU or if this issue is more related to another component.
Ensure you have just one RAM module installed. Disconnect any extra peripherals connected to your computer. Reattach your previous GPU and power it on for a minute to check if the problem resolves.