UNSOLVED

Gosdra88

updated

5 years ago

G

Gosdra88

9 Posts

0

2865

November 23rd, 2021 10:00

Aurora r7 blink 3 times and won't boot

Hello ! 

I have a problem with my Aurora r7 and i hope somebody can help me.

  • Yesterday i have reinstalled windows 10, everything was working fine untill i went to dell website in order to get the latest drivers and updates. After i have installed the driver for the intel chipset, i was asked to restart the pc and after i did that, my pc won't boot up anymore. The power button flashes 3 times (amber). According to Dell, it seems a problem with the chipset or mother board. I have tried to reset CMOS by removing the battery, I have tried to reset it switching the jumper position according to the manual, i have tried swapping RAM position thinking it might solve the problem. Unsuccessful. So what do you think? Why this problem appears after installing the chipset driver? Any suggestion ? Thank you all !
  • Vanadiel

    8 Professor

    •

    7094 Posts

    •

    29695 Points

    1656

    0

    Posted November 23rd, 2021 11:00

    Try to use the one time boot menu (F12 key) and see if you can boot from USB installation media.

    This way you can rule out drive failure or driver issues.

  • Gosdra88

    9 Posts

    1644

    0

    Posted November 23rd, 2021 11:00

    Well, it is true that I have also installed the BIOS update in the same time with the chipset driver and Intel thunderbolt. After these 3 were installed , I have restarted the computer. It is possible that the MB is bricked? If it is, is there any chance to rewrite/flasg the Bios using a USB stick?

  • redxps630

    11 Legend

    •

    16431 Posts

    •

    83176 Points

    1647

    0

    Posted November 23rd, 2021 11:00

    Re: Why this problem appears after installing the chipset driver?

    can be coincidental.  the lights can be a clue but may not be 100% reliable.  if your R7 cannot POST at all, no video, then it is not a hdd issue.  I would try to use a spare psu if available to r/o psu failing.  note a test psu needs to have two 4/8 pin cpu/eps connectors, one for mobo cpu, one for mobo gpu_pwr header.  also make sure you replace cmos battery w a brand new one.  you have already tried cmos jumper reset according to your report.  worst case scenario is bad motherboard or corrupted cmos.  hope it is not.

  • Gosdra88

    9 Posts

    1650

    0

    Posted November 23rd, 2021 11:00

    I have tried to boot up pressing f12 + USB  with windows 10, nothing happens. My keyboard lights up, my screen remains black, the power button turns from blue to 3 times amber blinking.( like after 10 seconds after I push the power button)

  • speedstep

    11 Legend

    •

    46969 Posts

    1639

    0

    Posted November 23rd, 2021 12:00

    @Gosdra88 

    "3 - 6 amber flash" is bios update failure.

    Aurora r7 drivers

     

    Please press the blue Accept as Solution button below if the post answers your question.

    Note: BIOS recovery is only applicable to USB 2.0 FAT32 flash drives.  All other storage should be removed to recover bios.

    3,6 blink means its not dead yet.

     BIOS RECOVERY

    recovert2.png

     

    How do I initiate BIOS Recovery on a Dell desktop or all-in-one computer?

    1. Restart the computer.
    2. Press and hold the CTRL + ESC key on the keyboard until the BIOS Recovery page appears.
    3. On the BIOS Recovery screen, select Reset NVRAM (if available) and press the Enter key. Select Disabled and press the Enter key to save the current BIOS settings.
    4. Select Recover BIOS and press the Enter key to start the recovery process.

    Are you seeing a 3-6 or 3-7 LED No POST diagnostic error on your Alienware or XPS PC?

    Recovery Requires disconnecting All storage devices and using a USB 2.0 FAT32 flash Drive. Use a WIRED USB Keyboard.

    must be usb2 media 16 gig 32 gig max MUST be FAT32

    cannot be fat 16 or exfat or ntfs

    SanDisk SDCZ60-016G-B35  Fat32 USB 2.0

    Affected Systems:

    Alienware R5/R6/R7/R8/R11
    XPS 8910/8920/8930/8940

    On a working machine
    Download the BIOS update executeable
    Erase the flash drive FAT32
    Copy the file to the flash drive.
    Hook up wired USB Keyboard
    in an admin dos prompt go to the flash drive letter and
    EDIT this is no longer needed to rename      BIOS_IMG.rcv





    You can download the RCV file Directly now.

    File Format: BIOS Recovery Image File
    File Name: BIOS_IMG.rcv
    Download Type: HTTP
    File Size: 12.19 MB
    Format Description:
    This file format consists of a BIOS Recovery image file. This file is used for the System BIOS Recovery process to recover a system from a corrupted BIOS.
     
     
    To ensure the integrity of your download, please
    verify the checksum value.
    MD5:f09ee3483944d97707c54ff87672270d
    SHA1:8fb06fb2eb9574ddf48072c8d1a6a18be1a7023f
    SHA-256:6e92b3d99bb98ebacd3b5bcf4883b26317df3e79661715ba5112b9ee157c06c5

    BIOS_IMG.rcv

  • speedstep

    11 Legend

    •

    46969 Posts

    1639

    0

    Posted November 23rd, 2021 13:00

    @Gosdra88 

    See my post on bios recovery.

    You are bricked but not yet Dead.  You need WIRED usb keyboard,  USB 2.0 flash drive FAT32  16 or 32 gigs.  32 gigs is preferrred because the recovery file is 12 gigs.

    Most of the Details are in my prior post.

  • Gosdra88

    9 Posts

    1635

    0

    Posted November 23rd, 2021 13:00

    • Thank you for your reply ! 
    • As far as i can see the file is only 12.19MB large ( not 12 gigs ) - am i missing something?
    • I have dowoaded the file, i have copied it on my Sandisk 2.0 16gb fat32 usb stick using my laptop. After that, I inserted the USB into the 2.0 usb port on my aurora r7. When i pressed the power button, i have also maintained pressed the Ctrl-Esc keys. Even so, nothing appeared on the screen. The power button is still flashing 3,6 amber. Am i doing smth wrong? 
  • Gosdra88

    9 Posts

    1633

    0

    Posted November 23rd, 2021 14:00

    I don't know how to edit my previous reply, but I would like to mention the fact that I have also removed the ssd m2 and disconnected the hdd drive.

  • redxps630

    11 Legend

    •

    16431 Posts

    •

    83176 Points

    1615

    0

    Posted November 23rd, 2021 21:00

    Re: It is possible that the MB is bricked? If it is, is there any chance to rewrite/flasg the Bios using a USB stick?

    this is difficult for most users. you can in theory use a USB programmer to hard flash the cmos chip but in practice it is not so easy and takes experience.  if you can not revive the board then it is time to upgrade or ask how much Dell would charge you for a out of warranty repair of board, or buy a replacement board.  in 2021 for R7 I would suggest upgrade.  but the R7 case can not be upgraded to a non Dell mobo unfortunately (Dell made it hard for repurposing the case).

  • speedstep

    11 Legend

    •

    46969 Posts

    249

    0

    Posted November 25th, 2021 10:00

    The main problem with Flash drives is that they are often faked.  Thats why you buy them retail.  8gig drives are actually less than 8 gigs total space because a gig is NOT 1000000 bytes its 1048576 bytes.  8 gig flash drives have 7 gigs space, 16 gig flash drives have 14 gigs space,  32 gig flash drives have 29 gigs space.   Cannot be smaller than 16 and cannot be larger than 32 gigs because otherwise its EXFAT not FAT32.  The series of blinks tells me the board is not dead yet.

    The other route is to buy a working unit.

    https://www.ebay.com/itm/114992766030