Dell XPS 8500 Hangs in BIOS
My client has a Dell XPS 8500 that has been in service since November 2012. Recently, it hung (froze) in the BIOS. Hard booting it (holding the power button until it goes off) has resulted in the same condition when the computer is started. There are no recent hardware or software changes. I would like to know what should be done to resolve the problem and would also like to know if this is a probable hardware issue (motherboard)? All suggestions will be appreciated.
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Thanks so much to both of you who responded with excellent guidance so promptly, particularly on a weekend. I will not be working on the computer until 2/10 afternoon, so will add comments then about what I learn.
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I tried all the hardware diagnostics suggested by garycase and still had the same problem with the computer hanging at the beginning of the BIOS progress bar. Therefore, it looked like a motherboard problem, so called Dell technical support (warranty in effect). By the time I called Dell, the computer had been turned off for about an hour following the reseating of memory, etc. Lo and behold, with the Dell technician on the phone, the computer booted. I saw a message about the keyboard flash on the screen. When it got to the user account login screen, as soon as I typed the letter "M", the beginning of the account password, i saw a message about invalid password. Replaced the keyboard and saw the same message when logging in normally. Booted in safe mode and logged in without any problem. Booting in normal mode resulted in the same issue with an invalid password displayed after typing the letter "m". Decided it might be a malware issue. Took the computer to my office. Plugged in my peripherals and the computer booted normally - no log in problem! Returned computer to client's location and confirmed that it would function normally with the new keyboard. So, this is one of the more bizarre problems that I've encountered because there is not a clear cut resolution.
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Thanks to all for excellent suggestions and fast responses.
Glad it's working ... but clearly that's yet-another of the computing world's "forever unsolved mysteries" :-) You might want to set the BIOS to ignore keyboard errors ... that should at least allow the system to boot if there's an issue with the keyboard -- and sometimes these will "self-resolve" after the Windows driver takes control.
I agree with Garycase, especially I notice problems when using wireless keyboards, so ignoring the keyboard errors in the bios makes sense. Some times the wireless receiver has issues until the system loads drivers in the windows environment.
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The original keyboard was a wired Dell keyboard. It was replaced with a wireless keyboard, so your suggestion about ignoring keyboard errors in the bios is a great idea. That will be a simple tweak! Thanks for the follow-on dialog.
i just hope the problem does not come back...these disappearing ones have a tendence to return later
If it get just beyond BIOS and attempts to access the hard drive, it could be a root kit virus.
Try starting it with a bootable CD (Ultimate Boot CD or equivalent). If it will not boot this way, then it is a hardware problem.
Please let us know.