topic My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold in PCs & Accessories

My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

mike1333 — Fri, 04 Mar 2005 06:40:30 GMT

Hi..I`ve got a PCG-GRV616G Notebook and have been using it without any problems for 2 years.Now a very strange thing has happened...it won`t boot under normal room temperature !! So what I do is putting it outside for 5-10 minutes which is getting it realy cold because it`s winter,then take it in and it boots and works normally......This sounds crazy but it`s no joke..I went to a computer repair shop but they had no clue what to do about it.
Is there anybody out there who can help me or has had a similar problem ??

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

rich912 — Fri, 04 Mar 2005 09:11:20 GMT

Strange one!
How far does the boot process get and do you receive any message, such as `operating system not found¿?
If you are able to access the Bios check that the hard drive is recognised.

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

condrix — Fri, 04 Mar 2005 17:54:33 GMT

My 40GB HD died a week ago or so, I was lucky and had to save all important data before it finaly went to the heaven.
My friend told me later, in emergency I'd put it to the freezer and will work untill warming up, which would be enough to save data.
Maybe it happens with you as well? HD works untill warming up... It is for sure if you hear Click..... Click..... Click from the HD...

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

kee-lo_ — Fri, 04 Mar 2005 21:15:59 GMT

Sounds like it's overheating, so I would call Sony on Monday and have it taken away, as you could cause damage running it without the fan on properly or a blockage.

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

seb21__ — Fri, 04 Mar 2005 21:19:25 GMT

Use this to check the temperature of the harddisc and CPU.

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

mike1333 — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 01:27:27 GMT

I don`t think it´s overheating...I leave it switched off the whole day which should be enough time to cool it down and when I want to use it in the evening I still have to take it out in the cold first or it won`t boot....

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

mike1333 — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 01:32:07 GMT

Strange one!
How far does the boot process get and do you receive any message, such as `operating system not found¿? 
If you are able to access the Bios check that the hard drive is recognised.

The boot process doesn`t start at all....the green light goes on, you hear the engine running , but the screen stays black...

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

mike1333 — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 01:38:53 GMT

Sounds like it's overheating, so I would call Sony on Monday and have it taken away, as you could cause damage running it without the fan on properly or a blockage.

Thanx for the tool....I did that , the temperature is 64 C and
HDD is 44 C. Is that normal ??

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

kee-lo_ — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 01:39:59 GMT

If you feel confident enough I would open it up and have a look inside, check the fans are connected up, clean out the fans, and do some general housekeeping in there.

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

seb21__ — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 08:03:43 GMT

here is a manual, to open the a PCG-GRV.

But it's a 516G and its in german. May be the pictures helps.

Link, but be carefully!

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

rich912 — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 10:42:39 GMT

The boot process doesn`t start at all....the green light goes on, you hear the engine running , but the screen stays black...

In that case it could be a memory problem. Either one of the modules or, more likely, one of the slots. Try a single chip in each slot for all permutations.

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

robpaxton — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 18:16:09 GMT

I tend to agree with you Richard. This could be the infamous GRX/GRV series memory slot problem in another guise.

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

kee-lo_ — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 20:12:07 GMT

Not that again.....

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

rich912 — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 20:27:55 GMT

This could be the infamous GRX/GRV series memory slot problem in another guise.

It is high time that Sony put there hands up to this one:smileysad:

Funnily enough, on the temperature issue, a couple of years ago I had a reverse problem with a chip in my car. If it was frosty the engine refused to start. Through experimentation I discovered that a hot air gun under the bonnet for 10 minutes sorted things out. My local Renault dealer, although sympathetic, was completely flummoxed.

As luck would have it the problem reoccurred on a day trip to France. The AA called out a local garage (not Renault), towed me in, plugged in the computer and `hey presto¿ back on the road in 30 minutes. A bad seating on a chip was the problem apparently, and the temperature thing was all to do with coefficient of expansion.

No relevance to Vaio¿s, I know, but interesting tech stuff.

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

seb21__ — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 20:38:18 GMT

No relevance to Vaio¿s, I know, but interesting tech stuff.

But you have hit the point.:smileyhappy:

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

kee-lo_ — Sat, 05 Mar 2005 21:49:20 GMT

Rich what a coincidence too, in France with a Renault, you'd be in good hands, as they have the parts in the country and they're really common

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

mike1333 — Sun, 06 Mar 2005 03:11:34 GMT

The boot process doesn`t start at all....the green light goes on, you hear the engine running , but the screen stays black...
 

In that case it could be a memory problem. Either one of the modules or, more likely, one of the slots. Try a single chip in each slot for all permutations.

Hi Richard....that sounds interesting.I also don`t think it`s a ventilator problem because in that case the notebook would switch itself off after some time of running and as I said, when my notebook has booted, it runs normally for hours.
Could you please put what you were saying into PLAIN English ?? Also, what should I do exactly about this memory slot problem ??

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

mike1333 — Sun, 06 Mar 2005 03:17:40 GMT

here is a manual, to open the a PCG-GRV.

But it's a 516G and its in german. May be the pictures helps.

Danke für das Manual. Wusste garnicht das det so kompliziert ist son Laptop zu öffnen !!!

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

ndalikan — Sun, 06 Mar 2005 06:13:08 GMT

Hello. I had the same problem. Apparently, I had to send my Vaio to Sony where they replaced the whole motherboard and charged me 350 GBP as it was out of warranty. After that, it works perfectly

It sounds as a general issue so I suggest we all raise it as it may be a make malfunction.

I hope this helps,
Nikos

Re: My notebook won`t boot unless it is very cold

rich912 — Sun, 06 Mar 2005 08:49:30 GMT

Could you please put what you were saying into PLAIN English ?? Also, what should I do exactly about this memory slot problem ??

Firstly have a look at your notebook manual, this will explain how to access and remove the memory modules.

Remove your battery and disconnect from AC power.

Remove one module and try booting.
If this fails swap the same module over to the other slot and try again.
Follow the same procedure with the other module.

If you do manage to boot normally with any of the combinations then you should have enough information to deduce whether the problem is with one of the chips or a slot.

If it is a slot then you will either have to replace the motherboard, settle for less memory or fit a larger module in the good slot.

I hope that this helps, good luck.