General Chat

turned on computer this morning and keep getting 'no signal'. can hear something whirring. also, can!t turn it off unless at mains and then I lose my internet connection for this ipad. Any help please?
Many thanks
phyll

Whirring is fan so there's electricity to it.

What do you mean by no signal, - you are getting that message or nothings coming on the monitor at all?

We sometimes have to turn off our ancient 'tower' PC by holding down the 'Power' button for a minute or so. You could try that.

Although not knowledgeable about IT, it sounds as if your Ipad is linked to the PC rather than a router. Surely that can't be right? :-S

Hope Rollo or someone with a similar level of knowledge comes to your rescue!!

Thanks Pat for your reply. I am seeing 'no signal' on the monitor.

When you start up do you hear the welcome screen (the tune you get at the start - if you normally hear it) and is the hard disc light on or flashing?

The hard disk light is on.









The hard disk light is on.

Have you checked the cable between the PC and the monitor is securely plugged in at each end?

Maybe this video would help (if you can see it on the iPad.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDS8s2zEmew

Yes Kense, checked all wires, plugs, etc

The chap in the video reckons it is probably a RAM problem.

RAM will never fail in such a way as to result in "NO VIDEO" on the monitor. If the RAM is failing then you will get BSODs ( blue screen of death ) from time to time. Easily the top reason for BSODs is overheating - open the box and ensure it is well defluffed. Failing RAM will result in display artefacts on the screen not "no display". Even if the wrong RAM is used something will be displayed by the BIOS even if the machine won't boot.. If you do decide to try removing the RAM and reseating it then remove all power and video cables first and make sure you are earthed using a strap. Do NOT do this in a room with carpets. To remove RAM there are two little clips at each end. Gently move them outwards and the RAM will be released. To put the RAM back just push it into the slot and the clips will auto-engage.

Replacement RAM is very cheap but ensure any RAM bought is on the maker's approved list not generic.

"no signal" means that the monitor is receiving no signal from the computer graphics ( which may be built in or on a card ). The most common reason for this is a loose cable. Check both ends are in securely. Even if the cable is faulty it will probably give a signal with one or more colors missing. I assume you have VGA or DVI connection. If you have HDMI get another cable they are v cheap.

If you are sure that the cable is not loose ...

It appears that your computer is sharing its net connection with yr iPad. Not a good idea - setup yr iPad to use yr ISP router directly so that it doesn't matter if the computer is on or off. Try and avoid using guest login to the router. It is simple but very insecure and best disabled. You will have to choose the router from yr iPad and input the password which is usually printed on a label stuck to the router.

The computer is working fairly ok otherwise yr iPad could not get a net connection from it.

That means a display problem. IF checking for a loose cable doesn't sort it you have case (a) discrete video card and (b) built in video. (a) is most common with towers and older home theatre machines (b) with laptops and very small format machines such as Dell.

Don't panic. The problem may just be software driver.

Power off the machine.
Restart - if anything at all is displayed (other than no signal of course) then the problem is with the video drivers.
Nothing to be seen - video hardware problem.

If it is a typical tower then you will need a new video card. If the machine is not ancient this will be PCi-E 2.0. A new one which will cover anything except gaming £ 20-30.
You may have a more up to date box with Intel i3/i5/i7 cpu also delivering video. You can try adding a PCiE video card and see if you get a result.
If it is a small format machine (usually DELL ex-office) then it is game over but the hard drive can be removed and data recovered using USB.

Thanks Rollo for your advice. I think I will have to call someone in to assist me as I would hate to touch or do something that makes the problem worse.

A thanks to all for your kind replies.

Phyll

Before you do that - wiggle the cables! Several people have suggested that. You might have dislodged them in the course of (swear word) dusting or vaccing

As Detective said at least check the video cable is secure. A loose cable is by far the most likely reason for "no display".

Don't trust techies to tell the truth when it comes to fixing it. They are there to bill you as much as possible for as many reasons as possible. You have been warned!

Due to the greed of computer support aka grabbit & gnasher we provide a free support service (and free PCs) for the tenants of several private landlords. Not spending a fortune on computer support makes it that bit easier to pay the rent.