How to disassemble laptop keyboardHow to disassemble a laptop keyboard? Can I take it apart and clean liquid spill? Is it easy to repair a damaged keyboard?

I’ve been getting these questions many times and today I show how to disassemble a laptop keyboard. You decide if it’s possible and easy or not.

By the way, in one of the previous posts I explain how to fix individual keys on a laptop keyboard.

I’m doing it for fun. I’m working on a damaged keyboard and have no intention to use it in the future.

First of all, you’ll have to remove the laptop keyboard.

How to fix broken keyboard connector on laptop motherboard

This guide explains how to fix a broken keyboard connector on a laptop motherboard. I do not claim that my instructions will work for any connector type in any laptop brand, but if I can help a few people, I can call my mission accomplished.

Let’s say the keyboard in your laptop stopped working properly and you decided to install a new keyboard yourself. You disassembled the laptop, removed the keyboard, tried to unlock the keyboard connector and… OHH! MAN!… a piece of the locking clip on the connector got broken!

What can you do? Unfortunately, you don’t have a lot of options. The keyboard connector is permanently soldered to the motherboard and cannot be replaced at home. If the connector was damaged, you’ll have to replace the whole motherboard, use the laptop with an external USB keyboard, or…. try the following trick. Hopefully it works or you.

The keyboard cable is locked inside the connector on the motherboard. In order to remove the keyboard, you have to unlock the connector and release the cable.

How to fix hardware problems without taking apart the laptop

Here’s how you can fix, or to be precise, work around some hardware problem without taking apart the laptop.

1. Network port failure.

In most laptops the network port (aka RJ-45 port) is soldered directly to the motherboard. If for some reason the network port fails (I’m talking about hardware, not software failure), the whole motherboard has to be replaced.

Instead of replacing the motherboard, you can use a PCMCIA network card (aka LAN PC card). You plug this card into the available PC slot in your laptop and get a network port instead.

How to test LCD screen inverter in a laptop

In this post I explain how I test the LCD screen inverter board in a laptop computer.

The screen inverter failure is very similar to the backlight lamp failure. In both cases the screen gets very dark and the image on the screen becomes very faint, barely visible under a bright light.

If you suspect the inverter board failure, I know only one reliable way to test that. It’s either replacing the inverter board with a known good one and see if it works, or connecting a known good backlight lamp and see if your presumably bad inverter lights it up.

In most cases I go with the second method – testing the laptop with a known good backlight lamp. Why? Because backlight lamps are pretty much universal. The same backlight lamp will work with many different inverters as long as they have matching connectors. I’ll talk about these connectors later.

The inverter board is located inside the display panel under the LCD screen. In most laptops you can access the inverter board if you remove the LCD screen bezel. The inverter board has connectors on both ends. Read the rest of this entry »

How to fortify damaged power jack connection in a laptop

In order to replace the power jack in your laptop you’ll have to remove the jack from the motherboard as I explained in the previous post: Replacing DC power jack.While removing the jack you can accidentally pull out the internal copper coating (I’ll call it a sleeve) from the inside of the “+” terminal as it shown on the picture below.

The internal copper sleeve has been removed and cannot be installed back. If you solder the power jack back on the motherboard without this sleeve it might work but the connection between the “+” lead and motherboard will not be reliable.

In the following guide I explain how to fortify a damaged power jack connection. You can use this repair technique in some laptops with similar power jacks.

Read the rest of this entry »

How I installed external Bluetooth adapter inside my laptop

Here’s how I installed an external USB Bluetooth adapter INSIDE my laptop and made it internal. My laptop wasn’t Bluetooth ready, it didn’t have internal Bluetooth connector and antenna but I needed it in order to access the cell phone without running a cable.

My first option was using the external USB Bluetooth adapter as is but it wasn’t very convenient. I decided to find a way to install this adapter inside the laptop.Read the rest of this entry »

You replaced broken LCD screen but the new screen is not working

You replaced the broken LCD screen in your laptop with a new screen but it’s not working. Does this sound like your problem? Let’s find out what could be wrong and how you can fix it.

First of all, I assume that your new LCD screen is compatible with the old one. Different screens require different video cables. Make sure you new screen is compatible with your laptop.

OK, let’s say you accidentally damaged the LCD screen in your laptop. A part of the screen still works fine but you cannot use it like that so you decided to replace the screen yourself. You can find LCD replacement instructions in service manuals or this DIY site.

You did some research and purchased a compatible screen, installed it into the laptop, turned it on and… The new screen is not working!!! What could be wrong?Read the rest of this entry »

Laptop battery stops charging when I move power cord

This laptop has a power problem. The battery stops charging when I move the power cord on the DC adapter. When I start moving the cord left to right, the power LED light on the front goes on and off and the battery charge LED goes on and off too.

I removed the battery and tested the laptop again. The laptop starts fine from the DC adapter when the battery is removed, but as soon as I start moving the power cord the laptop shuts off. It looks like the laptop looses power immediately.

If you have a problem like that, most likely it’s related either to the power adapter or the DC-IN power jack.

Read the rest of this entry »

Laptop is dead. How to troubleshoot the problem.

In this post I’ll explain how to troubleshoot a dead laptop and find the problem. The following troubleshooting tips are not model and brand specific, they should work for most laptops.

Let’s take a look at two different scenarios.

Example 1. The laptop is absolutely dead. When you plug in the power adapter and press on the power button, there is no signs of life at all. The laptop will not make usual noises, LEDs will not light up, the fan will not spin, the screen is blank and black, etc… In short, the laptop is dead.

What you can do in this case?1. Make sure the wall outlet is working and the laptop DC adapter is getting power from the outlet. Try another wall outlet.2. Test the laptop DC power adapter, make sure the voltage output is correct. You can test the DC power adapter with a voltmeter.3. Let’s say the DC adapter is fine and the adapter outputs correct voltage. In this case unplug the power adapter from the laptop, remove the battery, wait for 1-2 minutes, plug in the adapter and try turning on the laptop again.

OK, you tested the adapter and it’s bad. If you decide to replace the original DC adapter with a generic one, you’ll have to follow this rule:The voltage output on your new adapter has to be exactly the same as on the original adapter. The amperage on the new adapter could be the same or higher.

If nothing helps and the laptop is still dead, apparently the motherboard is fried or there is a problem with the DC power jack. It’s possible the DC power jack is broken and the motherboard is not getting any power from the adapter. In this case you’ll have to disassemble the laptop and replace the power jack. Check out this guide for fixing laptop power jack.

Example 2. When you plug the DC power adapter and press on the power button, the laptop starts making normal noises, the LEDs work properly but noting appears on the screen. The laptop will not start.

Laptop LCD screen turned completely white

What can you do if the laptop LCD screen turned completely white? From my experience I can tell that this problem may be related to the following:1. Loose connection between the video cable and the LCD screen.2. Defective LCD screen.3. Defective motherboard (I assume the graphics card is integrated into the motherboard).

Here’s an example of a laptop with white screen. When you turn on the laptop, it starts but the image on the screen is completely white right from the beginning. In my case it was a Toshiba Satellite M45 laptop but this problem may occur with any other brand.

Very strange hard drive failure symptomsA few days ago I had to repair a notebook with symptoms that didn’t look like a hard drive failure at all. But the problem was fixed after I replace the hard drive.

It was Toshiba Satellite A70-S249 notebook with the following problem.When I press on the power button, the laptop starts up as usual and a red Toshiba logo appears on the screen. After a moment the logo disappears and the screen turns black without any faint image and flashing cursor. The blue light around the power button stays on and fans continue to spin normal but nothing appears on the screen. I noticed that the hard drive LED blinks green on the startup and after that shows no activity at all. After a closer inspection I noticed that the screen is not completely black (like dead black), it didn’t have any image on it but it had a very faint backlight (I would say about 3-5% of normal brightness). I was able to see that there is some backlight after I pressed on the lid close switch and the screen turned to completely black.

Here are my troubleshooting steps that I went through to find the problem.First of all, I replaced the memory module and didn’t get any changes. Removed the wireless card, still had the same problem.After that I removed the hard drive and started the computer. This time I got something. The notebook successfully passed the Toshiba screen and started looking for a boot device. I got some activity on the screen. To make sure that the notebook itself works fine, I booted it from Knoppix (live Linux CD) and successfully loaded the Linux operating system to the desktop. So, that’s the hard drive problem!I installed the hard drive back in the laptop and tried to boot it again. The same failure occurred again; I got a black screen with a very faint backlight and no hard drive activity at all. I tested the hard drive with Hitachi DFT test and failed an advanced test. The problem is detected!Finally I installed a new hard drive, reimaged the drive with a recovery DVD and got the laptop back up and running.

By the way, even though the customer’s hard drive failed the DFT test, I still was able to access it from another computer. The customer had important personal files on the failed drive. I connected it to our recovery desktop computer using IDE adapter. The “failed” hard drive was detected without any problem and I was able to recover the data.

Laptop turns on for a few seconds and then shuts down. No video appears on the screen.

Today I was able to fix a “dead” notebook simply by reseating connectors. The customer brought in Compaq nx5000 notebook with the following complaint:

“Laptop shuts down on power up. When the power button is pushed, the laptop flashes green lights for several seconds and then powers down. Unit will not stay on with battery or when plugged in”.

I plugged the AC adapter and tried to turn on the laptop. After I pushed on the power button, fans started spinning and were active for a few seconds and laptop just turned itself off. The video never came on. I tried to power it on for a few times with the same result.Here is how I fixed it. First of all I tried simple stuff: remove the battery and start the laptop with AC adapter plugged in, reseat and swap the memory module, remove the hard drive, the DVD drive, the wireless card. Nothing helped to start the laptop normally. After that I went a little bit further. I opened up the laptop case, removed the LCD screen assembly and reseated the

video card and… Surprise, surprise, the laptop started fine with an external monitor attached. Just in case I restarted it 3-4 times and each time I got video on the screen. After I assembled everything back, one more surprise was waiting for me. The laptop failed to boot again with the same symptoms. So, the only part that I added before it failed was the LCD screen assembly. I unplugged the video cable from the system board and the laptop started fine again with the external monitor. Now I know that the problem is somewhere inside the display assembly (of course, if the video connector on the system board is fine). The next logical step would be opening up the LCD display assembly and check if all connectors are seated properly. Bingo!!! I wasn’t very surprised, but I was very happy. The video cable was half-way out from the connector on the back of the LCD screen. The laptop started perfectly fine as soon as I plugged the video cable back in place. Fixed!That was my first experience when improperly plugged video cable prevented entire system from booting.

How to troubleshoot and fix laptop video problems

Here are some tips and tricks for troubleshooting and fixing laptop video problems. Video issues are very common within portable computers and with the following tips you should be able to detect and eliminate basic laptop video problems.

Laptop LCD screen has a faint image.

Look at the LCD screen very closely and check if you can see a faint image on the screen. It’s possible that the LCD lid close switch stuck in the “closed” position and the

backlight stays off even when you open the LCD screen or turn on the laptop. The switch turns off the backlight when you close the LCD display to save the laptop battery power. Check the LCD lid close switch. Usually it is a small plastic pin located close to the LCD hinges. Try to tap on the switch a few times to turn on the backlight. If after tapping on the LCD lid close switch the backlight stays on, you fixed the problem.It is also possible that after tapping on the LCD lid close switch the backlight works fine, you see a normal video on the screen for some time and then the backlight turns itself off again. In this case I would blame the FL inverter board. Try to reseat cables on both end of the FL inverter to make a better contact between the cables and the FL inverter board. If it doesn’t help I would try to replace the FL inverter board.

Laptop LCD screen is solid white color.

Most likely it is just a bad connection between the LCD display and the system board. I would try reseating the video cable connector on the back of the LCD screen first and check if it fixes the problem. After that I would try reseating the video cable connector on the system board. I would also try reseating cables if there is no video on the LCD screen at all.

The video on the LCD screen is garbled.

Try to connect the LCD screen to an external monitor. If the external video is fine, you have a problem with the LCD screen or the LCD video cable. You can try to fix the problem by reseating the video cable on the back of the LCD and on the system board.If you see the same garbled video output on the external monitor most likely it is not the LCD screen problem. In this case the system board (with onboard video) is bad or the video card is bad.

I understand that these tips will not cover all video problems with portable computers. If you have a different problem, you are welcome to leave a comment and I will try to help you if I can.

Are you looking for a new LCD screen for you laptop? Try searching here.

Here’s a notebook display assembly diagram and tips for finding spare notebook parts.

How I took apart and repaired my notebook LCD screen with water damage

Yesterday took apart and repaired my notebook LCD screen with water damage. The screen itself was working just fine but it had two different problems.

- previous owner spilled water on the laptop. Somehow the water got inside the LCD screen and left stains inside the screen. The water marks were very noticeable on a white background and it was very irritating.- the screen also had dust and lint inside also very noticeable on a white background. I have no idea how it got in there but I decided to clean it up too.

To fix both problems I had to open up the LCD screen. This was my first experience on opening a notebook screen. I was pretty confident because I didn’t really care if I break the screen, I just wanted to know if it’s possible to fix it.

Warning: the LCD screen can be easily damaged if you open it up. If you do something wrong the screen might become completely unusable and you’ll have to buy a new screen. It’s very expensive. Think twice before you decide opening the screen. Continue at your own risk.

Here’s my Dell Latitude D610 notebook with water damaged screen I’m going to take apart.First of all remove the battery from the notebook.

Lift up rubber screw seals and remove all screws.

Carefully separate the screen bezel from the LCD cover and remove the bezel.

Remove two screws from the front and two screws from both sides.

Carefully remove the LCD screen from the cover and place it on the notebook base. Disconnect the video cable and the inverter board cable.

On this model the inverter board is attached to the screen with two screws. Remove both screws, disconnect the screen cable and remove the inverter board.

Carefully peel off sticky tape and foil and put it aside. You’ll have to put it back in place during the screen reassembly.

Remove two screws from both sides of the screen.

Carefully place the screen upside down on a flat surface. Carefully unglue the film that covers the circuit board and remove two screws from the board (top circles). I wasn’t really sure if I have to remove screws on the bottom, so I removed them just in case. Do not touch the circuit board with fingers.

After both screws are removed you should be able to lift up the circuit board. Be careful, it’s still attached to the LCD.

Start unsnapping the metal frame from the screen. There are a lot of latches on all sides of the screen. You can unlock them with nails or a small flathead screwdriver.

After all latches are opened you should be able to separate the screen into three pieces: metal frame, LCD and background (not sure about correct technical name).If you have lint or dust inside the screen, probably you’ll find it between the LCD and the background. Do not touch LCD or background with your fingers. I was able to remove dust and lint up with a very soft cloth, barely touching the LCD and background surfaces.

After I split the screen I found that the background has a few some kind of optical layers (three transparent sheets) and in my case they were damaged by water. The water dried out and left stains between these optical layers.In my case removing dust and lint wasn’t enough and I had to go further.

Very carefully separate the LCD with attached circuit board from the background.

To remove damaged optical layers it’s necessary to remove metal locks on both sides of the screen. It’s like a small clip that keeps layers in place.

After I removed both clips, I was able to look between the layers. At first I tried to clean up the dried water marks with a soft cloth but it didn’t help. The stains were still visible and didn’t want to go away.Fortunately I had another similar screen laying around, it had a cracked LCD. I decided to borrow the optical layers from the cracked screen and transfer them to my screen. I wasn’t sure if it’s going to work, but as I mentioned before I didn’t really care if I break the screen. It was just an experiment.So I disassembled the cracked screen and carefully transfered the white background and all transparent layers to my screen.

After that I assembled my screen back removing dust and lint with a very soft cloth. Breathlessly connected my new screen to the notebook. Turned it on and…That’s a miracle, it works!No dust, no lint, no water mars inside the screen! It’s clear and the background is absolutely clean!

My donor screen had a cracked LCD but it had a good working backlight tube. The backlght tube is very fragile and it’s located inside a metal casing. I didn’t remove the backlight tube, I just broke off the entire metal casing from the plastic frame. I’m going

to use this backlight tube for testing purposes.

If you fixing a Dell laptop yourself, probably you’ll need a service manual. Some Dell service manuals provide step-by-step laptop disassembly instructions.

Are you looking for a new screen? You can find very inexpensive brand new LCD screens here, just search for your laptop model.

Toshiba Satellite A105 battery charging problem

Today I got Toshiba Satellite A105-S2712 for repair with the battery charging problem. It is a new model and we do not have a lot of experience with these laptops. The customer complained that the laptop will not charge the battery when it is plugged into the AC outlet.

The laptop failure symptoms:

The laptop will not turn on when I try to start it from the battery. When the laptop is turned off and plugged into the AC outlet the battery charge LED doesn’t light up. I know that the battery is not charged and the LED should light up when I plug the laptop into the AC outlet. The laptop starts fine when it is plugged. When I move the mouse over the Toshiba Power Icon in the lower right corner, the balloon will pop up and there is a line in there: Battery Remaining: N/A.

The problem repair procedure:

You can easily fix the problem just by updating the BIOS. Toshiba says that the BIOS version should be at least v1.30. So, go to Toshiba website and click on Downloads. Select your laptop model and find any downloads for the BIOS. In the BIOS change history you will see the description of changes.

After I updated the BIOS, the battery charging problem disappeared.

“Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt” error on startup

Today I was scheduled to repair Toshiba Satellite Pro M10-S405 laptop with a “software problem”. The customer complained that he is getting the following error right after he turns on his laptop.

ERRORWindows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:System32\Drivers\ntfs.sys

I started the laptop and got the above mentioned error right away. Restarted it again and on startup a different file was missing:

System32\Drivers\pci.sys

If you search on the internet for these errors you will find a lot of tips how to fix it. Unfortunately, on most websites this error is mentioned only as a software problem. They say that you can fix it if you replace corrupted files from a Windows CD using a recovery console. I guess in some cases you can fix the problem by replacing corrupted files, but from my experience I know that these kinds of errors are very often caused by a faulty memory module.

I started testing the memory on the laptop with Memtest 86+ utility and the memory failed right away. The laptop had 2 memory sticks installed. I tried to eliminate a bad stick by removing and installing modules one by one into different slots on the system board. The same pattern occurred on startup:

- the laptop booted to Windows fine when only slot 1 was populated (tried both memory sticks)- the laptop wouldn’t boot at all (there were no video) when only slot 2 was populated- the laptop booted with a missing file error when both memory slots were populated

Unfortunately, it this case the error was caused by a defective memory slot on the system board, not just a bad memory stick. To fix the problem I had to replace the entire system board.

Conclusion: if you get a missing file error on startup and replacing the corrupted file doesn’t help, check the memory sticks on your laptop.

Toshiba Satellite L25-S1215 does not play DVDs correctly. The video and the sound output distorted.

“My DVD drive is not operating properly. It can play music CDs but when it plays DVDs the video and the sound are distorted.” It was my customer’s complaint about his Toshiba Satellite L25-S1215 laptop.

The following laptop troubleshooting steps helped me to fix the problem. The laptop booted to Windows pretty fast without any errors, with a normal hard drive sound and spinning CPU fan. I restarted the laptop couple times and didn’t notice anything abnormal. I tested the optical drive with a generic data CD and a

DVD movie. The drive recognized the data CD and all files on it but refused to play the DVD correctly. The video and sound output from the DVD movie was choppy, skipping scenes. It looked like a defective DVD drive and I ordered a replacement from Toshiba under warranty. I was pretty sure that a new DVD drive will fix the problem, but it didn’t. After I replaced the DVD drive the same problem occurred right away. The laptop had 256MB memory installed and 64MB were reserved for the video memory. I blamed a lack of memory and installed an extra 512MB memory stick and it didn’t help either. My guess about a corrupted video driver was wrong too because after I downloaded and reinstalled the driver the DVD video still was distorted. In cased like this, when we are not sure what is causing the problem the software or the hardware, we always install a test hard drive and reload the original factory software. I installed a test HDD and reloaded Toshiba Satellite L25 restore CD. After that the problem with a distorted video and audio output was fixed and I was able to play the movie for 2 hours without errors. Most likely, the problem with playing DVD occurred because of corrupted software.

If you have a similar problem with your laptop, do not rush to replace the DVD drive. Backup the important data and run a restore CD, it might fix your problem.

Toshiba Satellite M45 laptop freezes up after playing a DVD movie for about 30 minutes to an hour

One of my customers complained that his Toshiba Satellite M45 laptop freezes up after playing a DVD movie for about 30 minutes to an hour. First of all I booted the laptop to Windows to check a basic functionality of the computer. It booted fine and Windows OS appeared to be in a good shape. The laptop was fast and responsive. I left it on for 30 minutes and it didn’t fail. After that I launched a DVD player and started a home made DVD disc provided by the customer. After playing the movie for about 25 minutes, the laptop locked up. The video on the display froze up and vertical lines of flickering white dots appeared on some areas of the LCD screen. The video still was on the display but the laptop didn’t response to any keystroke and needed a hard reboot. I connected the laptop to an external monitor and tried to play a different DVD disc but it didn’t make any difference. The laptop locked up after 20 minutes and the same patter of vertical lines of dots appeared on the external monitor, so it’s not the LCD screen problem. From my experience I know that this kind of failure may occur because of bad memory modules. I started testing both 1GB memory modules with Memtest 86+ utility but the laptop locked up before I finished testing. Only after I removed both memory sticks and installed a good known test memory module I was able to play the customers DVD overnight and the laptop didn’t fail. To make sure that both memory slots on the system board are fine I installed my memory into the second slot and tested the laptop again. It worked fine.

So, the laptop didn’t fail with my memory stick installed into both memory slots on the system board. It means that the memory slots on the system board are good and the system board is good itself. Now it is time to test customer’s memory. I installed my 512MB memory stick in slot 1 and first customer’s memory stick into slot 2 and put the laptop on my bench to play a DVD movie. The laptop didn’t fail for 1 hour. After that I installed my 512MB memory into slot 2 and second customer’s stick into slot 1 and started the movie. The laptop didn’t fail again. OK, both 1GB memory sticks work fine with a combination with my 512MB memory, but do not work together. For some reason the laptop can manage 1.5GB of memory but cannot manage 2GB. Oh man! I do not know why I didn’t do it before, may be I didn’t sleep enough at night. Only after I spent all these time troubleshooting memory sticks, I decided to check Toshiba website for a new BIOS updates for this laptop. The laptop had BIOS v1.0 and this version was not even listed on Toshiba website. I guess it was some kind of pre-production version. The

current version was 1.10. After I updated the BIOS I didn’t see the problem with the video output anymore.

Toshiba Satellite 1415 notebook runs very slow

I spent about 4 hours trying to repair this laptop. The customer brought in Toshiba Satellite 1415 notebook with the following problem: Laptop runs very slow, sometimes locks up. When playing DVD movie, the video output is choppy and freezes up. He reloaded Windows XP from a restore CD but it didn’t help.

We see these kinds of laptops every day and this one didn’t look scary from the beginning. As I always do, I started the laptop waiting for the problem to occur. The laptop booted to Windows fine but much slower than an average unit. During the boot process I was listening for an unusual sound from the hard drive. It was a little bit loud; but nothing critical like a grinding sound. After the notebook booted to Windows, I tried to play a DVD movie and it took me more then 2 minutes to open WinDVD player software. It took one more minute to start playing a DVD movie. The video and the audio output were choppy. Replacing the DVD drive didn’t help. I was blaming the hard drive and started testing it with Hitachi Drive Fitness Test but it didn’t fail. Just in case I installed a test hard drive and reloaded the original factory software. Same problem occurred right after I rebooted the laptop. I tested the memory with Memtest 86+ test. It took me over 2.5 hours to test 512MB of memory but it didn’t fail the test. Usually this test runs much faster. Just in case, to make sure that the memory is not a culprit I swapped both memory sticks with a good known test memory but it didn’t fix the problem. After I excluded the hard drive and the memory I guessed that overheating was a problem because the laptop was running hot. If a laptop runs slow, I always check if the CPU heatsink is clogged with dust and lint. In this case cleaning up the heatsink, regreasing the CPU and reflashing the BIOS to the latest version didn’t help either. OK, I tried all easy stuff, now it’s time for hardcore. I started removing parts one by one trying to narrow down the problem. I removed the modem card, wireless card, DVD drive and left only the system board, the CPU, a good know hard drive with a fresh Windows load and a good known memory stick. The laptop still was running slow. After 4 hours I gave up. After I excluded almost every possible part, it must be a bad system board or a bad CPU. Replacing any of these parts wouldn’t make any sense because it would be more expensive than eBay price for a similar working laptop. I called to the customer and explained the situation and he just declined repair.

My Toshiba Satellite A85-S107 will not boot

The customer brought his Toshiba Satellite A85-S107 and complained that the laptop will not boot. First of all, I tried to start the laptop with a known good AC adapter, to make sure that the customers AC adapter is not a problem. The laptop didn’t start and there were no LED activity, the unit was “dead”. The good AC adapter wasn’t able to start the laptop. I started removing the laptop components one by one trying to eliminate the problem. I removed the battery, the memory module, the wireless card, the DVD drive and it didn’t fix the problem. I had just very few parts left: the system board, the CPU and the switch board. I remove the keyboard to check the power switch board and found that the switch board cable wasn’t properly connected to the system board, it was half way out. I reseated the cable on the system board and the laptop started properly.

BTW, the system board has 2 memory slots and by default the memory stick is located in the slot hidden under the keyboard. BUT, it is not enough to remove the keyboard if you want to replace the original memory module. After you remove the keyboard, you still will not be able to remove the memory because it is hidden under the top cover. To replace the original memory stick in Toshiba Satellite A85 you have to remove the entire top cover!!! It sucks!

Toshiba Satellite A85 and Satellite A80. How to replace laptop memory.

This post explains how to access both memory modules in a Toshiba Satellite A85 or Satellite A80 laptops. One memory module is located on the bottom but another one can be accessed only if you remove the keyboard.

A few things to know before you start taking your laptop apart

If you have a suggestion or a question about Toshiba Satellite A85 disassembly, you can leave your comment here: Comments for Toshiba Satellite A85 notebook disassembly

STEP 1

Unlock the battery and remove it from the laptop.

Need spare parts for Satellite A85 laptop? Search here.

STEP 2

Remove two screws securing the hard drive cover and remove the cover.Remove one screw securing the modem card and the wireless card cover and remove the cover.

STEP 3

Slide the hard drive left to disconnect it from the system board. Remove the hard drive.Carefully disconnect the wireless card antenna cables and remove the Wi-Fi card.

Remove two screws securing the modem card. Lift up the card to disconnect it from the system board. Disconnect the modem card cable.

STEP 4

Remove one screw securing the optical drive. You can push on the metal bracket to slide the drive from the laptop (you can see the bracket on the right from the screw). Remove the optical drive.

STEP 5

Remove all marked screws from the bottom of the laptop.

STEP 6

Start removing the keyboard strip with a sharp object and continue with your fingers.

STEP 7

After you unlocked all plastic latches you can remove the keyboard strip.

How to test LCD screen inverter in a laptop

In this post I explain how I test the LCD screen inverter board in a laptop computer.

The screen inverter failure is very similar to the backlight lamp failure. In both cases the screen gets very dark and the image on the screen becomes very faint, barely visible under a bright light.

If you suspect the inverter board failure, I know only one reliable way to test that. It’s either replacing the inverter board with a known good one and see if it works, or connecting a known good backlight lamp and see if your presumably bad inverter lights it up.

In most cases I go with the second method – testing the laptop with a known good backlight lamp. Why? Because backlight lamps are pretty much universal. The same backlight lamp will work with many different inverters as long as they have matching connectors. I’ll talk about these connectors later.

The inverter board is located inside the display panel under the LCD screen. In most laptops you can access the inverter board if you remove the LCD screen bezel. The inverter board has connectors on both ends. The left side of the inverter is connected to the LCD cable. The right side of the inverter is connected to the backlight lamp which is mounted inside the LCD screen. Check out this display diagram.

To make sure that inverter board is getting power from the motherboard (via the LCD cable), you can test it with a multimeter. In my case I connected the “+” lead of the multimeter to the pin 1 on the connector and the “-” lead to the ground trace around the screw hole. I got about 19.4V DC on that side of the inverter, so it’s getting power from the motherboard.

WARNING! If you accidentally short something on the inverter while testing it, you can damage the inverter or even the motherboard. Proceed on your own risk! Not sure? Don’t do that!

So, the inverter is getting power from the motherboard, but the screen is still dark. Apparently, it’s either bad inverter or failed backlight. Let’s test it with a known good backlight.

Here’s what I’m going to do:1. I will unplug the LCD screen from the right side of the inverter. Basically, I’m unplugging the LCD backligth lamp which is located inside the screen.2. I will plug in my known good backlight lamp which you can see on the picture below. Please notice that my test backlight lamp is shorter than the screen, but for the test purpose that’s OK.

Results I’m expecting:1. If my test backlight lights up, the backlight lamp inside the screen is bad and there is nothing wrong with the inverter board. If that’s the case, you’ll have to replace the LCD screen or replace the backligth lamp (which is not easy at all).2. If my known good backlight lamp stays dark after I turn on the laptop, most likely we have a faulty inverter board. If that’s the case, you’ll have to replace the inverter board and it’s relatively easy.

There are two different types of backlight connectors, you can see them on the picture below. The top one (big) is not as common as the bottom one (small). I do most of my test with a backligth lamp which has a small connector.

IMPORTANT! If you decide to buy a new backlight lamp for test, you have to make sure that the connector on the lamp matches the connector on the inverter. Very often backligth lamps are sold without any wires attached. If you plan to use this backlight as a test equipment, you’ll have to find one with wires as I have on the picture 3.

You can buy a cheap backlight lamp with wires here.

Finally, when you ready to test the laptop, unplug the LCD screen from the right side of the inverter.

Plug in your test backlight lamp and turn on the laptop.

In my case, the backlight lamp lights up, so the inverter board works properly.

How to fortify damaged power jack connection in a laptop

In order to replace the power jack in your laptop you’ll have to remove the jack from the motherboard as I explained in the previous post: Replacing DC power jack.While removing the jack you can accidentally pull out the internal copper coating (I’ll call it a sleeve) from the inside of the “+” terminal as it shown on the picture below.

The internal copper sleeve has been removed and cannot be installed back. If you solder the power jack back on the motherboard without this sleeve it might work but the connection between the “+” lead and motherboard will not be reliable.

In the following guide I explain how to fortify a damaged power jack connection. You can use this repair technique in some laptops with similar power jacks.

You can remove the copper sleeve from the power jack with a soldering guy and through it away. You cannot install this sleeve back into the terminal on the motherboard.

Find a small resistor or capacitor with thin leads. Cut off one of the leads. I’m going to use it to fortify the connection between the power jack and motherboard.

Shape the lead as it shown on the picture below.

Put the lead on the “+” connector on the power jack.

Solder the lead to the power jack.

Now I’m going to modify the “+” terminal on the PCB. Even though on the picture below it looks normal, it’s damaged inside (the internal coating has been removed).

Carefully scrape off green varnish around the whole on the “+” terminal on the PCB. You can use a small flathead screwdriver.

If the whole is not big enough for your modified power jack, you can widen it with an awl.

As you see on the picture below the whole on the terminal has been widened. Apply a fresh coat of solder on the clear area of the trace.

Install the power jack assembly on the motherboard. Make sure there is no gap between the jack and motherboard.

Here’s a view from the top side of the PCB.

Solder all pins except the modified “+” pin.

Now, when the power jack is secured, you can shape the lead as it shown on the picture below.

Solder the lead to the terminal. Remove excessive flux with an old tooth brash soaked in 99% alcohol.

Here’s a view from the bottom side of the motherboard.

Be very careful. Doing this modification you can damage the motherboard and make it unusable. Proceed on your own risk.

You replaced broken LCD screen but the new screen is not working

You replaced the broken LCD screen in your laptop with a new screen but it’s not working. Does this sound like your problem? Let’s find out what could be wrong and how you can fix it.

First of all, I assume that your new LCD screen is compatible with the old one. Different screens require different video cables. Make sure you new screen is compatible with your laptop.

OK, let’s say you accidentally damaged the LCD screen in your laptop. A part of the screen still works fine but you cannot use it like that so you decided to replace the screen yourself. You can find LCD replacement instructions in service manuals or this DIY site.

You did some research and purchased a compatible screen, installed it into the laptop, turned it on and… The new screen is not working!!! What could be wrong?

Before you start to panic, check all cable connections again. Check connection between the video cable, LCD screen and inverter board. Reconnect cables just in case.

Take a closer look at the connection between the video cable and LCD screen. It’s possible you accidentally pulled the video cable from the connector during the screen installation.

The video cable has to be seated properly, all the way down.

Also, on some older LCD screens there are very thin pins inside the connector. Take a look inside the connector, make sure there are no damaged (bent) pins.

You can straighten bent pins with a very small screwdriver but this procedure requires a lot of patience and concentration.

Fortunately, most newer LCDs have a different type of connector, without fragile pins inside.

OK, you have reseated all connectors and cannot see anything wrong but the new screen still is not working. What’s next?

Remove the new screen and connect the old one. If the old one works properly (except the damaged area) but the new one is dead, apparently the new screen is defective and has to be replaced. Hopefully it has warranty.

Here’s another scenario. The new screen kinda works. You can see a very faint image but there is no backlight.

If that’s the case, disconnect the new screen from the inverter board and plug in the old screen instead, as it shown on the picture below. If the backlight inside the old screen lights up, apparently the new screen has defective backlight lamp and has to be replaced.

Laptop LCD screen turned completely white

What can you do if the laptop LCD screen turned completely white? From my experience I can tell that this problem may be related to the following:1. Loose connection between the video cable and the LCD screen.2. Defective LCD screen.3. Defective motherboard (I assume the graphics card is integrated into the motherboard).

Here’s an example of a laptop with white screen. When you turn on the laptop, it starts but the image on the screen is completely white right from the beginning. In my case it was a Toshiba Satellite M45 laptop but this problem may occur with any other brand.

Most likely you still can use the laptop with an external monitor. Just connect the monitor to the VGA port on the back or side of your laptop and then switch the video output from internal to external mode.On Toshiba laptops you can toggle between internal and external screens using Fn+F5 keys. Hold down Fn and press on F5 until you get video on the external monitor.On IBM laptops use Fn+F7.On HP laptops use Fn+F4.It’s possible that you have to use a different key combination on your laptop but you get the idea.On some laptops, in order to be able to use the external monitor, you have to connect it to the laptop and then restart the laptop so the external monitor is detected by the laptop.

I noticed that in some cases the laptop screen may turn white because of poor connection between the video cable and the LCD screen. If you want to check this connection, you’ll have to take apart the display panel because the connector is located on the back side of the LCD screen.These laptop service manuals and disassembly instructions may be useful.

I always check the video cable connection first. Reconnecting the video cable may fix your problem.If reconnecting the video cable doesn’t help, most likely you have a problem either with the LCD screen or with the motherboard.

The best way to find out witch one is causing the problem is testing the laptop with another working LCD screen. Without this test you’ll have to guess because as I mentioned before this could either bad motherboard or bad LCD screen.

You’ll have to disconnect the video cable from the LCD screen (connector 2) and the inverter board (connectors 3 and 1). After that you connect another working screen and test video.

For this purpose I’m using one of my test LCD screens. My test screen is cracked and because of that you see a wide white band in the center but it still works fine for this test.The original screen is white but my test screen works normal (except the crack of course) and I can see the image. After this test I can tell that the problem must be related to the screen.

After I assembled everything back together and connected the original LCD, it’s still white.

CONCLUSION. In my case this problem is related to the LCD screen and it has to be replaced.

If you find this article useful, please consider making a donation to the author. Thank you!

165 Responses to “Laptop LCD screen turned completely white”

Fujitsu Siemens Esprimo v5535 fixed!

Connector on back of screen had become partially disconnected.

Solution (half an hour’s work):

Prise up and remove cover at top of keyboard, releasing from the two hinges behind the screen.Remove rubber stops, remove screws prise shell apart gently.Disconnect two pull-apart connectors at base of screen.

Remove two screws on bottom hinge brackets.Ease screen away from rear cover.Carefully peel back adhesive tape that holds plug in place, reconnect plug and replace tape.Replace hinge screws, reconnect pull-apart plugs.Gently snap front cover back into place, replace screws and rubber stops.Replace keyboard cover.

Thanks for your hints!

1. 164

Muluken Says: March 4th, 2010 at 5:29 am

I have the same problem with that same Toshiba. Thanks

2. 163

vyvo Says: March 4th, 2010 at 4:50 am

I have Acer 5601 the wireless Can’t connect to internet when ac adapter plugged in and it cannot find or connect to the network but on battery it immediately finds the network and connects. Help me please! Thanks,

How to replace laptop backlight lamp (CCFL)

In this guide I will disassemble a laptop LCD screen in order to remove and replace the backlight lamp (CCFL).Replacing the backlight lamp is not an easy task even for experienced technicians. If you do something wrong you will permanently damage the LCD screen and have to buy a new one. Proceed on your own risk and do not blame me.

Some recommendations before you start:1. Work in a clean room. You don’t want dust and lint inside your LCD screen.2. Make notes, so you know how to assemble your screen back.3. Take pictures.4. Before you remove something, take a closer look at the part and memorize how it is assembled.5. When you are assembling the screen, remove dust and lint with compressed air. Do not use cloth.

The backlight lamp (CCFL) is located inside the LCD screen, so we are going to take it apart. In this article I’m not going to explain how to remove LCD from a laptop, it’s been covered before.Here some examples:Removing LCD screen from a Dell laptop.Taking apart IBM ThinkPad display panel.Removing screen from Toshiba laptops.

Remove sticky tape and foil from the back of the screen and glue it somewhere so you can reuse it later, when you assemble the screen.

Removing tape from the backlight cables.

On my screen the green circuit board was glued to the plastic frame with a double sided tape. Carefully unglue the circuit board. Be very careful, do not flex or bend the circuit board.

The circuit board has been unglued.

Place the LCD screen on the side and start removing the metal frame witch secures the LCD to the plastic frame. There will be many latches on all sides of the frame, you can unlock them with a small screwdriver.

Continue separating the metal frame from the plastic base.

On the following picture you can see that frame, LCD with the circuit board and screen base have been separated. Be careful, do not touch internal components with your fingers. Handle all internal components by the sides.

Place the metal frame and LCD with the circuit board aside. You’ll need them only when you assemble everything back together.

There will be a few transparent layers inside. Carefully remove them from the screen base. Do not separate the layers, just put them aside together.

Keep everything organized, so you have no trouble assembling the screen.

Start removing the metal cover from the backlight lamp (CCFL).

The backlight cover has been removed.

The backlight lamp (CCFL) cables are routed through small plastic hooks.

Unroute the backlight lamp cables.

Now probably the hardest part in this disassembly process – removing the backlight lamp and reflector. The backlight lamp is secured inside the reflector so you have to remove both and then separate them.Before you remove the backlight lamp and reflector take a closer look how it’s assembled and mounted to the screen base. Fitting the backlight and reflector back in place could be a very challenging task.

The reflector is glued to the screen base with a double sided tape.

After the reflector has been unattached from the screen base, you can start removing the backlight lamp. As you see on the picture, I marked the left side of the reflector with a red dot so I know where the red cable goes when I assemble everything back together.

The backlight lamp (CCFL) has been removed from the reflector.

In order to access the backlight lamp leads you’ll have to remove the rubber caps from both side of the lamp. I’m not sure if you can touch the backlight lamp with your fingers, so I would use rubber gloves.

Cabled on both sides of the backlight lamp are soldered to the backlight leads. In order to access the leads you’ll have to remove the black insulator on both side of the lamp.Unsolder both cables from the old backlight lamp and solder them to a new one.

You can test the new backlight lamp (CCFL) before you install it back into the screen. Connect the backlight lamp into the inverter board and turn on the laptop. The backlight lamp should light up.From my experience, on some laptops the backlight lamp will not light up until the video cable is connected to the LCD screen. In this case you’ll have to assemble the LCD screen and then test it.

You can search for a new CCFL backlight lamp here.

DC power jack repair guide. Do-it-yourself instructions.

This guide will explain how to repair a failed or loose DC power jack on a laptop computer yourself. Here’s my previous post related to DC power jack related issues.

Disclaimer: I’ve made these instructions only for people experienced with soldering and repairing computers. If you don’t feel comfortable doing this job, please do not open the laptop or you can permanently damage your computer. Take your laptop to a professional repair shop instead.Use this repair guide at your own risk.

First of all, you’ll have to disassemble your laptop and remove the motherboard. Here you’ll find disassembly instructions for some major laptop brands such as IBM, Dell, HP, Compaq, Toshiba. If your laptop is not on the list, you’ll have to figure out yourself how to take it apart.

For this repair you’ll need the following tools.

1. Soldering iron or soldering station. I use Weller WES51 soldering station and for this job I set temperature to about 800-850°F.2. I use high-tech rosin core silver-bearing solder from Radioshack with diameter 0.022″ ( Catalog #: 64-013 ). I think standard rosin core solder will work just fine.3. Desoldering pump for removing solder around component leads. I use Edsyn Soldapullt pump, model DS 017.4. 99% isopropyl alcohol and tooth brash for cleaning the motherboard from flux.5. A new DC power jack, you can find a cheap one here.

Laptop DC power jack repair guide.

As you see on the following picture, the solder drop on the positive terminal looks different than on other three contacts. That’s where the problem is. The positive pin is not making a good contact with the motherboard and because of that power to the laptop cuts off when I move the power plug inside the power jack.I’m going to desolder the power jack from the motherboard, clean contacts on both power jack and motherboard and then solder it back in place – this is the proper way fixing the power problem.

Start desoldering process with adding some new fresh solder to all three contacts. This will make old solder more flowable, easier to remove.

While heating one of the contacts, remove the solder from this contact using the desoldering pump. Repeat the same steps with all power jack contacts until you remove as much solder as possible.

Grab the power jack and carefully try removing it from the motherboard. Most likely you will not be able to remove the power jack the first time because there will be some solder bridges left between the contacts and traces on the motherboard. Carefully wiggle the power jack without applying any significant force and at the same time heat up all contacts one by one. This will help you to remove the power jack.

The DC power jack is almost removed from the motherboard.Be careful. Inside the positive hole there is a copper sleeve witch connects the terminal on one side of the motherboard with the traces on the other side. If you are removing the power jack with force, you can pull the sleeve from the hole. You don’t want to do that.

UPDATE: If you accidentally removed the internal sleeve, check out this post: How to fortify damaged power jack connection.

So, do not apply any force and make sure the solder is melted when you are removing the power jack. I hope you understand what I’m talking about.

After the power jack is removed, clean all oxidized contacts with a knife.

Apply a fresh coat of solder to all contacts on the power jack.

The power jack terminals will look dirty because of melted flux.

You can remove the flux using the tooth brash and alcohol. It’s not necessary but it will make your job looking clean.

Apply a fresh coat of solder to all power jack terminals on both sides of the motherboard.

This side has been coated.

And this side has been coated too.

Now you can install the power jack back on the motherboard. Put something under power jack so there is no gap between the jack and the motherboard. Now you are ready to solder the jack back in place.

Solder all power jack pins.

The job is done and the laptop DC power jack is fixed. B-E-A-utiful!Now just install the motherboard back into the laptop and you are done.

How to replace laptop backlight lamp (CCFL)

In this guide I will disassemble a laptop LCD screen in order to remove and replace the backlight lamp (CCFL).Replacing the backlight lamp is not an easy task even for experienced technicians. If you do something wrong you will permanently damage the LCD screen and have to buy a new one. Proceed on your own risk and do not blame me.

Some recommendations before you start:1. Work in a clean room. You don’t want dust and lint inside your LCD screen.2. Make notes, so you know how to assemble your screen back.3. Take pictures.4. Before you remove something, take a closer look at the part and memorize how it is assembled.5. When you are assembling the screen, remove dust and lint with compressed air. Do not use cloth.

The backlight lamp (CCFL) is located inside the LCD screen, so we are going to take it apart. In this article I’m not going to explain how to remove LCD from a laptop, it’s been covered before.Here some examples:Removing LCD screen from a Dell laptop.

Taking apart IBM ThinkPad display panel.Removing screen from Toshiba laptops.

Remove sticky tape and foil from the back of the screen and glue it somewhere so you can reuse it later, when you assemble the screen.

Removing tape from the backlight cables.

On my screen the green circuit board was glued to the plastic frame with a double sided tape. Carefully unglue the circuit board. Be very careful, do not flex or bend the circuit board.

The circuit board has been unglued.

Place the LCD screen on the side and start removing the metal frame witch secures the LCD to the plastic frame. There will be many latches on all sides of the frame, you can unlock them with a small screwdriver.

Continue separating the metal frame from the plastic base.

On the following picture you can see that frame, LCD with the circuit board and screen base have been separated. Be careful, do not touch internal components with your fingers. Handle all internal components by the sides.

Place the metal frame and LCD with the circuit board aside. You’ll need them only when you assemble everything back together.

There will be a few transparent layers inside. Carefully remove them from the screen base. Do not separate the layers, just put them aside together.

Keep everything organized, so you have no trouble assembling the screen.

Start removing the metal cover from the backlight lamp (CCFL).

The backlight cover has been removed.

The backlight lamp (CCFL) cables are routed through small plastic hooks.

Unroute the backlight lamp cables.

Now probably the hardest part in this disassembly process – removing the backlight lamp and reflector. The backlight lamp is secured inside the reflector so you have to remove both and then separate them.Before you remove the backlight lamp and reflector take a closer look how it’s assembled and mounted to the screen base. Fitting the backlight and reflector back in place could be a very challenging task.

The reflector is glued to the screen base with a double sided tape.

After the reflector has been unattached from the screen base, you can start removing the backlight lamp. As you see on the picture, I marked the left side of the reflector with a red dot so I know where the red cable goes when I assemble everything back together.

The backlight lamp (CCFL) has been removed from the reflector.

In order to access the backlight lamp leads you’ll have to remove the rubber caps from both side of the lamp. I’m not sure if you can touch the backlight lamp with your fingers, so I would use rubber gloves.

Cabled on both sides of the backlight lamp are soldered to the backlight leads. In order to access the leads you’ll have to remove the black insulator on both side of the lamp.Unsolder both cables from the old backlight lamp and solder them to a new one.

You can test the new backlight lamp (CCFL) before you install it back into the screen. Connect the backlight lamp into the inverter board and turn on the laptop. The backlight lamp should light up.From my experience, on some laptops the backlight lamp will not light up until the video cable is connected to the LCD screen. In this case you’ll have to assemble the LCD screen and then test it.

You can search for a new CCFL backlight lamp here.

Notebook display assembly diagram. How an image appears on the screen.

Here is a simple diagram that will help you to understand how a notebook display assembly works and how an image appears on the screen. I’m not an artist and I tried my best drawing this diagram, so if you cannot see a laptop in this picture, don’t be mad.

A generic display assembly includes a very few parts and knowing them will help you to understand witch part can cause a problem if you laptop video not working properly.

Video cable. A video signal from the motherboard goes to the LCD screen through the video cable. The video cable connects to the motherboard (or video card) through the connector 1. The video cable connects to the LCD screen through the connector 2. The video cable (in most cases) is also responsible for supplying a necessary voltage for the FL inverter board. The video cable connects to the FL inverter board at the point 3.

FL inverter board. This board is responsible for converting low voltage DC power (point 3) to high voltage AC (point 4), necessary to light up the backlight bulb. If the FL inverter board is bad, the LCD screen (backlight bulb) will not light up when you turn on the laptop, but you still should be able to see a very dim image on the screen.

Looking for a new screen, video cable or inverter board? Find it here.

CCFL (backlight bulb). When the backlight bulb lights up, you can see an images on the LCD screen. In most cases the backlight bulb is a part of the LCD screen and if it’s bad, the entire screen has to be replaced. By the way, some specialized repair shops can replace the backlight bulb itself.

Lid close switch. The lid close switch is a small button that locates close to the display hinges. On some newer models there is no button, because the switch is magnetic. You can set up your laptop to go to a hibernation mode or to a standby mode when the LCD is closed. It’s done through power management software. These modes are triggered when the display is closed and the lid close switch is pressed down. If the LCD screen on your laptop will not light up when you open the display assembly, check the lid close switch is stuck inside (it might happen because the switch is dirty).

All laptop USB ports failed at once

Problem description:

All laptop USB ports stopped working at once. Laptop stopped recognizing any USB device plugged into any USB port.

Possible cause:

1. Software problem.2. USB controller failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

1. Uninstall all USB related entries in the device manager. Restart the laptop and let it re-detect USB ports and install drivers. Test USB ports. If it doesn’t help, move to the next step.

2. Back up all personal files and reinstall Windows from scratch. It possible that all USB ports stopped working because some system files got corrupted.

3. If reinstalling Windows from scratch doesn’t help, most likely this is hardware related failure. Apparently, the motherboard has a failed USB controller. If that’s the case, the whole motherboard has to be replaced.

Alternatively, you can use an external PCMCIA USB card. You plug this card into the PC slot and get 2 or 4 USB ports instead.

Power lights turn on but the screen shows no image

Problem description:

When you push on the power button, the power light on the laptop turns on but the screen shows no image. The laptop screen remains black and blank. Video on the external monitor also not working even though it used to work fine before.

Possible cause:

1. Memory failure.2. Video card failure.3. Motherboard failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

1. Try reconnecting memory modules; maybe one of them is not making good contact with the memory slot.Try removing memory modules one by one. Maybe one of the memory modules is bad. The laptop might start properly when the faulty memory module is removed.

If you have only one memory module, try moving it to another slot. Maybe the slot itself is bad.

Try replacing memory module with another known good module.

2. If you have a discrete video card, which is not common, there could be a problem with the video card.

First, try reconnecting the video card to the motherboard. Maybe connection between the video card and motherboard is bad.If reconnecting the video card doesn’t help, try replacing it.

3. In most newer laptops the video card integrated into the motherboard. If the video card fails, you’ll have to replace the motherboard.

If playing with memory modules (as explained in step 1) didn’t help, most likely there is a problem with the motherboard and it has to be replaced.

Image on laptop screen freezes and slowly turns white

Problem description:

Spontaneously the laptop screen will “freeze” the current image and then slowly turn white with some faint gray blotches. If I move the top of the laptop toward me, sometimes the image comes back to normal. If I move it backward, then the image freezes and goes white again. The laptop works fine with the external monitor.

Possible cause:

1. Bad connection between video cable and LCD screen.2. LCD screen failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

First of all, try reconnecting the video cable on the back of the LCD screen. It’s possible that video cable is not making good contact with the LCD screen.

If reconnecting the cable doesn’t help, most likely this is LCD screen failure. Apparently there is a faulty component or solder joint on the screen controller board. In this case the LCD screen has to be replaced with a new one.

After upgrading hard drive it’s not detected by laptop BIOS

Problem description:

After upgrading the hard drive it’s not detected by the laptop BIOS. The hard drive doesn’t appear in the BIOS.

Possible cause:

1. Hard drive is not connected properly.2. Hard drive not supported.3. Bad hard drive.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

1. Make sure the hard drive is properly connected to the motherboard. Try reconnecting the hard drive. Find out if the hard drive appears in the BIOS after reconnecting.

2. Enter the BIOS setup menu and load default settings. Safe settings and restart the laptop. There is a chance that your new hard drive will be detected after that.

3. If you installed a larger hard drive, make sure it’s supported by the laptop. Some older laptops will not support large hard drives. In some cases, a larger hard drive will be supported after you upgrade laptop BIOS to the latest version.Upgrade the BIOS if needed.

4. Try installing the old hard drive. If the old drive is detected but the new one is not, it’s possible that your new hard drive is defective.

Laptop starts with blue screen error after memory upgrade

Problem description:

The laptop starts with a blue screen error after memory upgrade.

Possible cause:

1. Memory not seated correctly.2. Bad memory module.3. Bad memory slot on motherboard.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

I assume that you are using the right memory type and size for your laptop.

1. It’s possible the memory module was installed incorrectly. Try reconnecting the module. Remove it from the slot and install back. Test the laptop.

2. Check out all contacts on the memry module. Make sure all contacts are clean. Take a look into the memory slot. Make sure there is no junk inside the memory slot.

3. If you installed new memory module instead of the old one, try installing the old memory module back and test the laptop. If the laptop works fine with the old module but not the new one, it’s possible that your new memory module is defective. You can test memory with Memtest86+ utility (google it).

4. If you installed new memory module into the emptly slot, it’s possible that the slot itself is defective. Move the new memory module into another slot and test the laptop. If the laptop works fine when installed into the second slot, the first memory slot could be bad. In this case you’ll have to replace the motherboard or use the laptop with only one memory module installed into the good slot.

Half the laptop screen is black

Problem description:

One half of the laptop screen is completely black. The second half of the screen works properly.

Possible cause:

LCD screen failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

If one half of the laptop screen stopped working but the second half still works properly, this is LCD screen failure.

The LCD screen cannot be fixed at home. You’ll have to remove the failed screen and replace it with a new one.

Laptop shuts down when playing games

Problem description:

The laptop shuts down on its own when playing games. All other time it works fine.

Possible cause:

Laptop overheats.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

Most likely the laptop shuts down while running games because it overheats. When you run a game, you push the CPU to the limit and it generates a lot of heat. If the laptop cooling module (fan and heat sink) is clogged with dust, the laptop will overheat and shut down.

Make sure the cooling module is clean. Remove dust using canned air or air compressor.Apply fresh thermal paste on the processor if needed.

It take a few minutes to boot laptop

Problem description:

It takes a few minutes to boot my laptop to the desktop. I have to wait for a long time before I can run programs or open windows.

Possible cause:

1. Not enough memory installed.2. Lots of software applications loading on startup.3. Hard drive is failing.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

First of all, take a look at the amount of memory installed into the laptop. It will take a long time to boot the laptop if it doesn’t have enough memory. For running Windows XP I would suggest at least 512MB and for Windows Vista or Windows 7 at least 1GB in order to operate smoothly.

More applications you have loading on startup, more time it will take. If you not sure which application is causing the problem, you can back up all personal files and reinstall Windows from scratch. Most likely the laptop will run faster after a fresh install.

If the laptop is still slow, test the hard drive. It’s possible the hard drive is failing and has to be replaced. You can use hard drive diagnostic utilities found on Ultimate Boot CD (google UBCD). If the hard drive fails test, replace it with a new one and reinstall the operating system from the recovery disc or installation CD.

Laptop shuts down while installing Windows

Problem description:

The laptop shuts down while installing Windows. The installation process runs fine for a while but after some time the laptop shuts down on its own. Same problem happens if you start the installation process again.

Possible cause:

1. Laptop overheating.2. Memory failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

It’s possible that the laptop shuts down on its own because of overheating. Take a look inside the cooling module. If the cooling fan and heat sink are dirty and clogged with dust, clean it with compressed air. After the cooling module is cleaned, try installing the operating system again.

Also, this problem could be related to the memory failure. Test laptop memory with Memtest86+ utility. If it fails test, replace the memory module.

If you have two memory modules installed in the laptop, remove them one by one and try installing Windows with only one memory module in place. If one of the memory modules is bad, the installation process will run smoothly when this module is removed.

Laptop screen remains black and fan runs at full speed

Problem description:

When the laptop is turned on, the screen remains completely black/blank and the cooling fan starts running at full speed. The fan runs at unusually high RPM until you power down the laptop.

Possible cause:

Motherboard failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

Most likley this problem is related to the motherboard failure and the motherboard has to be replaced.

Laptop sees wireless router but will not connect

Problem description:

The laptop sees the wireless router but will not connect or get IP address. Another computer works fine with the same wireless router.

Possible cause:

1. Wireless card driver corrupted.2. Problems with the operating system.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

There could be a problem with the wireless card driver, maybe the driver is corrupted.

Go to the device manager, find the wireless card listed in the network adapter, right click on the wireless adapter and uninstall the driver. Now restart the laptop and let it detect the wireless card and reinstall the driver. Test wireless connection.

If it doesn’t help, try downloading the latest wireless driver from the manufacturer’s website and reinstall the driver. Test wireless connection.

If the connection still not working, back up all personal files and reinstall the operating system and device drivers from the recovery disc or installation CD. Test wireless connection.

If the wireless connection still not working, most likley the wireless card has failed. Replace the wireless card.

Wireless card disappeared from laptop

Problem description:

The wireless card disappeared from the laptop. The wireless card is missing from the network connections and device manager. It looks like there is no wireless card installed at all.

Possible cause:

1. Bad contact between wireless card and motherboard.2. Corrupted software.3. Bad wireless card.4. Motherboard failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

It’s possible that contacts on the wireless card got oxidized and the wireless card is not making good connection with the slot.Remove the wireless card, clean contacts with pen erasure and install the wireless card back into the laptop. Test wireless card.

There is a chance that you have corrupted software. Not just the wireless driver, but some main core system files. Before replacing any hardware, try reinstalling the operating system from scratch.Test the wireless card again.

If reconnecting the wireless card and reinstalling the operating system didn’t help, most likely you have a faulty card. Try replacing the wireless card.

If you still experience the same problem even after replacing the card, most likely this is the motherboard failure. Replace the motherboard.

Here’s another suggestion. Instead of replacing the motherboard, you can try using a PCMCIA Wi-Fi card.

Laptop connects to wireless router but not Internet

Problem description:

The laptop connects to the wireless router but not Internet. You open the web browser but cannot access any website. Another computer works fine with the same router.

Possible cause:

1. Wrong settings.2. Software related problem.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

1. Go to the browser internet options and reset settings back to defaults. Restart the laptop and try connecting to the Internet.

2. Check connection setting in the wireless router. They must match settings entered in the laptop.

3. If all connection setting entered correctly but you still cannot access the Internet, try downlaoding and reinstalling the wireless card driver.

4. Back up all personal data and reinstall Windows from scratch. Install wireless card driver. Test connection to the Internte again.

Laptop cannot detect wireless card

Problem description:

The laptop cannot detect the internal wireless card. The wireless card used to work fine but now it disappeared from the device manager. It looks like there is no wireless card installed even though the card is installed.

Possible cause:

1. Poor connection between the wireless card and slot.2. Software problem.3. Wireless card failure.4. Wireless slot failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

Here are some troubleshooting steps in case if your laptop stopped detecting the wireless card:

1. Try reconnecting the wireless card. It’s possible that connectors on the wireless card or inside the slot got oxidized and the card doesn’t make good contact with the slot anymore. Reconnecting the wireless card might fix the problem.

2. Try reinstalling the operating system from scratch. It could be software related problem.

3. If reconnecting the card and reinstalling the operating system doesn’t help, most likely you have a faulty wireless card. Try replacing it with a new one.

4. If replacing the wireless card doesn’t help, most likely it’s faulty slot on the motherboard. If that’s the case, you’ll have to replace the motherboard.

Alternatively, you can use an external PCMCIA wireless card instead of internal card. You plug this card into the available PC slot in your laptop, install the driver and use it same way you used the internal wireless card.

Laptop stopped connecting to wireless network

Problem description:

The laptop stopped connecting to the wireless network. The wireless connection used to work fine but now it’s not working. You tested your laptop with a few wireless routers without any luck.

Possible cause:

1. Wrong settings for the wireless card.2. Bad or corrupted software.3. Wireless card or router failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

1. Make sure the laptop can see the wireless router. If the laptop doesn’t see the wireless router, make sure the wireless switch in your laptop is turned on.

2. Check network properties and make sure the wireless adapter is enabled.

3. Make sure the wireless router is turned on. Test your laptop with another wireless router if you can.

4. If the laptop can connect to the wireless router but cannot access the Internet, make sure that your wireless card settings match the wireless router settings. Make sure the security key in your laptop matches the securing key entered in the wireless router.

5. Access the device manager and try uninstalling the wireless adapter. Restart the laptop and let it redetect the adapter and reinstall the device driver.

6. Visit the manufacturer’s website and download the wireless card driver. Try reinstalling the driver.

7. Back up all personal data and try reinstalling the operating system from scratch.

8. If all software tricks do not work and all setting are correct, but you still cannot access the wireless network, try replacing the wireless card.