Strangest power issue - I'm about to start crying

[nlinecomputers]

And why didn't the UPS fill in for the missing power? It is not power IMO. (Unless you test with a good DVM and SEE it read less then 120V) Replace the PC.

 

[tek9]

And why didn't the UPS fill in for the missing power? It is not power IMO. (Unless you test with a good DVM and SEE it read less then 120V) Replace the PC.

Could be the UPS's battery was not fully charged or some other issue with it. I don't think the PC is the issue due to the fact that it worked fine everywhere other than at that one power outlet.

 

[drjones]

Have you tested the outlet with a DVM? And if you are using a UPS why are you using a Surge Protector?

I believe the electrician DID test the wall outlet & didn't see anything obviously wrong with the power output. His theory is the metal connections inside are not solid.

Did NOT use BOTH Surge + UPS; first was a power strip the client had in there, then a new TrippLite Surge, THEN the APC as suggested here - but all separately, not daisy-chained together. I'm not that dumb!

 

[drjones]

And the electrician didn't see that?

I do not believe he noticed anything wrong with the power output, he believes the physical plug is damaged/loose/messed up.

 

[Larry Sabo]

I assume this place isn't wired with aluminum wiring. They are notorious for corroded connections due to thermal expansion/contraction with heavy loads and time. I doubt any jurisdiction would have allowed that in a commercial setting.

 

[nlinecomputers]

I do not believe he noticed anything wrong with the power output, he believes the physical plug is damaged/loose/messed up.

So he didn't tell them he found a bad outlet? Or he didn't find it? If he didn't find it then he is incompetent and you need to bill the client for ALL of your work (which they should demand back from the Electrician.) Frankly without testing it with my own DVM I wouldn't believe any of them.

 

[Steveb]

Have the same problem with Optiplex 3020. Dell replaced one under warranty that was only a week old. Setup computer with no problems. Put in clients office and same issue. Will not turn on. Diagnostics says Mom board/power supply. The more i thought about it and the other 3020's we have, is that this one has a HP laserjet usb printer plugged in. Unplugged printer and no problems. I have updated everything and still will not boot. Have the client unplug the printer then turn computer on and plug printer back in and no problems.

 

[drjones]

Have the same problem with Optiplex 3020. Dell replaced one under warranty that was only a week old. Setup computer with no problems. Put in clients office and same issue. Will not turn on. Diagnostics says Mom board/power supply. The more i thought about it and the other 3020's we have, is that this one has a HP laserjet usb printer plugged in. Unplugged printer and no problems. I have updated everything and still will not boot. Have the client unplug the printer then turn computer on and plug printer back in and no problems.

I think this is the problem.
I just got called back to the same facility with the same problem but on a different PC - an Opti 3020 we just installed a few weeks ago.

This PC also has an HP LaserJet 4100N plugged into it via USB - soon as I unplugged it, it will boot up just fine.

Solution?
Perhaps disable USB boot??

EDIT: DISABLING USB boot in the BIOS did NOT fix the issue....bummer...

Any ideas?

 

[MichaelBits]

Does it have the option for USB charging or something similar? Perhaps kill that.

 

[Tech_Explorer]

chances are more that there is power fluctuation in the outlet. The box runs good at the bench, that means no issues with new box it self. The outlet may have a different Voltage rating with different amp on it. 290 W with xx Amps. So, a UPS would fine tune the fluctuation. APC's are good and once plugged in, don't worry about the LED's , since it would start getting stabilized

 

[glennd]

i'm betting the new box has a higher threshold of power failure. In other words, the old box could handle a drop in mains voltage of say 10% but the new box can only handle a drop of say 5%. I'm just making those numbers up but you get the idea. As we all know, the fact that the electrician didn't find the problem, doesn't mean there's no problem, it just means it wasn't a problem when he/she looked at it. There could well be intermittent brown outs (drop in mains voltage) that you wouldn't necessarily notice if there's no other sensitive equipment in the place. It could be a problem only in one room. I've seen that in older premises, a difference of more than 10% in mains voltage between adjacent rooms.

What would be a good test would be to place the old box and the new box side by side in the same room on the same outlet to see how they each handle power issues.

Other than that UPS must be the go.