> On 15 June 2016 at 02:11, Bruce Dubbs <[email protected]> wrote: > >>>> I tried to fire up my P6 yesterday but there seemed to be a power >>>> issue. I left it plugged in and today I noticed some LEDs flashing. >>>> I tried to restart it and it worked. Curious. It's like a battery >>>> needed to be recharged, but I don't know of any battery except maybe a >>>> hwclock battery. >>> >>> >>> AFAIK, none of the CMOS clock batteries have ever been rechargable, not >>> even the Dallas Semi 24-pin clock modules. I had one in my 486. It >>> lasted 14 years but ultimately died and was replaced. The ubiquitous >>> Lithium coin batteries are certainly not rechargable. >> >> >> I talked to some techs today and thy said it was probably a capacitor >> problem in the power supply. If disconnected for an extended time, they >> lose some of their properties. Most power supplies have some sort of >> trickle current even when powered off. They said I should probably replace >> the power supply, but that would probably cost more than the whole system is >> worth. > (message resent owing to reception failure) More specifically, from experience, I suspect that it's an electrolytic capacitor at fault; they're nasty, leaky things and are very common, particularly in power supplies. They're generally used for smoothing and noise reduction. When they fail it is often possible to see signs of bulging, discolouration, or electrolyte leaking from the capacitor casing. If you have the time you could open the power supply and replace the faulty component. That would be the cheapest option, neglecting the time taken, of course.
Bear in mind though that they do hold a charge. I remember from my time working in labs that some technicians thought it a good idea to charge large electrolytic capacitors and then leave them lying innocently on the work bench for some unwary person to pick up :-) Richard -- http://lists.linuxfromscratch.org/listinfo/lfs-support FAQ: http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/blfs/faq.html Unsubscribe: See the above information page Do not top post on this list. A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text. Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing? A: Top-posting. Q: What is the most annoying thing in e-mail? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posting_style
