The other day I had a very quick power cut in my home. My computer was turned on at the time and obviously when the power cut out the computer went off. When the power came back on I attempted to turn my computer back on with no success. I tried unplugging everything and plugging it back in, and tried turning it on again still with no success. I thought that the fuse might have gone in the plug but the monitor is stiull receiving power, and as this is connected to the power source through the tower I assume the plug is working fine! Does anybody have any ideas what the problem is and how I can fix it? Even if you can give me and idea of what to look for when I TAKE the side off and have a look at my motherboard. I'm at a bit of a loss at the moment. Thanks again everyone. p.s. Im rubbish at knowing what technical info I should include so give me a shout for more info on this.The power is not reaching the Mother Board. Hence, i guess that means either the power supply of the tower has broken or the Mother Board is damaged. I would first test it by replacing the power supply unit. (you can borrow ....). If you are lucky & it WORKS, you can buy a new power supply unit. Else, u could be in trouble as the MBoard might be damaged.The first test I run is the modem after electrical surges.

Whether you have a ethernet or dial up modem is not relevant
at the moment.

If you can see where you line to your modem is plugged in,then
when you take the side cover off you computer you will know which
part to remove.It will be held in place with 1 screw usually and that's
about it.Try booting with the modem removed from your computer.

Below is an example.
http://www.fonerbooks.com/r_modem.htm

Below is an example of an ethernet adaptor.

http://www.meritline.com/1010fasetadf2.htmlOK thats great. I'll go and take my ethernet card out and try booting again. I did have a bad feeling that it might be my motherboard that was damaged. If it is damaged is there anything I should look for, i.e. which is the power supply unit? Sorry if that sounds a bit thick!OH MY GOD IT WORKED!!! I took the side off and had a bit of a fiddle, made sure everything was still connected correctly and made sure none of the little wires had burned out. Took out my modem and turned it on and it came on!!!!! Thank you sooooo much to both of you. I don't know what I would have done if I hadn't been able to get back to my C drive! ha Kudos to street1 Removing your modem allowed the computer to boot?
RUBBISH!
You have inadvertantly done something else, probably disconnecting from the mains supply allowed your PSU to reset.You could try putting back in the old modem and booting but,I would smell
it for electrical burn first.I had the same THING happen a few years back.

Also,Fed could be correct it could just be a fluke or PSU power reset..

The important thing JessicaB is your computer is functioning again.

GX1_Man Thank you for the Kudos.



http://www.greenapple.com/general/news/05-31-02.htmMy mother had to replace a modem in her computer after an electrical storm several years ago. However, the damaged modem did not prevent her computer from starting; the modem simply would not work. My mother was not home at the time and the computer was off. It was on a SURGE PROTECTOR which also had telephone line protection. But, clearly, a lightning strike somewhere must have affected the telephone line. The surge protector did show signs that it had sustained a hit and we replaced it.

JessicaB, I recommend a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply). This is a combination surge protector and battery backup in one unit. They'll protect your computer from power cuts like the one you experienced. If your computer had been on a UPS, it would have continued running during that power drop.