Dell Inspiron M5030 Troubleshooting

No matter what you do, you can't get your laptop to turn on.

Your battery might be dead, in which case you need to plug your computer into the wall in order to turn it on. Try this first; if it doesn't work, read on.

If your computer makes 7 beeps and won't turn on, see "Computer makes 7 beeps and won't turn on" below.

Check to see if the rest of the computer is on. The computer itself may be running fine but the screen may be black. If the screen itself if broken, you will have to replace it.

The computer won't turn on, and when you try to make it turn on, it makes 7 beeps.

This problem is due to a processor error which is common to this particular laptop. You will have to replace the processor on your laptop.

You can't get the charging cord to charge your computer.

If your charging port has become loose or if parts have broken off of the charging port, it may prevent your laptop from getting charged. Check to see if your charging port may have suffered physical damage, and needs to be repaired or replaced. If the port is loose, you may just be able to open up the laptop and re-secure it.

Your motherboard, the central part of your computer that connects the other parts, may have a faulty circuit that is failing to correctly handle charging the battery. The problem could be due to any one of the components on your motherboard.

Your battery is broken and needs to be replaced. You can purchase a replacement battery here: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/lenmar-lithi... .

You cannot get your mouse cursor on your screen to move.

There is a button on the keyboard [in between the F12 key and the Insert key] that enables and disables the trackpad. Try pressing that and see if the mouse works again. If that doesn't work, read on.

If your trackpad has not been disabled, the component itself may be broken. If your trackpad is broken, you will have to replace it.

First, check if your Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) is updated to the most current Chipset Driver from the Dell website [here]. This should fix the problem. If this doesn't work, then it may be a hardware problem.

If you use a wireless USB mouse for your computer, your mouse pointer may not be moving because the battery has run out. Replace your batteries and the mouse should move again if this is the problem.

While using your computer, it turns off unexpectedly after a period of time.

Computer fans can become clogged with dust, hair, and other particles which causes the computer to overheat and shut down. Use a can of compressed air to spray all of the vents and holes in your computer to remove the dust. You may have to open the laptop up and spray the fans directly in order to get the computer dust-free.

If you use your computer on an uneven surface, such as a bed, it may interfere with the vents which keep the computer cool. Try using your laptop on an even surface such as a table to see if this improves the laptop's airflow.

Any malfunctioning hardware in the computer could cause it to turn off without warning. If you have recently installed any new hardware, try removing this and seeing if this is the source of the error. If you haven't recently added any new hardware, remove hardware components from your computer which are not necessary for it to run (such as the sound card or modem). Run the computer to see if any of these components were the problem. If not, then the problem lies within one of the computer's key hardware components (such as the motherboard or CPU).

Your computer may be having an issue with the Microsoft operating system. Reboot the computer and enter the CMOS setup while your computer is booting up instead of entering the normal operating system. If the computer doesn't turn off while in CMOS, the error could be a result of the operating system. Reinstall Windows to fix the issue.