Laptop Flashing ....

[seekeerz]

And No, I don't mean it's wearing a raincoat !!

My elderly laptop has been flashing ...3 red and 1 white for the last little while ....I've turned it on and then off ...it's not affecting that, and I don't know if it's downloading anything .....any ideas ??

[shoota]

I find that removing the battery for 30 seconds or so can cure many minor problems...

[Buenchico]

It's expressing it's indignation with 'goose foot' ;-)

Flashing lights on a laptop can mean different things, depending upon the make and model. (The laptop I'm typing on now hasn't any lights on it at all, other than the green 'power on' one). However one of the most common causes is a charging problem.

Make and exact model number, please? (From the plate/sticker on the bottom of it).

[Buenchico]

Shoota's suggestion is a good one. Totally removing the power from a laptop and then powering it up again, rather than just switching it off and on again, does indeed seem to fix a lot of problems.

So remove the power lead (if relevant), then slide out the battery, wait for a minute or so and reconnect it all again.

[seekeerz]

Thanks both of you .....and I'll do as suggested .....it's permanently plugged into the power but it is very elderly ...so long as its not totally giving up the ghost !!

[CrapAtCryptics]

I think elderly is the key word, it may be that your cmos battery is running out. Thats the one that powers the bios at startup. Any computer shop can replace this if you for you quite simply if you arent happy opening the machine. Be aware you will probably get a sequence of messages after a new battery that will need specific actions dependent on your machine to clear those messages. If you give us make and model we may be able to assist further.

[CrapAtCryptics]

As a follow up replacement arent expensive, search for the model number on your battery, if a 9 cell is offered this will last longer.

[seekeerz]

Thanks CAC for your follow up ...luckily it’s all back to normal after following the procedure suggested but if anymore happens I have your info to fall back on so again, thank you skz