Dell Insp 640 M Manual

Troubleshooting81
Troubleshooting
Dell Technical Update Service
The Dell Technical Update service provides proactive e-mail notification of software and hardware 
updates for your computer. The service is free and can be customized for content, format, and how 
frequently you receive notifications.
To enroll for the Dell Technical Update service, go to support.dell.com/technicalupdate.
Dell Diagnostics
 CAUTION: Before you begin any of the procedures in this section, follow the safety instructions in the...

82Troubleshooting
3Diagnostics can be invoked one of two ways:
aTurn on the computer. When the DELL™ logo appears, press  immediately. Select 
Diagnostics from the boot menu and press .
 NOTE: If you wait too long and the operating system logo appears, continue to wait until you see the 
Microsoft® Windows® desktop. Then shut down your computer and try again.
b
Press and hold the  key while powering the system on.
 NOTE: If you see a message stating that no diagnostics utility partition has been found,...

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Dell Diagnostics Main Menu
1After the Dell Diagnostics loads and the Main Menu screen appears, click the button for the option 
you want.
2If a problem is encountered during a test, a message appears with an error code and a description of the 
problem. Write down the error code and problem description and follow the instructions on the 
screen.
If you cannot resolve the error condition, contact Dell.
 NOTE: The Service Tag for your computer is located at the top of each test screen. If...

84Troubleshooting
4When the tests are completed, if you are running the Dell Diagnostics from the Drivers and Utilities 
CD, remove the CD.
5When the tests are completed, close the test screen to return to the Main Menu screen. To exit the 
Dell Diagnostics and restart the computer, close the 
Main Menu screen. 
Dell Support Utility
The Dell Support Utility is installed on your computer and available from the Dell Support icon on the 
taskbar or from the Start button. Use this support utility for...

Troubleshooting85
Clicking the Dell Support Icon
Click or right-click the  icon to perform the following tasks:
 Check your computing environment 
 View the Dell Support Utility settings
 Access the help file for the Dell Support Utility
 View frequently asked questions
 Learn more about the Dell Support Utility
 Turn the Dell Support Utility off
Double-Clicking the Dell Support Icon
Double-click the   icon to manually check your computing environment, view frequently asked 
questions, access the...

86Troubleshooting
Problems writing to a CD/DVD-RW drive
CLOSE OTHER PROGRAMS—The CD/DVD-RW drive must receive a steady stream of data when writing. 
If the stream is interrupted, an error occurs. Try closing all programs before you write to the 
CD/DVD-RW.
TURN OFF STANDBY MODE IN WINDOWS BEFORE WRITING TO A CD/DVD-RW DISC—See Power 
Management Modes on page 39 for information on standby mode.
CHANGE THE WRITE SPEED TO A SLOWER RATE—See the help files for your CD or DVD creation software.
If you cannot...

Troubleshooting87
CHECK THE MICROSOFT OUTLOOK® EXPRESS SECURITY SETTINGS—If you cannot open your e-mail 
attachments:
1
In Outlook Express, click Tools, click Options, and then click Security.
2Click Do not allow attachments to remove the checkmark.
CHECK THE TELEPHONE LINE CONNECTION
CHECK THE TELEPHONE JACK
CONNECT THE MODEM DIRECTLY TO THE TELEPHONE WALL JACK
USE A DIFFERENT TELEPHONE LINE
 Verify that the telephone line is connected to the jack on the modem. (The jack has either a green label 
or a...

88Troubleshooting
Error Messages
 CAUTION: Before you begin any of the procedures in this section, follow the safety instructions in the Product 
Information Guide.
If the message is not listed, see the documentation for the operating system or the program that was 
running when the message appeared.
AUXILIARY DEVICE FAILURE—The touch pad, track stick, or external mouse may be faulty. For an external 
mouse, check the cable connection. Enable the Pointing Device option in the system setup program. If...

Troubleshooting89
HARD-DISK DRIVE CONFIGURATION ERROR—The computer cannot identify the drive type. Shut down the 
computer, remove the hard drive (see Hard Drive on page 111), and boot the computer from a CD. 
Then shut down the computer, reinstall the hard drive, and restart the computer. Run the Hard-Disk 
Drive tests in the Dell Diagnostics (see Dell Diagnostics on page 81).
HARD-DISK DRIVE CONTROLLER FAILURE 0—The hard drive does not respond to commands from the 
computer. Shut down the computer,...

90Troubleshooting
MEMORY ALLOCATION ERROR—The software you are attempting to run is conflicting with the operating 
system, another program, or a utility. Shut down the computer, wait 30 seconds, and then restart it. Try 
to run the program again. If the error message still appears, see the software documentation.
MEMORY DATA LINE FAILURE AT ADDRESS, READ VALUE EXPECTING VALUE—A memory module may be 
faulty or improperly seated. Reinstall the memory modules and, if necessary, replace them (see Optical...