Hey everyone! I have an HP Pavilion laptop that I bought a few years ago. It was mainly for school, but about 1.5 to 2 years ago, it just stopped working. I've taken it to two different repair shops, including where I bought it. One shop tried replacing the SSD, thinking that was the issue, but it didn't help. I'm trying to get it fixed again since I really need it. Lately, when I try to turn it on, I sometimes see an error message stating that the "CMOS checksum is invalid." I read online that this usually means the CMOS battery needs replacing, but I can't find it in my laptop. I've even removed the main battery and tried rebooting it, but whether the battery is connected or not, it only runs for a few seconds before shutting down again. Occasionally, I get an error that says "Preparing Automatic Repair." I tried resetting Windows, but since it keeps turning off so quickly, that hasn't worked either. Also, when I access the BIOS, the date is always off by a couple of years. Sorry if my explanation is confusing!
2 Answers
Just to clarify, the CMOS battery isn’t the same as your main laptop battery. If your laptop is inconsistently turning on and off, it might be more than just the CMOS issue. The SSD being faulty shouldn't prevent the laptop from powering on—it just affects the OS loading. Can you describe what happens exactly when you try to boot it up?
It sounds like the problem might be due to a dead CMOS battery causing that checksum error. You might want to search for the location of the CMOS battery for your specific model, as it’s usually not easy to spot! DIY battery replacement could save you some troubleshooting time instead of waiting for repair shops. Don’t worry, you’ll find it!
I read that sometimes it helps to completely remove all batteries and power sources, wait a bit, and then reconnect everything. Have you tried that? It might reset some internal settings.
Sometimes it turns off immediately after powering on, sometimes I see the CMOS error, and other times it tries "Preparing Automatic Repair," but it only shows my desktop for about a minute before shutting off again. Each time feels different.