Appendix D. BIOS Beep Codes

When your computer can’t start or give you a display, it can still provide you with useful troubleshooting information in the form of beeps. Depending on your motherboard’s BIOS (consult your motherboard manual to determine which one you have), these can provide useful feedback to help you diagnose and fix problems with your PC.

Table D-1. Standard Original IBM Error Codes

Sound

Meaning

1 short beep

Normal–everything OK

2 short beeps

POST error (shown on screen)

Continuous beep

Power supply, system board, or keyboard problem

Repeating short beeps

Power supply or system board problem

1 long, 1 short beep

System board problem

1 long, 2 short beeps

Display adapter problem

1 long, 3 short beeps

Enhanced graphics adapter problem ...

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