Assembled this computer outta old parts for a neighbor. Motherboard is ACorp 7VIA71A, 650 Athlon slot A, 192 PC100, 16mb TNT2 Vanta AGP, Antec 250 watt PSU. Everything went together fine & it seems to be running quite well. I installed Quake 3 Arena & was surprised at how well it played. Anyhow, I unplugged it & was gonna give it to them, but they asked me to hang out to it for a few days more. I decided to hook it back up because I knew there was a windows update available. I found the clock had stopped the day I pulled the plug. I pulled the CMOS battery & checked it with a voltmeter - it was at 2.1v so I decided to replace it. I ran thru the BIOS settings, got online & ran the update. After it was done, I shutdown & pulled the plug...came back several hours later, plugged it back in & the clock had once again stopped at the exact time I pulled the plug. None of the other BIOS settings are changing, just the clock. I tried updating the BIOS & had so many problems with it locking up that I reverted back to the old BIOS again.

I can't hand this thing over the way it is. Any suggestions on how to fix the clock problem? Should I try another PSU?

Asus A7N8X-X
1800+ @8x210mhz
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

Did you set the date and time correctly in the BIOS? When you check back in the BIOS are they still correct? If you used good batteries then somthing is draining the battery if the BIOS isn't holding the time.

It's easy to fall into the trap of assuming new is good. It might be worth checking the new battery.

The RTC is located on the motherboard, I don't know how a PSU could help.

yea, I made sure the date/time were set correctly. When I pulled the plug, I recorded the time - it was 12:13pm. I did some xmas shopping, got home about 6pm, plugged the system back in & the time was 12:14pm

Asus A7N8X-X
1800+ @8x210mhz
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

jam
I didn't notice this post was yours. I meant did the BIOS hold the correct time and date when the system was unplugged?

I'm assuming the system keeps perfect time as long as it's plugged in and turned on. When jam turns the system off, the clock stops at that time. CMOS retains all the other configuration settings but date and time just stop when the machine is turned off.

Right so far?

Now for the non solution. I've seen it before...replaced the mobo battery, added a plug in mobo battery, changed the mobo battery again and still the same thing. I'm clueless and can only suspect the RTC chip or a shaky BIOS chip. I have not experienced this sort of behavior on a board newer than an old socket7 motherboard.

Skip

try board out of case to see if problem still exists

david

I checked the new battery with a voltmeter before I put it in...it read 3v.

The system keeps perfect time as long as it's plugged in...it doesn't matter is it's on or off, but there has to be power to the PSU. If I unplug it or kill the powerstrip, the clock stops.

I just tested it again. Power off for 20 min, powered up again & clock was right. Power off at 9:15...pulled the plug, powered up at 9:29 & clock reads 9:16. Sounds like it may be a flakey RTC? I was hoping the BIOS update would help, but the system constantly freezes upon getting to the desktop. If I flash back, everything works fine except for the damn clock!

Asus A7N8X-X
1800+ @8x210mhz
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

Wish I knew more about the RTC chips. It's my understanding they're basically a crystal like you'd find in a dollar wristwatch. I've never found a solution to this problem.

Skip

Speaking of clocks, I have the same problem. Whenever I unplug it, It doesent keep track of time. Really annoying! I will try some stuff mentioned above but make sure to report back cause its making me mad.

Well, I tried the BIOS flash again...even though it freezes at the desktop screen, I figured I'd see if it helps with the clock prob. I unplugged the PSU & recorded the time, then came back about 30 min later, plugged it back in & booted into the BIOS...the clock had stopped. Since none of the other BIOS settings are changing, it seems it must be a prob with the RTC. I'm gonna try another PSU just for the heck of it. If that doesn't do it, I'll pull the board & see if it still happens out of the case.

I'm not charging much for this system but I can't sell it as it is. My only alternative would be to swap the board. Unfortunately, I don't have another SlotA board, so I'll either have to go with a Super7/K6-2/500 setup w/AT case, or a KT133/Duron/1200 setup.

Asus A7N8X-X
1800+ @8x210mhz
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

Jam,

I can't see that a PSU will make any difference since the problem only occurs when the PSU is not involved.

This sounds like a sweetheart deal, why don't you just tell the buyer that this fault occurs. It wouldn't be too much of a hassle for them to reset the time after every blackout. As they live nearby, you could even drop by and fix the problem the first couple of times until they learn how to do it themselves. They want cheap, this is what you can offer. It's not like you are selling them a new car with dangerous defects.

this is a long shot but could it be a y2k bug? set the date pre'00

"this is a long shot but could it be a y2k bug? set the date pre'00"

The date on the board is 2000 & so is the BIOS, so I kinda doubt it's the Y2K bug.

I reflashed the BIOS to the original & did a final run thru - the system runs great except for the time glitch. I tore it down & boxed it. I'm gonna take Rimfire's advice & give it to them the way it is. I'll explain how to reset the time & just tell them not to shut down at the power strip.

Thanks for all the advice.

Asus A7N8X-X
1800+ @8x210mhz
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

could setup in autoexec.bat to ask for current time & date so that when computer starts up they can fill in time & date when prompted

david

Hi

Actually it sounds like the cmos is quite happily storing the time. The real time clock chip should (generally) be powered from the same source as the cmos.

Real time clock chips do not require much power, so an alternate source via a capacitor or rechargeable battery in circut may be the situation. Esp with the Real Time Clock (RTC) quitting after a number of minutes disconected from power.

I'm not familiar with Acorp, but I have heard, some computers used a power on chip solution, rather than rely on a battery on the motherboard. I'm not sure if that is in reference to the RTC or CMOS though.

Unless you could trace the source for the RTC back to a capacitor or other rechargeable supply, there's not much you can do I think hardware wise.

jam,

Did you check the battery connector? They go bad too.

YO

Hi

Yoyo - connectors do get dirty/damaged, but the CMOS settings are OK, so that suggests that the battery connector/cradle is ok. (If there was a problem, you would expect the settings to change as well, and the cmos would also not store the last correct value from the RTC chip.)

Thanks! Good eye. Didn't think about that.

YO

I checked everything I could think & it appears it must be a bad RTC.

I took Rimfire's advice & delivered the PC last nite. I set it up & explained the clock problem to them. Then I gave em a quick demo & showed their son Quake 3 Arena. He said, "man, that game is RAW!" I assume that's good? LOL! I showed him how to burn using CloneCD & he immediately made a copy of Q3 for his best friend, then he ran into the other room & came back with the "Home Alone" DVD & asked me to show him how to use the DVD software. When I left, he was still watching the movie with a big smile on his face :)

Happy Holidays everyone!

Asus A7N8X-X
1800+ @8x210mhz
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

Hi

Actually the RTC is fine for the fact that it works briefly after the system is shut down. re #7. The problem you have, suggests (system off)power to the chip is supplied from elsewhere.

I had missed the system freezing on and off. I thought that was whilst you were flashing only. This freezing occurs on bootup? I would assume you tested for hardware conflicts/incompatiblity etc and tested the system memory.

Anyhow they're satisfied.

So Happy Holidays.

"I had missed the system freezing on and off. I thought that was whilst you were flashing only."

It would be nice if I could have solved the problem before turning the PC over to them. Anyhow, for what it's worth, here's a little more detail:

The freezing only occurred with the updated BIOS. After the successful flash, I ran thru the BIOS settings again, then booted into WinXP. For some reason, XP would try to install "standard gameport", then it would lockup...I hit the reset button, rebooted & it would lockup at about 45% when checking the disk. Disabling the onboard sound/gameport & cancelling the disk checking would allow me to get back into XP, but it would freeze up again on the desktop screen. I tried tweaking different BIOS settings, but the end result was always the same.

I reflashed back to the old BIOS, re-enabled the onboard sound, rebooted, & the system would complete the disk checking & get into XP with no problems. Everything worked fine with the old BIOS & I ended up leaving it that way. The only reason I tried the BIOS update was that I hoped it might correct the clock error.

Asus A7N8X-X
1800+ @8x210mhz
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

Jam, would you be so kind and send me the original BIOS? A friend of mine has the same board and he updated to version 2B and he had all kind of problems since. Unfortunately he didn't saved the BIOS before flashing. 10x in advance!

TheDam,

I'm at work right now, but I do have the BIOS saved on a floppy at home. Just so you know, when I saved it, I named it OLDBIOS.BIN. I'll create a ZIP file with the BIOS & flash utility on it & I'll e-mail it to you later today.

Asus A7N8X-X
1800+ @8x210mhz
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

10x a lot, I've received the file. Hope it will do the trick. I'll let ya know via e-mail!

Jam,

Would you be so kind to send me the original bios also. I have had nothing but trouble since updating and did not back up the file. Your help is appreciated.

Hi!Till a week ago I had a Athlon 500 Mhz on my acorp 7VIA71A and the sistem worked just fine.now I bought a Thunderbird 750 Mhz and the computer crashes really bad.Sometimes I don't even get to load windows xp,other times it crashes after a few minutes.My guess is that my power source is the problem (only 235W)or my bios.The thing is that i got my motherboard from somebody and I don't know if he updated the bios or not(it says Rev B ).Please send me an e-mail with the original bios and a few little explanation on how to install it and if possible tell me how do i know if the bios that I have now is the updated version.(or any other idee on why the system crashes).Thank you.

I'll send the old BIOS to you when I get home. I the meantime, have a look at these:

http://www.sysopt.com/userreviews/mboards/reviewhtml/Acorp_7VIA71A_Motherboard.html

http://www.overclockers.com.au/techstuff/a_slota/

Asus A7N8X-X
2500+ Sempron @ 2100mhz
10.5 x 200mhz @ 1.80v
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

For the clock problem, did you check the JBAT jumper ? it is near the battery and should be connected to 1-2. About a year ago I replaced the jumper, maybe...........

The new BIOS 7via71ab gets me all kinds of lock-ups so I stay to 7VIA71A Ver A: 05/20/00

Windows XP only complains about ACPI in the eventvwr, but is running fine.

Helps someone ?

Ed