I have not done anything to update my computer recently. This is just out of the blue. I sat down to go on my computer today, hit the button and i heard the power supply fan running really loud like it was trying to start and stop and what sounded like a cracking or something. I shut it off. I turned it on again and nothing happened but i could see and smell smoke. With it on, i jiggled the cord on the back and the fan started grinding up and down like it was trying to start, more smoke came out. So i just unplugged it and walked away for 2 hours. Came back and still the same. I have 2 questions: 1. This psu is done, broken, right? 2. If it is, do you think any components would have been damaged?

If the smoke was definately originating from the power supply then: 1) Probably, but it wouldn't hurt to remove the power supply, open it up and see if you can locate the problem. 2) Probably not as it doesn't sound like it powered up. But you won't know for sure until you replace the power supply.

no sense in keeping the psu. replace it. i wish i were what i wished i were before i wished i were what i am now...

Letting out the factory supplied smoke is hazardous to your health, it is a violation of various state and federal laws and regulations, including those of the EPA and the "clean air act." Worse yet, attempting to re-install this smoke is an even MORE serious crime, and is punishable by very large fines and imprisonment. Even attempting to buy, possess, transport this smoke is illegal. It is extremely toxic, and besides that, it smells bad. Your power supply is, to use a word, toast. It is possible that nothing else was damaged, and it also possible that something else WAS damaged. I think what I'd recommend is this: attempt to get a compatible power supply out of an older machine, a "junker" if you will. (Radio equipment, for example, comes in different classes. Keepers, shippers, drifters, slappers, droppers, and sinkers. A sinker is a junker before it becomes a sinker. This is also illegal) Anyhow, pull everything apart, and hook up your "used" PSU ON A TABLE where you can work with the system. Hook up ONLY the PSU, the motherboard, CPU, RAM, and a video card if not built in Hook up the keyboard and a monitor. See if the board will boot and access the bios. Next, hook up the floppy, and see if the "system" will boot to a known good floppy. A typical Winhoed98 startup floppy is excellant. Next, hook one of your CDROM's and see if it works--try booting to it, or reading a cd in it with the above floppy disk. Next, add other drives, ONE AT A TIME, and see if they work. DO NOT connect or deconnect ANYTHING while the machine is powered on. If you're satisfied that the thing works, put 'er all together and go order a new supply. It, too, will come with new smoke installed, just waiting........

ok, new (old) supply is in. computer is back on. PROBLEM: when it would normally boot to hard drive. It cant find the hard drive. the i get the "disk boot failure insert system disk" message. i tried booting to floppy, works fine, then tried booting to cd-rom, no go. now, hard drive fans spin up and if i restart the computer not turning it off, it can return the correct code for the hard drive, but then it freezes. cd-rom opens and closes. Also, i can access the BIOS. From what i have said, what do you guys think is the problem, maybe something not working?. I hope i havent lost my data.

At the worst the spikes generated when the PS failed zapped the motherboard. At the best they caused some system corruption (registry maybe). What you need to do now is backup your data, possibly by installing your HD in another machine. When you have done that then there is a chance that if you return the HD to this machine system restore might fix it. DerekW

Since it boots OK from a bootdisk, do that and at the a:\> prompt type fdisk and enter, Y to large disk support and then option 4. Exactly what does it say?