I have been trying to repair a Dell XPS M170 and have been hit a dead end that i cannot get through. I go to power it on and my LED lights light up for 5 seconds and then the machine shuts off. The monitor does not light at all when I try powering up. I also do not have a battery installed in the laptop. Does it need one to operate? Thanks for the help.

I had a toshiba with similiar problem. It was the voltage regulator on the motherboard that refused to work and thus the battery was not charged. However by inserting a new battery and using the mains lead plgged in and switched on it now works all the time BUT ON MAINS ONLY! If I remove th battery it stops!

May not help but worth a try!
M

on that machine the video card has been known to over heat due to dust build up and improper heat compond installation from the factory. most likly youll need a new video card just repaired one for a friend.

you can find the videos and instuctions on the breakdown online and clean and maybe get away with removing the heat sink from the card and placing new heat sink compound on the chip and reinstalling it. the other option is to purchase a repair from one of the many ebay companies send them your card they repair most for under 200 usd
if they cant repair no charge. need any more help email me
test_me_123@hotmail.com

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