Member Avatar for nc0904

This morning I got up to use my laptop and it suddenly went out and has been out all day. I've tried all kinds of methods including holding down the power button to "drain" the power. This is the first time this has happened so are there any ideas you can give before I spend money taking it to a technician.

Also, I'm a web designer and I have a lot of valuable and important client files and my own "personal" files and documents on the computer, if the laptop is dead with no hope for revival, how can I retrieve that data?

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A compact, practical addendum for the ThinkPad R51 no-power thread that ties the existing suggestions together and fills gaps left by earlier replies.

Common-failure checklist (start here, in order): remove AC and battery, press-and-hold the power button for 30 seconds to discharge residual power, then plug in AC only and try to power on; confirm whether the AC adapter’s status LED (if fitted) lights; try a known-good compatible ThinkPad adapter or check adapter output with a multimeter; listen for fan/HDD spin or any beep codes and watch the LED indicators; reseat the RAM modules and try again. ’s battery/remove-and-try-AC step and ’s adapter/DC-jack checks are the right first moves—if the adapter LED is on but nothing happens, the problem is most likely the DC jack or the mainboard power circuitry rather than the battery.

Hard-drive/data-recovery guidance tied to the OP’s “enclosure won’t fit” problem: the R51 uses a 2.5" PATA/IDE drive with a 44-pin connector, not SATA and not the larger 3.5" form. An enclosure or cable designed for 3.5" drives or for SATA will not mate with that 44-pin connector. Useful options are a 2.5" PATA (44-pin) to USB adapter cable, a dedicated 2.5" PATA USB enclosure, or temporarily installing the drive in a desktop using a 44-to-40-pin adapter plus a Molex power lead. If the drive spins when connected but is not visible, try the adapter on another PC; if it does not spin or is not detected, the disk may have failed and professional recovery should be considered.

Safety and next steps: remove the HDD before risking invasive repairs to protect data, keep the drive in an anti-static bag, avoid repeatedly powering a device that shows no activity (that can worsen faults), and prioritize a proper PATA-to-USB solution rather than the wrong enclosure. ’s desktop-mount idea is a solid fallback, and ’s later post shows this is a recurring failure mode—data-first, repair-second.

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Member Avatar for JANINE

i also have a thinkpad laptop and occassionally mine also acts up in the way you describe. i have found that it tends to be a charge problem. if i leave it on charge overnight it'll be ok and useable in the morning..

if you laptop is dead and buried ... fret not about your data. you can obtain a hard drive enclosure kit which should allow you to get yur data off.

Member Avatar for nc0904

i also have a thinkpad laptop and occassionally mine also acts up in the way you describe. i have found that it tends to be a charge problem. if i leave it on charge overnight it'll be ok and useable in the morning..

if you laptop is dead and buried ... fret not about your data. you can obtain a hard drive enclosure kit which should allow you to get yur data off.

I left in on charge overnight but that still didn't work :sad: BUt thanks for the advice about the enclosure kit. :cheesy:

Member Avatar for JANINE

have you tried removing the battery and just booting from the mains supply? might be a faulty battery.

if not i would look at a charging/power circuit problem within the actual motherboard itself

Member Avatar for slick3xexx

This morning I got up to use my laptop and it suddenly went out and has been out all day. I've tried all kinds of methods including holding down the power button to "drain" the power. This is the first time this has happened so are there any ideas you can give before I spend money taking it to a technician.

Also, I'm a web designer and I have a lot of valuable and important client files and my own "personal" files and documents on the computer, if the laptop is dead with no hope for revival, how can I retrieve that data?

I have had the same problem with the same model laptop. What you might want to do is remove your internal hard drive and place it into a USB enclosure, then plug it into any other computer to back-up and save your data. An alternate solution would be to install the hard drive into a desktop PC using a mounting kit, then back-up your information. If you wish to repair your thinkpad, you may be able to find a new or used motherboard on ebay. They go for around 160 bucks.

Member Avatar for JANINE

I have had the same problem with the same model laptop. What you might want to do is remove your internal hard drive and place it into a USB enclosure, then plug it into any other computer to back-up and save your data. An alternate solution would be to install the hard drive into a desktop PC using a mounting kit, then back-up your information. If you wish to repair your thinkpad, you may be able to find a new or used motherboard on ebay. They go for around 160 bucks.

i've gone by english currency and found the following that just about match the specifiactions

http://computers.search.ebay.co.uk/motherboard_IBM_W0QQa10244ZQ2d24QQa12ZQ2d24QQa14ZQ2d24QQa25710ZQ2d24QQa26444ZQ2d24QQa26446ZQ2d24QQalistZa14Q2ca26444Q2ca25710Q2ca12Q2ca10244Q2ca26446Q2ca3801QQbsZSearchQQcatrefZC6QQcoactionZcompareQQcoentrypageZsearchQQcopagenumZ1QQfgtpZQQfposZPostcodeQQfromZR2QQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQftrtZ1QQftrvZ1QQga10244Z10425QQgcsZ1505QQlopgZQQpf_queryZmotherboardQQpfidZ1830QQpfmodeZ1QQreqtypeZ2QQsacatZ3715QQsadisZ200QQsaprchiZQQsaprcloZQQsargnZQ2d1QQsaslcZ3QQsbrftogZ1QQsofocusZbs

Member Avatar for BuggZ

WHen you connect the mains adapter, does the charging light come on? If not check the adapter to make sure it is working and check the power jack in the rear of the laptop to make sure is has not detatched from the motherboard.

Member Avatar for nc0904

i've bought an eclosure kit, but my laptop hard drive will not fit this ribbon cable.

:sad:

Member Avatar for BuggZ

Did you buy a 2.5 inch or a 3.5 inch drive enclosure kit?

Member Avatar for ramgarlapati

Hi I have the same problem with my laptop it went dead yesterday and i can see the charging of battery but when i press the power button i dont see any response from the laptop....Should i change the motherboard?

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