Can I Fix a BROKEN OptiPlex I Bought on eBay?

Hello there and welcome to my video. In this video, I'll be doing my best to fix a Dell Optiplex 7050 that I bought off of eBay for 80 dollars. According to the seller, this computer has an Intel Core i7 7700 and turns off after being turned on. There was also some damage to the system that I did not originally see that needed to be fixed, so come along with me as I get this computer repaired and back into the hands of someone who can use it.
Music, in order:
Beyond - Patrick Patrikios
Sunday Rain - Cheel
Soul Searching - Causmic
Papov - Yung Logos

[@dezhocob]

These are my favorite from your channel! More saving computers from the landfills please!

[@CompHwTipsAndTutorials]

I've got some more on the way!

[@MakeAstand5]

Is this your job diagnostics and troubleshooting for computers? You're good at what you do. Great Channel 👍

[@CompHwTipsAndTutorials]

I actually don't work in IT, it's solely a hobby at the moment but I really appreciate the compliment!

[@alexisaudoin2272]

So I'm a tech in a computer store and I've worked on quite a few of the HP / Dell SFF PCs. The long story short is: DisplayPort acting weird on these systems is the norm. Sometimes a BIOS update will improve things slightly but it's not always the case. Best thing to do to prepare these things for sale is to install your OS while using VGA (as it is often the only one that will output anything to get access to the BIOS) and then install the drivers. Once that's done, the system should load into Windows just fine with any display cable but your customer needs to be aware of this little quirk. I've seen this issue on pretty much any HP / Dell SFF PCs from 2nd to 8th gen intel but it's random as far as I can tell.

[@CompHwTipsAndTutorials]

Alright, I see now. Thanks for sharing that, I'm glad to be able to add that to my knowledge base now for when I deal with more of this PCs in the future! :)

[@LesCalvin3]

I had a 7040 that was POSTing all sorts of weird the other night. It would not let me get into boot or BIOS, just jumping straight to OS. I accidently fixed it by trying to clear CMOS with the jumper pins - while it was still plugged in. That booted the system and got my Dell splash screen back. Freaking Dell

[@proletariennenaturiste]

"Olden days," me and my IT class whose computers still use VGA cables and ports.

[@user-cg5xv4zz2b]

I can tell you a general piece of knowledge ( not that I can say true for this PC ) , but it takes a special display port to allow a DP to HDMI converter cable. Some pc's have a special desination for this feature - so you might want to check the specs for the PC and see if that special cable is allowed.

[@HeTake123]

I've had this issue with many Dell SFF PCs I got from a school. I tried a DP > HDMI cable and only got picture after the machine had started to boot into BIOS or Windows, I never got the POST screen. I bought a normal DP-cable and connected it to a monitor with DP port and never had any issues that way, seems like the machines are picky about the cable you use (doesnt seem to like DP > HDMI for example)

[@CompHwTipsAndTutorials]

Thanks for sharing your insight! I guess I was on the right track when it came to the DP-HDMI cable that I was using. Appreciate the info!

[@user-cg5xv4zz2b]

I put is elsewhere - but repeating here. You have to have a special display port to be able to use the DP to HDMI cable. a regular DP port will not work with that cable. I have been working on another brand and they actually put special markings to say that the DP to HDMI cable will work. so check your computers specs to see if you can use the converter cable.

[@randomtimes4100]

I have a 7050 with similar config as yours except it doesn’t want to power SATA drives unless I tug and push and mush the wires around. Then it works until it randomly stops powering the drive. As punishment it’s been sentenced to 24/7 cpu mining on a usb drive with HiveOS

[@CompHwTipsAndTutorials]

Ahh the good ol' mining punishment. I wonder if it's something to do with a damaged conductor or crimp in the little SATA power squid cable

[@nushnume]

It's not just this model with this issue. I have a 7010 and a 9020 that behave the same on the onboard displayport but only on certain monitors. I have 2 Samsung 1440p monitors and they would refuse to post,then i tried another 1080p Asus monitor and they worked with that one. I installed Windows on them and after that,if i connected them to the Samsung monitors they would power on,not show any post on the screen but the monitor would turn on only after it booted into Windows and the video driver loaded. I think those displayports don't know what to do on certain monitors until the driver boots up and tells them what to do. I used them all day via DP on those monitors and they're rock solid,but if i want to get into the BIOS,see the POST screen or reinstall Windows i just can't. They are only usable after Windows boots

[@CompHwTipsAndTutorials]

Interesting, I also noticed that the display worked flawlessly once Windows was installed and booting, but it wouldn't ever output the POST screen until the Windows screens popped up. Could definitely be something related to a driver? Dunno, but thanks for the insight, I appreciate it!

[@nushnume]

@@CompHwTipsAndTutorials Maybe it depends on the displayport version? Modern monitors have 1.4 and up while those older computers probably got 1.0 or 1.2. After i updated the bios on mine it started to post but the dell logo was really botched because it still couldn't get the monitor's correct resolution. Who knows,maybe these Dell computers expect you to have a Dell monitor and they tie toghether somehow. Using a dedicated gpu via displayport works just fine so it's just the onboard dell video that's got some sort of incompatibility problems

[@proletariennenaturiste]

Bruh, I wish I could have even half of 32 gigs of RAM. The most I've ever personally had was 4. I presently only have two on my working computer, four on my again non-working laptop.

[@EastAngliaUK]

nice pc shame such high cpu temps

[@CompHwTipsAndTutorials]

Yeah I wish these blower coolers weren't so garbage

[@bryans8656]

I've got the SFF 7010 with an RTX A2000 GPU, and I've discovered the display output is really finnicky about which displayport cable I use.

[@CompHwTipsAndTutorials]

That's interesting, I wonder if it could be anything to do with trying to run some high resolution/high refresh rate through the cable?

[@bryans8656]

@@CompHwTipsAndTutorials I was thinking it may be more to do with whether the cable is unidirectional or bidirectional, but that's a guess. The GPU came with short mini-DP to DP adapters (male to female). When I replaced those with a single mini-DP to DP cable (male to male) everything worked flawlessly. BTW, the A2000 outputs to mini-DP only so I didn't have any other options.

[@doombringer1505]

Is the audio port on back stereo, or mono? Very "generic " looking to me...

[@CompHwTipsAndTutorials]

It's a stereo output

[@vollhorst140]

Dell is the worst, all their systems are basically proprietary shit with stupid limitations in place. Nice video though!

[@nushnume]

That's pretty much every OEM out there,it's not just Dell

[@AlexManganiMw]

My optiplex 7010 MT powers on then off twice and fully powers the 3rd time. It's really annoying.

[@CounterStriker013009]

This is the reason I dont like Dell anymore.....