Beep Codes - Digital Equipment Venturis FX Service Maintenance Manual

Troubleshooting

Beep Codes

When POST finds an error and cannot display a message, the computer's speaker
emits a series of beeps to indicate the error and places a value in I/O port 80h. During
POST, if the video configuration fails or if an external ROM module fails a checksum
test, then the computer beeps three times (one long beep, and two short beeps).
The following table lists other fatal errors and their associated beep codes. Each
code represents the number of short beeps that are grouped together. Fatal errors
(errors that lock up the computer) are generally the result of a failed main logic board
or some other add-on component (SIMM, BIOS, computer battery, etc.).
Beep Error
Code
1 One short beep before boot
1-2 Search for option ROMs
1-2-2-3 BIOS ROM checksum
1-3-1-1 Test DRAM refresh
1-3-1-3 Test keyboard controller
1-3-4-1 Test 512K base address lines
1-3-4-3 Test 512K base memory
1-4-1-1 Test memory bus
2-1-2-3 Check ROM copyright notice
2-2-3-1 Test for unexpected interrupts
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