Running windows with no monitor?

BLACKOUT · 03-12-2001, 11:00 PM

Can someone tell me how to make windows run with out a monitor?

I got my system all set up today, just have to install it in my car, so I so I unplug all the things that wont be in my car (mouse, monitor), and use an amp meter to find out how big of an inverter I need, turn on my comp (found out it runs at .9 amps max, runs at .4-.6 most of the time, anyway), and I here it beep like 4 or 6 times, I am like ok, so it knows there isn't a monitor no big deal, so I let it go into windows, but windows never loads (I knew this because winamp should have been playing if it loaded all the way), so I plug the monitor back in, and there is an error message on the screen saying my vga addaptor is not set up right or something of the sort, so I restart with the monitor pluged in and it works fine, so I was messing around to see what I could do, I found out that if I unplug my monitor from the wall (i.e. power), my comp will run fine, but if I unplug the monitor cable between the comp and the monitor, from the monitor (in the back of it) or from the back of the comp, it will beep at start up and give me the error. I konw some of you guys run windows and don't have a monitor in your car, can you tell me how to do that, this is the last step I need before I install!
Thanks for any/all help
--BLK

Callahan · 03-12-2001, 11:34 PM

If it is stopping at the POST screen, then you just need to set your CMOS to not halt on any errors.. Some video cards are a bit picky about it and will beep a lot without a monitor there, but they should still boot.. Depending on your board, the option could be in different places in the CMOS, but usually it is on the General page with the drive setup options...

BLACKOUT · 03-12-2001, 11:47 PM

yeah, that's what I thought, but I have no idea how to get into the bios on this computer, it's a compac I don't mess with brand name computers most of the time, I have hit every key I can think of all the the F keys, and the delete keys, but still nothing
--BLK

moxnix · 03-13-2001, 12:37 AM

hummm most comcraps I can think of use F10 to get into BIOS but you could also try unplugging the keyboard and see if it gives you an error message something like this "keyboard missing press F1 to continue with boot or F10 for setup" and if it does then you can turn it back off plug the keybaord back in and let it start up again and hit whatever key it told you to get into setup. or if you let us know what model the compaq is I am sure somebody here will have something like that sitting around that they could lookup the bios keystrokes. I think some people have had to use A VGA terminator on their video card to solve this problem like in this thread http://www.mp3car.com/ubb/Forum2/HTML/001346.html so that might be what you will need to end up doing with it ?

gizmomkr · 03-13-2001, 10:34 AM

Compaq's are a royal pain in the ***!

I last dealt with them about 2 years ago, and all the ones I saw had this "Bios on disk" thing, it didnt actually write data to a chip, the set up program , and the setings were stored on a partition on the hard disk.
If you deleted the partition, you owuld have to reload the "cmos software" from diskets.... it also had strange key combos for setup... I remmeber shift alt enter.... and shift alt F10, and I think ctrl alt s

I heard they stoped dooing this software BIOS thing later on, so yours might not have it.... hope it helps

Aaron Cake · 03-13-2001, 10:45 AM

The problem is that the video card is not POSTing because of the lack of monitor. Some newer (cheapo) video cards do this. Take the suggestions of others to try the BIOS setting, but I don't know if it will make any difference as it may not even be getting any farther.

------------------
Aaron Cake
London, Ontario, Canada

Player: Cyrix 200, 32MB RAM, 10.2Gig Quantum HD, Onboard EtherNet/Sound/Video, Custom Lexan Case, Arise DC-DC, Win95 Kernal w/Custom Player
Car: '86 Mazda RX-7 w/Basic Performance Upgrades

BLACKOUT · 03-13-2001, 01:32 PM

Thanks for the help guys, I will try everything that you guys said, if all else fails I can just leave the monitor in my car, because it doesn't need to be pluged in to the wall (i.e. power) for the computer to work.
So if nothing works that is what I will do
I got spring break coming up, next week, that was when I wanted to install it, but now I just need to get this worked out, thanks for all your help.
--BLK

Ashlawn Kemling · 03-13-2001, 04:34 PM

My Mp3 system is based off a Compaq motherboard. On the Presarios, it is F10. It takes me like 10 times to get into the BIOS because its picky about when you hit the key.

--Ashlawn Kemling

BLACKOUT · 03-13-2001, 04:59 PM

Ok thanks for the info,
Also Ashlawn Kemling, I a very much looking forward to your mp3 software
I check your site about once a week, so keep up the good work
--BLK

BLACKOUT · 03-13-2001, 05:30 PM

Ok, well nothing has worked that I have seen here, short of me building an vga terminator I don't know what to do, I thought I should pull all the info off the comp I could
I got this;

DP4000 5166 MMX 2400 DOM
Compaq S/N: 6734BNL2P776

if anyone has this computer or knows how to get into the bios please tell me, (god I sound like a loser)
--BLK

moxnix · 03-13-2001, 06:28 PM

That computer is going to be F10 to get into bios but if you cant get into for some reason (I forget if you can get into anything if that diagnostic partition has been deleted off the drive or not? then go to this page http://www.compaq.com/support/files/...ate/24_83.html and get the "Computer Setup/VP and PC Diagnostics" and you will be able to run it from the dissketts (or should be able to at least.

Quote from webpage about getting into the bios on a few different models

"For all products except the Deskpro EP, SB, and EN Series, Computer Setup and PC Diagnostics are both pre-installed on the Diagnostics Partition. The diskettes in this SoftPaq can be used to update these utilities on the Diagnostics Partition or to restore them if the Diagnostics Partition has been destroyed. Both utilities can be run by pressing F10 during power-up or reboot when prompted in the lower right corner of the screen on some models or when the cursor jumps to the upper right corner of the screen on other models. Or they can be run directly from these diskettes." so if F10 deos not work for you for some reason just grab the diskettes and see what you can find. err sorry for the long message and if I repeated myself in here somewhere it is because I am getting ready to leave work now and I am in a little bit of a hurry

moxnix

Meatballman · 03-13-2001, 06:35 PM

I used to work for a large power company that used exclusively Compaqs. All of their computers got into the BIOS with the F10 key.

On most of them, when starting up, a little white box would blink on and off in the upper right corner of the screen. That was the cue to press the F10 key to enter the bios.

By the way, it looks like you have a Deskpro 4000 and on the Compaq website, it confirms that F10 enters the BIOS on this computer
Here is the Deskpro 4000 FAQ:
http://web14.compaq.com/falco/detail.asp?FAQnum=FAQ2735

And some other links that might help:
HTTP://WWW.COMPAQ.COM/support/techpu...ries/8500.html
HTTP://WWW.COMPAQ.COM/support/techpu...ries/8361.html

[This message has been edited by Meatballman (edited 03-13-2001).]

BLACKOUT · 03-13-2001, 09:03 PM

Well, I have reformated that hard drive twice since I got it (3 weeks ago) so I am sure that partiton is gone, thanks for the help guys, that should do it
--BLK

gizmomkr · 03-14-2001, 08:16 AM

FYI -

Formating the drive will NOT remove the partition.

Partitions can only be removed with disk utilities like fdisk, partition magic, LILO, and a magnet

Meatballman · 03-14-2001, 10:56 AM

And like moxnix pointed out, you can still create the disks and get it that way.

(BTW gizmonkr, LILO is just a boot loader. To dump partitions in linux, a utility like fdisk or Disk Druid is used...but I'm sure you already knew that)