Fix the Dell OLOD (Orange Light of Death)

If you have a Dell pc that won't turn on, Chances are that you have a power supply problem. Most of the time the power light will be flashing
Orange.

Step By Step:
(Disconnect all cables, Inc the power)
1. Open the case of your Dell Pc
2. On the power supply box (top right) find the GREEN wire
(The green wire will almost always be the power switch on all Pc's)
3. Cut it at around the middle
4. Strip Both Ends
5.Find a long enough piece of wire that will reach to the front of the pc
6. Solder the GREEN wires back together but putting your seperate peice of wire inbetween them
7. Tidy them up with zip ties and shrink tubing (Electrical Tape if not)
8. Plug the power cable into the pc
9. Hold the wire onto the chassis of the pc
10. If the fans start at full speed, press the power button and let the wire off
11. your pc should be running as normal.

Comments

[Aidan C]

I am having troubles turning on my computer (it is an optiplex 745 desktop) every time i turn it on the fan start and the disk drive works but on my monitor it says no signal, the desktop it self has an orange power light, now im wondering, is this OLOD?

[Bs69]

Same

[MohammadT31]

Hi there Aidan C,
Ok so here's what u can do,
#1 Method.
Open up ur pc case
Pul out the power cable from behind the pc
Now pull out the cmos battery
Now replace the cmos battery with a new one.

If this doesn't work check ur vga cable , if any of the pins r damaged replace the entire cable.

This should work I hope.
And good luck.

[apoocalypso]

I tried this fix for the flashing orange light on my Dell Inspiron 620 and it did not work for me. BUT I did get my machine working doing the following, take the side panel off and with power disconnected use a hairdryer to heat up the inside of the computer just blow it everywhere in general and then once its nice and warm, plug the power in and turn it on, voila! if it doesn't work first time heat it up some more. and then just never turn your PC off. And for added protection in the BIOS set it to automatically power back on after a power cut so that it wont get cold enough to not turn on. Let me know if this helps you out!

[kerafyrm]

Hey,

Thanks a lot. This worked for me and got me out of a tight situation!

[Boiesowe]

I have Dell optiplex 3020 my motherboard Amber light is on when i plug my power cord with no other functions,no fans spinning at all....so please help me fix it i don't know where the problem is and i can't figure it.

[m.zohaibaltistani9576]

my dell cpu pentium 4 is flashing orange light and power supply fans are also running ,i have also change 2032 power cell and rams but it is still flashing oriange light on power button please find out solution for this....

[Subz41]

My Dell optiplex 760 has a solid orange light and full power fan but it will not boot up.. I have nothing on my monitor. Can anyone help please

[bneil4434]

Holy *bleep* it worked! Way to go curtisg!! If it helps anyone I used a three-way connector (got it from the automotive section in Walmart) on the green wire that runs from the power box to the motherboard. (I put up a picture of it below) Again, great job!!

[segdaf]

hello bneil4434,

i tired this but no result. when i put the joined cable on the cabinet the fan worked and when i removed it it went off then i tried to power it on it was the same orange light.

[bneil4434]

Just doing a follow up to my comment from over 2.5years ago (you can find that comment below 2015-04-08). The fix curtisg gave worked then and still works now. Again, thanks for the Instructable!

[VintusO]

Please friend how will I solved the problem of my dell desktop c p u that only blink yellow Light but will not power

[badeba]

while having this issue with dell laptop i did some research and i find out this can be fixed . just restart the laptop using the power key and hold for like 30 sec and let it turn on . try booting into using safe mode using the f8 for all other steps follow this post http://fixingblog.com/fix-laptop-computer-not-turn-on/ i am sure this may help

[Nduch]

FIX 1:

unplug all cords from your CPU then hold the power button for more than 60 seconds, this should clear the CMOS. then plug back the cords and you are back to work.

FIX 2:

JUST Clear Your Computer's CMOS to Reset BIOS Settings. 1. unplug all cables from your computer 2. remove the CMOS battery from the motherboard for over 6 minutes (to ensure the BIOS is reset) 3. plug it back in and you are good to go.

[rumply]

FIX 1 worked for me!!!! My power breaker tripped and when I came back after resetting the breaker, my optiplex 755 had the amber/orange light on with the fan running. Your tip reset the computer.

Thank you!

[AstroB1]

My dell pc tower blinkin orange light the light is on inside as i open but it is blinking up front power button

[SulaimanM5]

Hello sir i try this step but not work..plz reply me i want solution

[sk8nski]

Orange/amber light is solid, not blinking (Computer is a Dell Dimension E520). Tried all the suggestions recommended in the posts below. No fan activity or indication computer wants to start up. Just did the dust blowout thinking that could have been cause. I am also suspicious it could have been lighting strike but not certain as I cannot pinpoint. Any guidance on any other troubleshooting tips? thanks sk

[PaulR159]

TRIED BUT ORANGE LIGHT STILL ON. Method didn't work for me. This is the same as a reset button. Power light never did come on....Thanks, Paul

[BrianH103]

Thank you for sharing this. You saved me a headache that you wouldn't believe! (on second thought you probably would.)