I just built my first computer and when I press the power button the LEDs and fans turn on for about 1/2 a second. What can I do?!? (Sorry if this isn't the right section for this, I am new here)
You give us very little info to work with. Anyway, make sure you've got every piece of hardware placed and seated correctly. Make sure that all the needed power supply connectors are plugged in correctly. Are you sure that you have correctly wired all the front pannel connectors to the motherboard headers? If not, consult with the motherboard manual.
I will check everything again when I get home, what information about the build would you pike to know?
What motherboard do you have?? Most new motherboards have debug LED's that help you troubleshoot the problem.
I'll check when I get home, but I only have 1/2 a second to see what lights up if it indeed has the lights you mentioned.
Test your PSU to see if it turns on and stays on using the paperclip trick (remember to fully remove any connectors from your computer or components). If it doesn't stay on then it is your PSU. If it stays on and you have a DMM(voltmeter) you can check to see if your voltages are correct.(You don't necessarily need to do this)
Pinouts:
ATX,4pin cpu, sata, molex,pci 6pin
If the aforementioned checkout then then next reasonable thing is to look at your mobo,cpu, and ram. Look for bent pins/physical defects. Reseat them and try turning it on again. That's just my two cents.
It's not posting? First check that your RAM is seated correctly. If you have 4 ram slots and only two DIMMs make sure they are seated in the 1-3 or 2-4 positions, that should help. Make sure your processor is mounted correctly and that your motherboard has power. If that isn't the problem then do what the above poster said, check the PSU. If your PSU is fine then it might be time to consider you have a DOA motherboard.
Could you post back with your computer specs? This might be a common problem with a piece of hardware you have that if we knew what you were working with we could easily help you. Without specs it's like shooting in the dark.