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Dell Beep Codes Explained
Your computer might emit a series of beeps during start-up if the monitor cannot display errors or problems. This series of beeps, called a beep code, identifies a problem. One possible beep code (code 1-3-1) consists of one beep, a burst of three beeps, and then one beep. This beep code tells you that the computer encountered a memory problem.
If your computer beeps during start-up:
- Write down the beep code on the Diagnostics Checklist.
- Run the Dell Diagnostics to identify a more serious cause.
- Contact Dell for technical assistance.
| Code | Cause |
|---|---|
| 1-1-2 | Microprocessor register failure |
| 1-1-3 | NVRAM read/write failure |
| 1-1-4 | ROM BIOS checksum failure |
| 1-2-1 | Programmable interval timer failure |
| 1-2-2 | DMA initialization failure |
| 1-2-3 | DMA page register read/write failure |
| 1-3 | Video Memory test failure |
| 1-3-1 to 2-4-4 | Memory not being properly identified or used |
| 3-1-1 | Slave DMA register failure |
| 3-1-2 | Master DMA register failure |
| 3-1-3 | Master interrupt mask register failure |
| 3-1-4 | Slave interrupt mask register failure |
| 3-2-2 | Interrupt vector loading failure |
| 3-2-4 | Keyboard Controller test failure |
| 3-3-1 | NVRAM power loss |
| 3-3-2 | Invalid NVRAM configuration |
| 3-3-4 | Video Memory test failure |
| 3-4-1 | Screen initialization failure |
| 3-4-2 | Screen retrace failure |
| 3-4-3 | Search for video ROM failure |
| 4-2-1 | No timer tick |
| 4-2-2 | Shutdown failure |
| 4-4-3 | Gate A20 failure |
| 4-2-4 | Unexpected interrupt in protected mode |
| 4-3-1 | Memory failure above address 0FFFFh |
| 4-3-3 | Timer-chip counter 2 failure |
| 4-3-4 | Time-of-day clock stopped |
| 4-4-1 | Serial or parallel port test failure |
| 4-4-2 | Failure to decompress code to shadowed memory |
| 4-4-3 | Math-coprocessor test failure |
| 4-4-4 | Cache test failure |
