Gateway P-6831FX Troubleshooting

The laptop does not power on after pressing the power button.

Unplug the adapter and remove the battery. If you need help removing the battery, please look at this guide. Once the battery has been removed, plug the power adapter back into the machine and try to turn on the machine. If the device turns on normally, then you need to replace the battery.

Plug the power adapter into the wall and then plug it into your laptop. If the battery is not charging, you may have a power adapter issue. Check to see if the LED on the power brick is on. If you do not see this light, then you will need to replace the power adapter.

To deal with a faulty motherboard, you will have to replace your existing motherboard with a new one.

The computer takes a long time to use basic programs, doesn't start up or freezes after a while.

You should download an anti-virus program and run a full virus scan. Once this has been completed, download an anti-malware program and run another complete scan. (It is important to run these scans separately, as an anti-virus may false report an anti-malware program and vice versa) .

Try closing out of any extra programs that you may not need running. For example, any Internet browsers, music streaming programs, photo viewers, etc.

If your computer is still running slowly, it may be worth your time to check the task manager and look at your memory. If you are close your maximum allotted memory you may want to consider adding more RAM. If you are unsure of how to replace your RAM this guide will show you what to do.

Any CD or DVD cannot be played

Eject your disk and clean the disk. Re-insert the disk and close.

Open your device manager and select find “DVD/CD-ROM drivers.” Right click this item and select “update driver.” When prompted “How do you want me to search for drivers” select “Search automatically for updated driver software”

If disk drive still will not read disks, you may want to replace the optical drive.

After powering on, an error message or “blue screen” appears rather than taking you to your home screen.

If you are booted into the BIOS upon turning on your Computer it may be because your boot order is improper. Remove all USB sticks and make sure to check your disk drive to ensure nothing is there. Once these devices are removed try booting again. If nothing changes you may have a Defective Hard Drive.

To repair your hard drive, insert a Windows DVD with the correct version of windows into your machine. Boot to the DVD and then choose “Startup Repair” from the list of options. Your machine will attempt to repair itself based on the data that is on the disk. If this fails, you may need to replace your Hard Drive.

Your computer reaches unsafe operating levels

If your computer is overheating it may be because the airflow is being blocked or diverted. You can take a look at this guide to help you open up your laptop. Once open remove any dust from the fans and vents.

If removing the dust did not fix your problem one of the fans may be broken or malfunctioning. You will want to have your laptop open and see what fan does not spin upon booting. Once the fan is identified you will need to replace it.

If the above solutions did not fix the issue then you may need to remove and replace/reapply the heatsink. If you do not know how to do this then you can follow this guide.

Your computer cannot connect to the internet

Check your laptops manual wireless switch. Make sure it is not in the offline position. If it is you will not be able to connect to the internet.

If your laptops switch is in the online position and you cannot connect to the internet run the windows troubleshooter and follow the instructions. It may find an error that can be resolved to get you online.

If both above solutions do not work you may need to replace your WiFi card. If you are unsure of how to do this please take a look at this guide.

The keys will not respond to your keystrokes

When a key is jammed and cannot be depressed then you may want to remove the key and clean the area underneath the key. Once cleaned you can put the key back and test again.

If your entire keyboard does not respond you may need to replace it. For assistance please look at this guide.