Identifying Beep Codes

Beep codes produced by a computer is very important for a Computer Technician. YOu can save a lot of time troubleshooting by just listening to these beep codes. That's why it is very important to bring your own PC speaker when you are in the field. I always encounter PC's that doesn't have a PC speaker, or if there is one, it is connected the wrong way (+ to - and vice versa) so make sure to check it first before doing anything else.

Old-school PC speaker

Small but terrible. This is what i bring whenever i'm on the road.



THe most common beeps that you will encounter 95% of the time in repairing PC's are:

1 beep - computer ok
continous beeps / long beeps - memory error
continous short beeps - bios boot block/corrupted bios
1 long beep followed by 3 short beeps - video card error

They are the most common/standard beep codes that you will encounter daily as a Computer Tech. However if you happen to came across other beep codes that are not listed above, you can check out this list



AMI BIOS

1 short - Computer ok
2 short - RAM failure
3 short - Parity RAM failure
4 short - System timer failure
5 short - Motherboard failure
6 short - Keyboard controller error
7 short - CPU failure
8 short - Video RAM failure
9 short - ROM BIOS error
10 short - CMOS read/write error
11 short - Cache RAM error
1 short, 3 long - Memory failure
1 short, 8 long - Video adapter failure

Check board/chipset makers website for more infomation.

AWARD BIOS

1 long - Memory error
1 long, 2 short - Video error
1 long, 3 short - Video failure
Continuous beeps - Memory or video failure

note that AWARD relies on motherboard manufacturers to develop their own beep codes - the above are only their own internal codes. You will need to refer to your own manual for an explanation of precise codes.


Standard IBM beep codes.

No beep - Power supply or motherboard failure
1 short - System is ok
2 short - POST error (code displayed on screen)
Repeating short - Motherboard failure
1 long, 1 short - Motherboard failure
1 long, 2 short - Video display adapter failure
1 long, 3 short - Video display adapter error
3 long - Keyboard error


Pheonix beep codes

1-1-3 CMOS memory failure
1-1-4 BIOS failure
1-2-1 System timer error
1-2-2 Motherboard error
1-2-3 Motherboard error
1-3-1 Motherboard error
1-4-1 Motherboard error
1-4-2 Memory error
2-x-x Memory failure (any number of other beeps)
3-1-x Chipset error (any number of other beeps)
3-2-4 Keyboard controller error
3-3-4 Video adapter failure
4-2-4 Expansion card failure
4-3-4 Time of day clock failure
4-4-1 Serial port error
4-4-2 Parallel port error
4-4-3 Math co-processor error



Any suggestion, question or violent reaction? Feel free to leave a comment.