Can any one help with this tricky 1? my bro (The ******* lol) pluged a thin lead from the power unit into a random couple of pins on his desktop computer and turned it on..... not sure what happend then but he then unplugged it and tried starting his pc again but all that happens is the lights flash at the front and the fan appears to start and stop constantly.. Can any1 tell me if he has compleatly killed his pc or if not any ideas on what to try. many thanks Dean

Hey Dean, might be worth a naughty step visit! and a new PSU.

When you say "a thin lead" from the PSU do you mean:

A molex (4 horizontal pins oooo )
A P4 (4 pin, 2 rows of 2, square shaped)
Something else?

Really it depends where he plugged it in on the motherboard. Are you sure that at the moment everything is connected as it should be?

Eg The 20 pin connector is in place and so is the P4 connector. P4 one is usually located close to the processor. Use the cable labelled P4...many cases come with two 4 pin square shaped leads, only one will work in the P4 slot.

Also try pushing the 20 pin power connector down firmly by hand and seeing if it stays powered. My first PC, the 20 pin power connector was ever so slightly out and not pushed in all the way.

If you still have no luck then try a new power supply as suggested. Most PC shops sell them for about £15 although you probably want to pay more for about a 400-500W one just to be on the safe side.