Motherboard is not a standard form factor, so a standard ATX board will not fit in the case. The case wiring itself is not standard ATX either. To replace the board with an aftermarket ATX board will require a new case. If you have the original memory, put it in and disconnect all other devices including USB devices and do a CMOS reset by removing the coin cell battery. It's not uncommon for aftermarket memory to act up, even if they have been working fine for months before. If that does not work and a BIOS recovery option does not work either, than a motherboard replacement will be your only choice. Answer from Vanadiel on dell.com
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienwarealpha › any permanent solution to yellow flashing light?
r/AlienwareAlpha on Reddit: Any Permanent Solution to Yellow Flashing Light?
September 3, 2017 -
It's getting to the point where almost every time I turn my steam machine off, I get the 5 yellow flashing lights when I turn it back on. The only way to get it to start again is by unplugging it, holding the power button for a minute, and then leaving it unplugged for several hours. Doing a reboot instead of shutting it down doesn't trigger it.
Does anyone have a fix? This is really starting to be a drag.
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Not permanent but for me, the yellow lights started a few weeks after I bought it. From then on, it pretty much gives me the lights every time I turn it on. What has worked for me is turning it on, wait for yellow lights then hold power button till its shut off. then ( I have it out of its shell, its ugly but its faster) open it up, slide off the hard drive, and unplug the cmos battery thats at the bottom for 15 minutes. Plug in the cmos battery, slide in hard drive, then plug it in. 90% of the time it works, the 10% I have to do it twice. Ive been doing this for over a year, and while its not a permanent solution, I don't wait hours, just 15 minutes. I got this from a youtube video, so if it helps to see it done, google.
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I had this with my alpha i3, and I could get it to work after the whole unplug, powedrain, plug back in and re boot, but eventually even that stopped working. I contacted Alienware and sent it back to them and they fixed it. It's been about a year since I did that and no problems whatsoever. Sucks not having a pc in the short run, but very much worth it in the long run
Steam Community
steamcommunity.com › app › 353390 › discussions › 0 › 1458454827730621817
Does this machine still have the yellow blinking light problem? :: Alienware Steam Machine General Discussions
July 11, 2017 - I was told that a coil was not powering down properly and that it was a dollar part but I havent got any more word on that. All I know is that I shutdown and unplug when not using it and I havent had a yellow light since. Play AAA games everyday on it and now i wish I would have kept it and got my gf the laptop because the alienware alpha beats my 940mx laptop on quake champions.
Videos
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Dell
dell.com › dell community › laptops › locked topics – alienware general
Alienware Alpha wont startup, Flashing yellow light 5 times, FIXED DONT SEND BACK | DELL Technologies
August 5, 2016 - The Fix that works, ok so there are 2 common fixes out there for the yellow blinking light issue, they are; 1. The power reset/drain unplug everything then restart.
JustAnswer
justanswer.com › laptop › p1y8f-alienware-m18-r2-purchased-recently.html
My Alienware m18 R2, which I had purchased recently, had it's power light constantly blinking yellow, red (the color I
Blinking power lights on the Alienware m18 R2 indicate hardware or firmware issues. Start by disconnecting all peripherals and performing a hard reset: hold the power button for 15 seconds with the battery removed.
Dell
dell.com › dell community › desktops › alienware desktops
Aurora R9, Flashing Yellow Alien Head | DELL Technologies
September 21, 2021 - The Aurora R9 stays on with this yellow flashing Alien Head.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienware › alienware power button blinking yellow and blue.
r/Alienware on Reddit: Alienware power button blinking yellow and blue.
May 16, 2020 -
Hey everyone, this is my first time owning an Alienware laptop. I’m a college student and saved up my money to get the M15-R2. I have tried searching up what the flashing lights mean but I’m not able to find anything helpful. Anything is appreciated, thanks!
THIS HAS SINCE BEEN FIXED
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This may be a dumb question, but is it just charging? The power button changes colours depending on the power state (you can see this in alien fx)
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Are you able to start up your Alienware laptop? If not, I found this article that may be able to help you. https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-General-Read-Only/Alienware-Alpha-wont-startup-Flashing-yellow-light-5-times-FIXED/td-p/5555507 If this doesn't work, I suggest you call Dell Support.
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Motherboard is not a standard form factor, so a standard ATX board will not fit in the case. The case wiring itself is not standard ATX either. To replace the board with an aftermarket ATX board will require a new case. If you have the original memory, put it in and disconnect all other devices including USB devices and do a CMOS reset by removing the coin cell battery. It's not uncommon for aftermarket memory to act up, even if they have been working fine for months before. If that does not work and a BIOS recovery option does not work either, than a motherboard replacement will be your only choice.
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Thank you for the reply, and yes I am aware that I will need to change the case and PSU, most of the testing I did with the original memory and the only USB devices that where plugged in where mouse,keyboard and the thumb drive when it didn't work without it (just pressing CTRL+ESC). Didn't try doing the reset without the battery so I'll try that this evening when I get home.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienware › would anyone know why my pc wont start? it’s blinking and won’t send a signal to my monitor
r/Alienware on Reddit: Would anyone know why my pc wont start? It’s blinking and won’t send a signal to my monitor
October 28, 2022 - Time to go custom and get rid that Alienware junk ... Nooooo, i dont think so, i revive an old Dell latitude lap with a new watercooler glass of water in it It took 2 Weeks but revive that shi… ... Did you make any hardware changes? Mine did that when I changed the ram out. I had to change the slots I was using. ... Read the blinks look it up on your phone.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienware › yellow flashin light on power button ( it flashes 4 times )
r/Alienware on Reddit: Yellow flashin light on power button ( it flashes 4 times )
January 29, 2025 -
i haven’t been used this pc in almost over an year, it worked fine before, last thing i touched on it was the ram, but i placed it back in the right spot. now when i booted up it flashes 4 times, and i also dont know which of the 3 black cables goes to the graphics card. any help is appreciated 🤘
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienwarealpha › 4 flashing yellow lights
r/AlienwareAlpha on Reddit: 4 flashing yellow lights
September 30, 2023 -
I have a problem with Alienware Alpha PC. It doesn't boot, just flashes yellow light 4 times (not 5). Couldn't find a solution online. So I have changed the 3V batter for CMOS to a new one. Old one had 1.5V left in it. New one has 3.32V, and yet I still have 4 flashing lights during the boot of PC. I have tried to launch it without RAM, HDD, but to no avail. Could anybody help me please?
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CMOS reset jumper?
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According to this: https://www.reddit.com/r/AlienwareAlpha/comments/isryvh/alpha_r1r2_bios_led_blinks_chart/g5c2mls/ , 4 blinks is bad RAM. You didn't mention if you have an R1 or R2, but IIRC the R1 has (up to) two RAM sticks and the R2 only has one. So if it's the R1 and you have two sticks, I'd try running with just a single stick (try each one individually) in case one of them is bad. Or if you only have one stick, I'd start by replacing your RAM (or test your RAM in another PC if you have another compatible system available).
Alienware Arena
alienwarearena.com › ucf › show › 240137 › boards › technical-support-1 › ForumPost › alpha-yellow-flashing-lights-so-frustrated
Alpha yellow flashing lights, so frustrated
February 5, 2017 - Join and gain access to exclusive in-game items, game keys, and some of the most sought after closed betas. Join a friendly and knowledgeable forum community for all PC gamers.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienware › yellow light what does it mean
r/Alienware on Reddit: Yellow light what does it mean
September 17, 2021 - The alien head being yellow means that the battery is charging. This happens even if you hadn’t just plugged / unplugged at times. ... It looks like rgb light. ... Would you look at that, all of the words in your comment are in alphabetical order.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienware › flashing yellow light - alienware aurora ryzen edition r10
r/Alienware on Reddit: Flashing Yellow Light - Alienware Aurora Ryzen Edition R10
December 1, 2021 - I have had the 2, 1 blinks for over a year. For me.. it’s a glitch in the PC. My pc runs perfect and no issues at all. Even tech support couldn’t get the blinking to go away. ... Welcome to the unofficial community for Alienware. We are not an official Dell sub.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienware › logo flashing yellow. what’s this mean?
r/Alienware on Reddit: Logo flashing yellow. What’s this mean?
November 28, 2020 - So you have recently upgraded the RAM then? These machines are a little picky when it comes to what you install for RAM, if you were mixing new RAM with the original RAM then I am not surprised you ended up with a blinking yellow light, that happens to a lot of people.
Dell
dell.com › support › manuals › en-ca › alienware-aurora-r13-desktop › alienware-aurora-r13-service-manual › system-diagnostic-lights
Alienware Aurora R13 Service Manual | Dell Canada
The power-status light may also blink amber or white according to predefined "beep codes" indicating various failures.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienware › alienware logo blinking yellow 4 times.
r/Alienware on Reddit: Alienware logo blinking yellow 4 times.
July 13, 2021 -
Hey everyone.
My Aurora R9 needs some TLC I guess. I went to the Windows update center and downloaded some new updates/firmware. Needed a restart so I did that. Booted back up and came to the Alienware splash screen with the words "Please wait while we install the update" below. Waited for just a few minutes and then it shutdown. Now I got the Alienware head on the system itself blinking yellow 4 times, followed by a short pause, then blinking 4 times again. I haven't touched it yet.
What do you guys think?
Dell
dell.com › dell community › desktops › alienware desktops
Aurora R10, working fine, 2,1 yellow blink code | DELL Technologies
February 2, 2022 - I just noticed that I am now getting the 2,1 flashing yellow code (system board failure) but the computer boots up fine and I don't see anything wrong with it. ... I am hesitant to touch anything in BIOS because last time I did the computer ...
Reddit
reddit.com › r/alienwarealpha › this is ridiculous. (yellow flashing light of death)
r/AlienwareAlpha on Reddit: This is ridiculous. (Yellow Flashing Light of Death)
January 17, 2017 -
So, about a month ago on December 13th, my computer succumbed to the infamous Flashing Yellow Light of Death and wouldn't power on at all, even after a power drain. So I had to send it in to support. I waited two weeks, got it back, and everything seemed to work fine.
3 days later, it succumbed again, and it wouldn't work after a power drain again. So I sent it in again after a very upset conversation with alienware support, 2 weeks later now I've gotten it back.
A day later, I wake up and turn my computer on to see that my computer had a yellow flashing light again, but this time the power drain worked. This is stupid, and I hate having to live in fear of the next time my computer breaks down again. What should I do, and can anyone help me?
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Sorry to hear that you're going through that. It seems to be a common occurrence with the Alpha. My system is currently being fixed by dell because of the same issue and I should get it back sometime this week. I was planning on buying the graphics amp in the near future to use with my Radeon R9 390 graphics card that I have from another system. However, there is no good reason to buy that if the system is just going to die again. Instead, I may just build a new system using the parts from the alpha that are worth using... i7 6700t m.2 256GB SSD + 1TB HD And then taking some parts from an old system I have laying around... Phanteks Eclipse Series P400 case Radeon R9 390 16GB of ram 750 watt power supply All I need is the motherboard and a good cooling system. In the end I should have a pretty nice rig. Really though... Should I have to do all of that?! I mean I got the Alpha for its compact size... Plus I got a steep discount. lol.
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I'm having the same issue my self so far the only solution that has worked for me(temporarily) is to when im done with it leave it unplugged all night then when i wake up power drain let the ylod run through drain again than it works fine. I'm currently turning mine into gamestop to get a replacement I will update you on the new developments.
Dell
dell.com › dell community › desktops › alienware desktops
Aurora R11, won't turn on and flashing yellow light | DELL Technologies
February 19, 2023 - mine turns on but it blinks 3 times then 7 yellow lit · (edited) Vanadiel · +5 more · 6 Professor · • · 7.1K Posts · 0 · May 8th, 2024 15:40 · Table 1. Diagnostics · H · Hanklittler · 1 Rookie · • · 1 Message · 0 · January 5th, 2025 05:07 ·
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Hello, Try doing a power drain first. To perform a power drain, follow the steps below. Turn the system off and disconnect the power cord. Disconnect all external devices (mouse, keyboard, etc) Press and hold the power button for 1 minute. Connect everything again and turn on the system.
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Already tried it, still doesn't turn on and flashes 5 times. Do you know what the series of 5 flashes mean? I would like to fix it myself if possible but if not then what do you suggest?