Blank screen on startup on Alienware M17X R1 with F415N mobo?

Did you try reassembling the laptop and hooking it up to an external monitor? If it displays propperly on the external monitor it's a video output problem.

It looks like you tried your best to fix this yourself: At least this eliminates a number of common problems. From what I can understand, the issue is probably down to the system overheating. From what I understand, though, the Alienware Mx17 is quite a beast, designed for serious gaming, so overheating issues should normally be contained. If the computer is already out of warranty, then it will be expensive to get it repaired by the professionals.

If it is out of warranty, I would suggest having another go yourself, by opening up the case, clearing out the dust from the fan and air vents, and using a reflow technique on the graphics chip. There are a few things you can try.

In my case, I managed to get my laptop running again (then saved all my data just in case...).

Once you've had this type of problem, its unlikely your system will ever again be 100%, but at least it can still be operational, which is better than throwing it out.

Okay, so it’s been a while for this thread, but here goes: I have the same problem. Not sure of the specs of my Alienware “laptop” ‘cause it’s at home and I am at work. (I put “laptop” in quotes ‘cause it weighs about 800 pounds, but whatever …)

Anyway, all I want is to get the data off. Short of write-protect digital forensics equipment, does anyone know how I can access the hard drive? And get me some data?

Thanks in advance.

Same problem for my customers alien 17. I flip flopped the memory and unplugged the battery. Then I took off the bezel and it started to work? I snapped the bezel back on and now seems to continue turn on. Must have been the battery?