vostro 1520 issue

I am trying to fix a Vostro 1520 and the problem is that it will not start up. I was told that it was working perfectly and then once and a while it would not work. Now when you press the power button the computer will sometimes beep and turn right back off, just turn right back off, or the num lock light will blink constantly and the caps lock and scrLock lights stay on and you can feel the hard drive spinning. I read somewhere that this is an error code for video card failure, but is there anything else it could be? I tried removing and re-seating the memory.

 

Hmm, I just recently ran into a Vostro 1710 (in the "e-waste pile at work) with the same symptoms (manual said that's "CPU Failure"). It turned out to be a too-long screw on one of the hinges, shorting out the motherboard. I found that out after taking off the whole top deck, but you could probably check that just by loosening a few screws.
Anyone else want to comment on how likely that is to be the issue here?

 

Unfortunately the issue here seems to be more than a screw that is too long. I tried loosening the screws, but it didn't work. I have been doing quite a bit of reading into the possible causes of the error code and one cause is a failed bios update. I don't think anybody ever even attempted to update the bios, but since it gives the same error code I thought I might try to do a bios recovery. Any other suggestions? Also, if that doesn't work, is it possible to test the motherboard and/or cpu to ensure that it is bad?

 

I did the BIOS recovery and the computer started! It seems to be working fine, but the num lock is still blinking and the caps lock and scrLock lights are stuck on. Pressing their corresponding buttons does nothing. Is there a way to fix them so they work correctly?

 

Could you explain me how you managed to get into recovery mode?
Bios flashing program failed and i bricked my computer....