GE Senographe Essential: host PC boot loop after CMOS battery replacement
What happened
The host computer's CMOS battery ran flat and the clock was lost. After the battery was replaced and the time set, the operating system stopped booting: selecting the OS sends the machine into a restart loop.
What was checked
- Reportedly, the boot disk was tested on three different motherboards to rule out a failed drive — the engineers found the disk healthy.
- The firmware setup was reset and reconfigured, and the storage options were checked, including the disk controller mode (SATA/IDE).
Cause
The CMOS reset had reverted the storage controller mode in the firmware setup from IDE to the SATA default, and the operating system could not boot from the disk in that mode.
What was done
In the host's firmware setup, in storage options, the disk mode was set back from SATA to IDE, and the system then booted normally. As reported in the case, disk images were taken and the mammograph was returned to operation.
Safety
Before opening the host computer, shut it down and disconnect it from mains power, take ESD precautions, and check basic electrical safety and normal system behaviour before returning the mammograph to clinical use.
Lesson: A dead CMOS battery returns the firmware setup to defaults, so check and restore the storage settings before blaming the disk.
Covered in the course: Mammography Service — Level 2: Fault-Finding →
Written from an anonymised case shared by service engineers. It is not a manufacturer instruction and grants no authorisation. Independent note; names are trademarks of their owners.