Framework 13 Mainboard not powering up after cleaning fan

[Hari_Ravichandran]

hey, so am having some issues with my old i5-1135G7 mainboard that is now running as a headless Ubuntu 24 LTS server in a 3D printed mainboard case. It was working fine, powering up properly. Then, I dismantled the CPU fan and cleaned it out to remove all the dust.

Unfortunately, when I reassembled it, it doesn’t boot. Lights don’t even show up on the mainboard. There was an issue where the CPU fan pins on the mainboard were bent, I did re-bend them back in the correct direction using a 0.5 mm mechanical pencil. I’ve tried multiple different USB-C power supplies, and those are all confirmed to work since I checked them against other known working laptops and they properly work. Tried both the upper left and upper right ports with no luck.

Do you have any suggestions for the next parts of the debugging process? I have a Framework Laptop 13 as well with the updated Ryzen 7840U motherboard that runs Windows 11, works great. Have monitors and other spare components available as well. Any suggestions are welcome - want to see if I can save the motherboard from the scrap heap if possible. Thanks in advance for your help!

Full Specifications:

• Intel i5-1135G7 Mainboard
• 64 GB RAM (2 x 32 GB DDR4-3200) - Corsair Vengeance
• 1 TB M.2 SSD - WD SN850X
• Intel Wifi AX210NGW

[Hari_Ravichandran]

I still have the original RTC CMOS battery, it’s the “KTS ML 1220” and currently has 2.66 Volts as per my voltage test. I can try to let it charge overnight - can also try the full mainboard reset. Any suggestions?

[Hari_Ravichandran]

After resetting using the mainboard- specific instructions in the below guide, the lights are at least showing up. Is it possible that my RTC battery is gone? Hopefully it will recharge.

Fully Resetting the Mainboard State

[MJ1]

Is your RTC battery the original one that came with your 11th gen?
If it does need to be replaced, just want to check that you know that the 11th gen has a known issue, that if it’s left off AC power for too long the RTC battery can deplete to the point that it can’t recover (sustains damage). Framework will provide replacement RTC batteries, regardless of warranty. knowledgebase.frame.work/contact/contact-us-rJfw7Ryglx

@nrp

There are a couple of actions we’re going to take to improve the experience for 11th Gen users who are finding that they need to reset their mainboard every few weeks or more often. Note that for the vast majority of 11th Gen users, who are using their laptops more often than every few weeks or months or who keep their laptop plugged into power when not in use, there should be no impact or need to engage on these actions.

RTC Battery Replacements

First, if you’re finding that you’ve needed to perform the Mainboard reset procedure more than a few times on your 11th Gen system after long periods of non-use, we will provide you with a free replacement RTC battery, even if you are outside of your warranty period. We will continue to do this for as long as we are able to get supply of these cells.

We’ve uploaded the datasheets for the two cells that our manufacturing partner had been sourcing for us during 11th Gen production. The key callout is that while cycle life is reasonable during normal shallow discharges, doing a full 100% discharge of the coin cell more than 10-12 times results in serious capacity degradation. From what we have seen, this is typical of Manganese Lithium coin cells, but we are reaching out to other coin cell makers to see if anyone has parts that handle deep discharge better.

Note that because these are bare Lithium Ion cells, they require very careful shipping to comply with transportation safety regulations. We’re working with our shipping carriers in each region to set up compliant shipping paths, so it may take some time for us to turn on shipments of these coin cells for all supported shipping regions. We have a small quantity of cells in the US currently, and we’re working on sourcing more of these from our suppliers, which similarly will take time due to lead times and handling requirements. Note also that we are only able to ship these cells to our supported shipping regions. We will also be listing the coin cell on the Marketplace for folks who are interested in purchasing them outside of this replacement process.

After you receive your replacement RTC cell, please make sure to let it fully recharge by keeping your laptop plugged into power for at least 72 hours. We also recommend keeping your laptop plugged into power during long periods of non-use to avoid letting the RTC battery fully discharge. Note that even a normal 5V/900mA USB-C power adapter will sufficiently trickle charge the system and RTC cell. Finally, we also recommend keeping your system up to date with the latest firmware releases.

There is also a hardware modifiation option, for those experienced, (see Nrp’s full post) but I don’t think that works for standalone / no-main-battery use.

[Hari_Ravichandran]

Yes, the RTC battery is the original battery that came with the Framework 11. My mainboard was one of the originals in the pre-ordered batches, so some of the first released by Framework.