Electronics

[gardenman]

On 7/21/2014 Lynnj said:

On 7/21/2014 gardenman said:

On 7/21/2014 Lynnj said:

On 7/21/2014 gardenman said:

The SSL problem you're having is more likely related to a bad CMOS battery (that HP calls a RTC Real Time Clock) battery for some reason) than anything you've done. SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer and SSL certificates are time stamped. Since your HP Mini thinks it's in 2002 and that's now twelve years ago, any certificate it sees it's red-flagging as being incorrect due to the conflicting dates. The version of SSL on the HP Mini is also likely way out of date and may be insecure which could also be generating the issue. CMOS batteries have a finite lifespan and twelve years is way outside that window. Once one dies, all of the settings (date, time, etc.) are lost each time the power is turned off.

How to fix the problems. If the clock is the issue then you have to replace the RTC battery (what the rest of the world calls the CMOS battery.) Doing this is a tick complicated in an HP Mini as you have to remove the keyboard to get to it, but there is an online service manual that walks you through the process. I'll post a link to it below. (You'll likely have to copy and paste the link as my links aren't linking these days.) Once that battery is replaced (assuming you can find a replacement) then you should be able to reset the clock to the correct time and date and that may solve your issues. If not, then updating the browser to a newer version should solve the SSL issue. Good luck, but I'd really have to love that HP Mini to go through all of that.

http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c01895806.pdf

Just curious, why wouldn't restoring it to factory state work here? Wouldn't that reset everything? For sure she would get her internet explorer back, which may solve for the SSL.

Resetting it to a factory state would solve any software issues but it won't recharge the CMOS battery. If the battery and the dating issues are the cause of the SSL errors she's getting then resetting it won't change anything. If the SSL errors are due to her version of SSL being obsolete then it also won't solve anything. It won't make things any worse and it might help, so if she can do it then by all means do it, but my gut says this is more of a date issue and with a dead CMOS battery you've got to constantly reset that until you change the battery.

Interesting. I am going to have to read about this battery. Never heard of it before. I actually think she should try the restore to factory first, then if same result, try replacing the battery that you suggested. Just think it would be easier that way.

CMOS batteries are very important for a computer. They supply the power to keep the CMOS memory (RAM memory) necessary for the normal functioning of the computer alive while the computer is turned off. (RAM needs constant power to maintain itself while ROM doesn't. RAM is easily changeable so things like BIOS changes, date, time that need to be changed regularly are stored in RAM while the BIOS itself is stored in ROM.) Things like the time and date, changes to the BIOS, BiOS settings, boot order, and lots more are all protected by the CMOS battery. When the CMOS batteries fail (they reportedly have a 7-10 year expected lifespan) some computers won't even boot at all. In normal use the CMOS battery is recharged each time the computer is turned on (they're now typically a lithium ion battery.) If a computer has been turned off for a long time then you can sometimes just leave the computer on for 24 hours or so and it'll recharge the CMOS battery and you don't have to replace it. After the battery dies though (and rechargeable batteries do have a finite lifespan) then it needs replacing. In this case the computer is about twelve years old, so the CMOS battery is almost certainly dead.

The SSL errors the OP is getting typically come from invalid SSL certificates. SSL certificates contain lots of information including something called "Duration of Validity." The Duration of Validity typically includes the "Validity Start Date" (likely the problem here) and the "Validity End Date." With her computer thinking it's still 2002 only websites with Validity Start Dates going back to 2002 or earlier would have a valid SSL for that computer. I'm not sure there are any web sites out there that have gone unchanged since 2002. If she can reset the computer to the current date then she'd likely solve the SSL errors. In this case that likely means changing out the CMOS battery.

So you now know more than you ever wanted to about CMOS batteries and SSL certificates, but based on what we know of the issues here, I'm pretty sure that's the problem. The computer is thinking it's in 2002 and the certificates it's finding have a validity start date much later than that, so the user is getting SSL errors even though there's nothing really wrong with the site.

[glb613]

If the computer's date is off, it won't work properly.

[Spunkyspouts]

I totally want to thank everybody for the input, and I have to say I think the advice of gardenman is spot on. This mini has never ever worked right. The battery was always going dead, and I would litereally have to remove it to get the PC working at all again, it would go into blue screens dos and all that stuff you dont want to see. Obviously since it thinks it is so old, it cant not read or get updates to because the SSl issue, making me almost unable to do anything. YES, it still can access the web, so I knew to some extent some part of it was still working, but it can not show graphics, like it is pretty much all scripts.

So is this CMOS battery different than the battery I am taking out on the back? Clearly it is, or possibly we arent on the same page. These are weird little PCS that are just like a laptop but real small......do you think just a new battery might help? it fits your scenario perfectly, I noticed the problems when it had not been used for long periods, I would take the back battery out, reset the dates , bring it up to date, not use it again and it would be dead all over again.

NO... I am not crazy about it, STUPID me to take off the programs but I was so ticked off with it not letting me do anything I decide to help it kill itself I think! lol. anyway..I hate to waste stuff, it was darn near $400.00.......what should I do with it, sell it for parts?

[Spunkyspouts]

Well the little buger was looking right at me so I turned it on. as usual a bag of tricks. it wont connect to Google Chrome, it thinks it is under attack and I get this big red lock logo. So I go to IE and can use google that way. I decided to go onto QVC page and its up and working, looks totally normal but I am getting the IE has blocked this website from displaying content with security certificate errors.The only reason I could get on is because I left it plugged in and I honestly do not want to have leave it plugged in constantly and I think this is where the problem is, it goes into these coma states.

Going over to AOL, the problems surface. It tells me IE can not open AOL and I need to update it, I can not update it because I get the operation abort message...this is the crux of the matter...just felt I have not been very articulate, sorry.

I just need to get past this SSL roadblock!!!

Now 2 minutes later , it says IE has encountered a problem and will need to "leave the room and close"...argh!!

This is just a handy little thing for trips, I guess thats why i hoped I could fix it, I bet it was a bum battery from the begining. I did reset the date tonight, but I betch when I turn it back on it will be back to 2002. It's a real piece of work!

[Spunkyspouts]

On 7/21/2014 Lynnj said:

On 7/21/2014 ChynnaBlue said:

I would do a restore and then contact HP's customer service about the SSL issue. You say you contacted them about it being slow, but you did not mention contacting them about the SSL issue.<br /> <br /> Frankly, if you didn't know how to get IE back, I don't think you're ready to deal with replacing a CMOS battery on your own. But hey, if you're willing, go for it. I built my own desktop computer with a book and a small tool set and my only previous experience was swapping out video cards. I also had a friend to phone when I got in trouble. By buying individual parts and assembling it myself, I saved $500 and was able to afford a better machine than I could have if someone else built it or I ordered an off-the-shelf model. But desktops are, for me, easier than laptops.

I agree with all above. Congrats on building your own PC. It's not that hard if you know what your doing. Just buy the right parts, then assemble it.

yay, goodfor you. I would try that myself If it were not for the fact I have so many other DIY going on with plumbing, drywall, and other things. I do like to learn, and we are capable of doing so much more than we realize. You wont feel like trading in your PC either.

[gardenman]

If you want something handy for trips and your needs aren't overly complex, Woot.com has factory reconditioned 14 inch HP Chromebooks with a free 200 mb/month of 4G data for life available while supplies last (today only 7/25/2014) for $199. Now 200 mb's of data isn't a lot, but for simple things like e-mail and minor web browsing it would be adequate and you only use the 4G when there's no wifi. It's a pretty nice deal on something that would be more capable than your old HP Mini.

[Spunkyspouts]

THANKS for the tip gardenman! Just wondering...forgive me for this inexplicable need of mine to make this POS work...if I got this fixed could I just add more memory?

[gardenman]

Finding compatible memory for a twelve year old computer could be a challenge, but if the motherboard will support more memory and you can find compatible memory then you should be able to add more memory.

[glb613]

On 7/30/2014 gardenman said: Finding compatible memory for a twelve year old computer could be a challenge, but if the motherboard will support more memory and you can find compatible memory then you should be able to add more memory.

It's more than just a challenge. As a computer and it's hardware become obsolete, they also become very expensive. I'm not sure why anyone wants to spend money on a twelve year old computer.

[Spunkyspouts]

As I read another thread, I think I see what happened here. I never took the battery out, and possible over charged this and hence burned out the battery. I never knew you were suppose to take the battery out.