Skip to main content
Sign Out

Welcome to Dell

My Account
  • Place orders quickly and easily
  • View orders and track your shipping status
  • Enjoy members-only rewards and discounts
  • Create and access a list of your products
Sign In Create an Account Dell Financial Services Premier Sign In Partner Program Sign In
Contact Us

Your Dell.com Carts

Dell Inspiron 14 (3476) Usage and Troubleshooting Guide

Summary: For help with issues such as: wired and wireless networking, Windows, mouse, touchpad, keyboard, LCD, webcam, and downloading drivers, see an expanding section below.

This article applies to This article does not apply to This article is not tied to any specific product. Not all product versions are identified in this article.
Check out other resources

Symptoms

SLN308218_en_US__1I_Notebook_Inspiron_14_3476_BD_v1(2)

Quick Links

Getting Started with your Dell Computer Inspiron 3476 Setup, Specifications and Service Manual Find your Service Tag and Express Service Code Inspiron 3476 Drivers and Downloads Warranty & Support Services
|

For specifications, browse to the Inspiron 3476 Online Manual Page, and click PDF to the right of Inspiron 14 3000 Setup and Specifications (see the Specifications section).

For port locations, browse to Inspiron 3476 Online Manual Page, and click PDF to the right of Inspiron 14 3000 Setup and Specifications (see the Views section).

To view or download the Service Manual, browse to the Inspiron 3476 Online Manual Page, and click PDF to the right of Service Manual.

To locate your Service Tag or Express Service Code, browse to the Where is the Service Tag located? page.

For how-to's and troubleshooting information about Wired and Wireless networking, browse to the Dell Networking and Wireless Support Center.
 

To turn the wireless antenna off or on, press and hold the Fn key, and then press the PrtScr key. (Repeating this switches the wireless antenna off and on.)

For more information about how to turn the wireless antenna on and off on a Dell Computer, see Dell KB article: How to Turn the Wireless Antenna On and Off on a Dell Computer.

  • Using the SupportAssist application provides automatic computer updates and detects issues that will be resolved for you. Let us take the effort out of maintaining your Dell Computer or Tablet. For more information about SupportAssist, browse to the SupportAssist for PCs and tablets page.
     
  • To run online hardware diagnostics to ensure that your hardware is working correctly, see the Dell KB article: How to use the Dell PC Diagnostics. The article explains how to access the hardware diagnostics and the different kinds of test available for your Dell computer or tablet.  
    NOTE: The diagnostics will either fix the problem automatically, or it will guide you through the steps to resolve the problem. When the diagnostic identifies a failing part, depending on the failing part, we will immediately start the process for a free in-warranty replacement part.
     
  • When the computer cannot access the Internet, you can run the integrated diagnostics (ePSA) on your computer. For more information, see the Dell KB article: Resolve Hardware Issues With Built-in and Online Diagnostics (ePSA or PSA Error Codes).

This section covers the Microsoft Windows operating system that is installed on your computer; select the tabs below to find out more about: 


For help with using Microsoft Windows, see the Dell Windows Support Center. Select the operating system that you need help with.


When the computer stops responding or you are troubleshooting slow performance issues, perform the following steps:

  1. Press the Power button for at least 15 seconds to ensure the computer turns off.
  2. Disconnect all devices including the keyboard, mouse, and external monitor. Peripherals also include external storage devices such as flash drives, USB devices, printers, cards so forth.
  3. Press the Power button to see if the computer turns on and boots correctly. If not, see Dell KB article: Computer Does Not Turn on, or is Stuck on the Dell Logo Screen.
  4. When the computer does boot up correctly, download and install SupportAssist. For more information about how to obtain and install SupportAssist, browse to the SupportAssist for PCs and tablets page.
  5. Perform computer maintenance on your computer, for more information see Dell KB article: Optimization and Maintenance of Microsoft Windows or Troubleshooting Slow Performance Issues.
  6. Start connecting devices one at a time, and check to see if the computer continues to respond.


This link takes you to the Dell KB article: Microsoft Windows Locks Up or an Error Occurs.


For information about the drivers available, browse to the Inspiron 3476 Drivers Page.

This article provides information about how to download drivers for Dell computers, Drivers and Downloads FAQs (See the How to Download and Install a Driver section).

This section covers the hardware that is installed on your computer; select the tabs below to find out more about:


See the following Dell KB articles for information about how to use or troubleshoot mouse, keyboard, or touchpad issues.


For information about how to turn the touchpad on or off, see Dell KB article: Disabling or Enabling the Touchpad on a Dell Laptop.


See the Dell KB article: Troubleshooting Touchscreen Issues in Microsoft Windows, for information about resolving Touchscreen issues.


When you experience a situation in which the computer does not start at all, or if it does turn on (lights turn on and fans are spinning) but the computer does not show any image, look at the Power & Battery LED (Figure 1) for a blinking amber and white pattern to determine failures listed in Table 1.
SLN308218_en_US__3I_Notebook_Inspiron_14_3476_Power_And_Battery_Status_Light_BD_v1
Figure 1: Power and Battery LED Location

NOTE:

The blinking patterns will consist of 2 sets of numbers being represented by a group of Amber blinks, and then a group of White blinks.

First Group: The LED blinks with an Amber color 1 to 9 times, followed by a brief pause with the LED off for 1.5 seconds.

Second Group: The LED blinks with a White color 1 to 9 times, followed by a longer pause before the next cycle starts again with the LED off for three seconds.

For example: For a No Memory Detected Error (2,3). The battery LED blinks two times with an Amber color, followed by a pause and then blinks three times with a White color. The battery LED will pause for 3 seconds before the next cycle repeats itself again. Each LED blink takes 0.5 seconds.

The computer will not shut down when displaying the Diagnostic Error Codes.

Diagnostic Error Codes will always supersede any other use of the LED. For instance, on Notebooks, battery codes for Low Battery or Battery Failure situations will not be displayed when the Diagnostic Error Codes are being displayed.

Blinking Pattern

 Component Description
Amber White
2
1
CPU CPU failure
2
2
BIOS ROM failure System board failure (included BIOS corruption or ROM error)
2
3
Memory No memory/RAM detected
2
4
Memory Memory/RAM failure
2
5
Memory Invalid memory installed
2
6
Chipset System board or Chipset error
2
7
LCD LCD failure
3
1
RTC power failure CMOS battery failure
3
2
PCI or Video PCI or Video card or chip failure
3
3
BIOS recovery 1 Recovery image not found
3
4
BIOS recovery 2 Recovery image found but invalid
Table 1: Repetitive Battery LED Codes

For additional help with your computer, Contact Technical Support.

When the Battery LED does not blink with an Amber or White pattern, perform the following steps:
  1. Press the power button for at least 15 seconds to ensure the computer turns off.
  2. Disconnect all devices including the keyboard, mouse, and external monitor. Peripherals also include external storage devices such as flash drives, USB devices, printers, cards, so forth.
  3. Remove the AC adapter from the computer and unplug the AC adapter from the electrical outlet.
  4. Remove the battery; for more information about how to remove the battery, browse to the Inspiron 3476 Online Manual Page, and then click Inspiron 14 3000 Service Manual (see the Removing the battery section).
  5. Press the Power button for 15 seconds to drain the capacitors.
  6. Ensure the connections on the power cable and AC adapter are firmly pressed together.
  7. Insert the AC into the computer and a good electrical outlet (not on a surge protector or power strip).
  8. Press the Power button to see if the computer turns on and boots correctly. If not, see Dell KB article: Computer Does Not Turn on, or is Stuck on the Dell Logo Screen.
  9. Turn the computer off and insert the battery back into the computer.
  10. Press the power button to see if the computer turns on and boots OK; if not, see Dell KB article: Check the Battery.
  11. Start attaching devices one at a time and testing to see if the computer will turn on.

 


There are times when changes to the settings in the System Setup (BIOS) prevent the computer from booting into Windows or connect to the Internet. Setting the BIOS back to its defaults may help fix these issues.
 

  1. Reboot the computer.
  2. When you see the Dell logo during POST, press the F2 key to enter the setup screen.
  3. On the System Setup screen, click Restore Settings.
  4. Ensure that BIOS Defaults are selected and click OK.
  5. Click OK on the Warning window.
  6. Click Exit.

This section covers the hardware that is installed on your computer; select the tabs below to find out more about:


For information about troubleshooting a laptop LCD Screen, see the Dell KB article: Troubleshooting a Laptop LCD Screen That is Black, Blank or Hard to See.


For help with resolving USB port issues, see Dell KB article: How to resolve USB port issues.


For information about and help with resolving Hard Drive issues, see the Dell KB article: Understanding and Troubleshooting Your Hard Drive.

 

The power & battery charge LED indicator is on the front edge of the computer Figure 1. See Table 1 for the description of the LED.

SLN308218_en_US__3I_Notebook_Inspiron_14_3476_Power_And_Battery_Status_Light_BD_v1
Figure 1:Power & Battery LED Location

 

LED Behavior Description
Alternately blinking amber and white lights Unauthenticated or unsupported non-Dell AC adapter or battery is attached to the laptop
Constantly blinking amber light Battery below specified low-battery level
Light off Battery in full-charge mode with AC adapter present
White light on Battery in charge mode with AC adapter present
Table 1: Battery LED Behavior

 

NOTE: The battery LED also acts as the hard drive activity light. Press and hold the Fn key, and then press the h key to switch between the battery and the hard drive activity light function.

For additional information about and help with resolving Battery issues, see the Battery Support site.


For information about and help with resolving Audio issues, see the Speakers and Headphones Support site.

This section covers the software that may be installed on your computer; select the tabs below to find out more about:


The Dell Windows Backup Media and Recovery Options page provides information about backing up your Windows Operating System as well as recovery options for when Windows does and does not start correctly.

The Dell Download Center provides information about software you may have bought and software that is already installed on your computer, such as Dell Backup Solutions and Dell SupportAssist for PCs and tablets.

Some of the software that is sold at the time of purchase has to be downloaded once you receive your computer. You can download and install those programs by using Dell Digital Delivery, for more information see the following links:

A free PDF reader (Acrobat Reader DC) is available for free from Adobe. You will need this program to view any PDF files such as the Quick Start Guides or Owner's Manuals. SLN308218_en_US__6iC_External_Link_BD_v1

This article provides help with Microsoft Office programs, A Guide to the various Microsoft Office programs available on your Dell PC.

  • The Skype software can be downloaded from the Skype website. This website also offers instructional videos on how to use the Skype program.
 
  • To uninstall Skype, perform the following steps:
    1. Close Skype and ensure it is not running in the background.
    2. In the Search bar type appwiz.cpl
    3. Touch or click appwiz.cpl (Control panel item) to open the Programs and Features window.
    4. Touch and hold or right-click Skype from the list and select either Remove or Uninstall.
    5. Reboot your computer and check to ensure that the application has been uninstalled.

 


To access the Dell Security and Virus Support Page click on the following link:

Your computer will come preinstalled with an anti-virus program. For more information, see the Dell KB article: Useful Information about the Third Party Anti-virus programs that ship with a Dell PC.

More information about Viruses, Spyware, and Malware can be found at the following links:

Cause

 

Resolution

Out of Warranty support Out of warranty? No problem. Browse to the Dell.com/support website and enter your Dell Service Tag and view our offers.

NOTE: Offers are only available for US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, and China, personal computer customers. Server and Storage not applicable.

Affected Products

Inspiron 14 3476
Article Properties
Article Number: 000125184
Article Type: Solution
Last Modified: 27 Jul 2021
Version:  5
Find answers to your questions from other Dell users
Support Services
Check if your device is covered by Support Services.