to be sure it is on internal not headphones.

have you tried shutting it down for a bit, at least ten minutes, turning it back on again? Maybe unplugging it completely? I am not being snarky, I have seen this correct problems before.

I haven't tried unplugging it, however. Worth a shot.

long enough that the computer forgets the time and date. With the battery in place, the computer is still receiving backup power.

My Inspiron is an N5050. I need to update the BIOS, but I can't until I install a new battery. I doubt that means anything, but all your drivers and BIOS are what they should be, right?

Just before support for Windows 10 went away, I updated everything I could.

The Windows service/s for audio have stopped. Have you rebooted? Maybe try booting in safe mode. Usually you keep tapping the delete key while booting but laptops vary. May need to look it up.

Edit to add: I just saw Niyad's post above. Rather than shutdown, actually use the Restart command. This tends to clean up windows niggles.

I don't know what caused the audio to go out. I don't know why Restart fixed the problem, but it did. Thank you for that simple solution.

John

Does the scroll bar suggest you are getting some audio? Indicate no audio?

Did you inadvertently click a Fn key that mutes the audio output?

The audio bar is showing 40, and not muted.

I have not tried "Restart" as suggested above.

Thanks MKJ

move the slider bar back and forth from mute to full once or twice, while watchng the popup window in the lower right hand corner. Toggle the volume control Fn keys similarly. On my (old, shipped with Windows 7, now running Windows 10) Dell Inspiron N5050, those are Fn plus F11 and Fn plus F12.

Check Settings (formerly Control Panel) to ensure that the audio is being routed through the internal speakers, not the headphone jack.

When the computer starts, does it beep a few times? Does Windows 10 start silently, or does it have a startup chime?

HTH.

Open Command Prompt as Administrator: Press Win + X, select "Command Prompt (Admin)" or "Windows Terminal (Admin)".

Stop the Service: Type net stop audiosrv and press Enter.

Restart the Service: Type net start audiosrv and press Enter to restore sound.

Un-pair everything.

That's a start, anyway. Don't ask me how I found out.

If you go to Dell Support, Dell will see the service tag number for your computer and recognize it. I can't recall for certain, but it might be able to go over your computer remotely.

Nothing to lose ...

I don't know why, but canetoad's suggestion to use Restart, instead of shutdown, fixed the problem.

Is there a speaker on the bottom left? If so left click it then go above the volume bar and left click on whatever is there, does that give you options and if so what are they?