Random Reboot problems

[Chu.Joe.Hoang]

Hi everyone!

hope someone can help me. I'm having trouble with my computer radomly
shuts down. sometimes i can leave the comp on for days and no
shutdowns, sometimes it shuts down after a few mins. it even shuts down
randomly even when im in the BIOS! sometimes after a shutdown, i press
the power button to start the comp and it whirrs for half a second and
shuts back down.

I've checked the heat and I don't think its that .speedfan and the BIOS
all say heat is good but still reboots even with the case open.

I thought there might not be enough power so I've taken out some of the
pci cards etc to reduce the power but that hasn't helped. my PSU is
pretty decent ( a targus 420W) and i hadnt had any problems before.

I don't think is mem probem as I've ran memtest and mem is good.

anyone with any ideas?

TIA!

Joe

 

[Michael Hawes]

Hi everyone!

hope someone can help me. I'm having trouble with my computer radomly
shuts down. sometimes i can leave the comp on for days and no
shutdowns, sometimes it shuts down after a few mins. it even shuts down
randomly even when im in the BIOS! sometimes after a shutdown, i press
the power button to start the comp and it whirrs for half a second and
shuts back down.

I've checked the heat and I don't think its that .speedfan and the BIOS
all say heat is good but still reboots even with the case open.

I thought there might not be enough power so I've taken out some of the
pci cards etc to reduce the power but that hasn't helped. my PSU is
pretty decent ( a targus 420W) and i hadnt had any problems before.

I don't think is mem probem as I've ran memtest and mem is good.

anyone with any ideas?

TIA!

Joe

Check mains lead well fitted to PSU socket. Open system and check that
power leads to motherboard are secure (give them a strong pull). If all OK,
PSU is prime suspect. Can you borrow one to test with?
Mike.

 

[Chris Hill]

Hi everyone!

hope someone can help me. I'm having trouble with my computer radomly
shuts down. sometimes i can leave the comp on for days and no
shutdowns, sometimes it shuts down after a few mins. it even shuts down
randomly even when im in the BIOS! sometimes after a shutdown, i press
the power button to start the comp and it whirrs for half a second and
shuts back down.

I've checked the heat and I don't think its that .speedfan and the BIOS
all say heat is good but still reboots even with the case open.

I thought there might not be enough power so I've taken out some of the
pci cards etc to reduce the power but that hasn't helped. my PSU is
pretty decent ( a targus 420W) and i hadnt had any problems before.

I don't think is mem probem as I've ran memtest and mem is good.

anyone with any ideas?

Well, how old is this box, anyway. Only two things that come to mind
are psu (I don't really care who makes them; they go bad) or mb. If
the mb is older take a good look at the caps. Caps are little cans
mounted on the board. If any are bulging or leaking, time for a
mainboard.

 

[benssson]

the comp is pretty new, i built it less than a year ago. I've got my
old psu i can try to test with - i'll give that a go.

 

[spodosaurus]

the comp is pretty new, i built it less than a year ago. I've got my
old psu i can try to test with - i'll give that a go.

has it been moved or bumped recently? Sometimes, especially with heavy
heatsinks, the interface material can be broken with a bump to the case
and heat levels go up pretty quickly (yet, of course, the heat sink
feels cool). The other ideas that have been suggested so far in this
thread are where I'd look first (particularly caps and dust/wear/damage
to the PSU) but for completeness I thought I'd chime in for a moment.

Regards,

Ari


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[benssson]

Thanks for all the help guys!

seems like the obvious answer was the right one...the power supply

now have to struggle with the warranty ...

Thanks again!

 

[John Doe]

Hi everyone!

hope someone can help me. I'm having trouble with my computer
radomly shuts down. sometimes i can leave the comp on for days and
no shutdowns, sometimes it shuts down after a few mins. it even
shuts down randomly even when im in the BIOS! sometimes after a
shutdown, i press the power button to start the comp and it whirrs
for half a second and shuts back down.

Maybe bad house current. Try using a UPS or maybe better would be a
voltage regulator (line conditioner). Especially if the problem is
random and comes and goes.

Good luck.

 

[benssson]

thats a good idea, i'll check the power supply at a different house.
THe PSU I'm using in the meantime is doing ok tho...been up for 2 days
now.

 

[benssson]

Just for closure....definately the power supply.

i've checked it in a completely different computer at a completely
different location.

Thanks for all the help guys!!