random shutting off

  • Thread starter Thread starter Michael McNeil
  • Start date Start date
M

Michael McNeil

My system seems to randomly shut off. I used the computer last at 3
am today and went to bed. got up at 8 am and the computer was still
on, went out and did a few things and came back home at 11:30 am and
the computer was shut off.

when running the computer works fine, no lag no nothing. pressing the
power button itself didn't turn it back on, I had to turn off the
power supply button on the back of the case itself and reset it that
way then push the power button back on from the front.

amd 1.3g system
756 meg ram
win xp pro with service pack 2
 
Michael said:
My system seems to randomly shut off. I used the computer last at 3
am today and went to bed. got up at 8 am and the computer was still
on, went out and did a few things and came back home at 11:30 am and
the computer was shut off.

when running the computer works fine, no lag no nothing. pressing the
power button itself didn't turn it back on, I had to turn off the
power supply button on the back of the case itself and reset it that
way then push the power button back on from the front.

amd 1.3g system
756 meg ram
win xp pro with service pack 2
Click to expand...

You have a hardware problem. It sounds like it might just be your power
supply, which is an easy thing to fix. A new power supply isn't very
expensive, although don't buy the cheapest one. Here are general
hardware troubleshooting steps, but I'd start by swapping out the power
supply for a known-working one.

1) Open the computer and run it open, cleaning out all dust bunnies and
observing all fans (overheating will cause system freezing). Obviously
you can't do this with a laptop, but you can hear if the fan is running
and feel if the laptop is getting too hot.

2) Test the RAM - I like Memtest86+ from www.memtest.org - let the test
run for an extended (like overnight) period of time - unless errors are
seen immediately.

3) Test the hard drive with a diagnostic utility from the mftr.

4) The power supply may be going bad or be inadequate for the devices
you have in the system - this isn't applicable to a laptop, of course.

5) Test the motherboard with something like TuffTest from
www.tufftest.com.

Testing hardware failures often involves swapping out suspected parts
with known-good parts. If you can't do the testing yourself and/or are
uncomfortable opening your computer, take the machine to a good local
computer repair shop (not a CompUSA or Best Buy type of store).

Malke
 
You have a hardware problem. It sounds like it might just be your power
supply, which is an easy thing to fix. A new power supply isn't very
expensive, although don't buy the cheapest one. Here are general
hardware troubleshooting steps, but I'd start by swapping out the power
supply for a known-working one.
Click to expand...

It's only a 300W power supply and I was thinking of upgradig it
anyways. I'm currently running the above along with 2 roms and 2 hard
drives and 1 extra fan.

Had another fan ( 3 x fans covering the front of a drive bay for
intake ) but took that out. that seemed to be lagging the system a
bit.
1) Open the computer and run it open, cleaning out all dust bunnies and
observing all fans (overheating will cause system freezing). Obviously
you can't do this with a laptop, but you can hear if the fan is running
and feel if the laptop is getting too hot.
Click to expand...

the heatsink fan was making an ungodly noise earlier and I took the
cover off and messed around with it taking it out completely to
examine it. Turns out the fan was a little out of sync with the
bearings. i pushed it back in place and when I went to put it back on
noticed a crap load of dust bunnies on the heatsink itself. Cleaned
them out and installed the fan again and everything runs quieter now.



haven't done anything below yet but kept the message as a reference
for later this week.

thanx!

Mike
 
Michael said:
It's only a 300W power supply and I was thinking of upgradig it
anyways. I'm currently running the above along with 2 roms and 2 hard
drives and 1 extra fan.

Had another fan ( 3 x fans covering the front of a drive bay for
intake ) but took that out. that seemed to be lagging the system a
bit.


the heatsink fan was making an ungodly noise earlier and I took the
cover off and messed around with it taking it out completely to
examine it. Turns out the fan was a little out of sync with the
bearings. i pushed it back in place and when I went to put it back on
noticed a crap load of dust bunnies on the heatsink itself. Cleaned
them out and installed the fan again and everything runs quieter now.



haven't done anything below yet but kept the message as a reference
for later this week.

thanx!
Click to expand...
You're entirely welcome. Definitely upgrade your power supply with a
really good one. You can look for sales, but spend the money on a
quality psu.

I had built a new box for my 12-year old son and so wanted a flashy case
for him. Got everything done and the machine ran beautifully for two
months and then started freezing. I replaced the cheapo psu that came
with the case with a proper one and the machine runs better than ever.
The point is that one tends to forget that the psu is an extremely
important part of the overall machine. "Maximum PC" has an interesting
article about psu's in their latest issue.

Malke
 
Buddy of mine runs a computer business and I called him up and ordered
a new 400W psu that I am picking up tomorrow.

strangely enough..cleaned out the dust bunnies and took out the extra
fan and the system has run fine since.
 
Michael said:
Buddy of mine runs a computer business and I called him up and ordered
a new 400W psu that I am picking up tomorrow.

strangely enough..cleaned out the dust bunnies and took out the extra
fan and the system has run fine since.
Click to expand...

Isn't that always the way! ;-) Still, a nice new beefy psu always makes
one feel better. The one I bought for the kid's box has got lots more
connectors, a really nifty cover on the cables so it looks nice (the
case is ridiculous - it has a window and lots of lights), and best of
all it is a 500-watter.

Enjoy the power!

Malke
 
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