Random PC shutdowns/reboots

Discussion in 'Hardware' started by MoonPegasus, Apr 7, 2008.

  1. MoonPegasus

    MoonPegasus Private E-2

    hello,

    i am not quite sure if my problem is hardware or software related. Lately my computer has been shutting down out of nowhere and i have to unplug it and then plug it back in after each time it does it. the green light on the front of my computer stays on when this happens. i have no warning signs before it happens, and it is completely random. I believe that it may be my motherboard going, as i have had this happen before with an older computer, but my motherboard is only a little over a year old. As of today it has started to re-boot itself as well. Everything seems to work fine, programs/keyboard/mouse/etc, it just seems to give up right when im about to get started doing something ive been putting off (maybe my computer supports procrastination by annoying me into putting things off even more?)

    My husband has looked into forums and such and all he has come up with is that my processor is overheating or another part of the motherboard is overheating. When i feel the case after each shutdown it is very cool and has no signs that heat is any part of the issue. (and ive been told that if it was the processor overheating that the computer would not start back up right away, and if it did, it would shut down quickly after until the processor had cooled a bit)

    Any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated. thank you in advance.


    ~MP

    P.S. i have tried the motherboard monitor, but for some reason i cannot get it to work on my PC. I dont know if im setting it up wrong, or if my motherboard just isnt on the list. when i install it and try to boot it, i get the image of the MBM program on my screen, and an error message pops up behind it.. but all i can see of the error message is the "ok" button.

    the motherboard i have is the Machspeed MK8-939A socket 939 ATX. i am not sure which to choose from in the dropdown list.
     
  2. joelsz

    joelsz First Sergeant

    It does sound like an overheating problem.
    It could be the power supply
    Check and make sure the air vents around your power supply are not blocked and that the fan is running.
     
  3. Fred_G

    Fred_G Heat packin' geek

    Welcome to MajorGeeks!

    I agree with joelsz, sounds like the PSU or overheating. Turn off the PC, unplug the power, remove the side panels, and use a can of compressed air to clean the dust out. Use a pencil or something to hold the fans still while you clean out the heatsinks.

    Plug it back in and start it up with the panels off. Make sure each fan is spinning properly. If any fans are not spinning right, replace them.

    For temps, you can also use Core Temp: http://www.majorgeeks.com/Core_Temp_d5665.html

    And Everest: http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4181.html

    Post back your results.

    E
     
  4. MoonPegasus

    MoonPegasus Private E-2

    well, i cleaned it out the best i could, by using the vaccume since i couldnt find any of the canned air, and all seemed to work well, until sunday. it decided to shut down again at a random point of the day (dont know exactly when, since i was out of the room when it went caput so i dont know if it overheated) the house was pretty cool, and for the few days before that it had been a lot warmer and i had left the computer on all day without anything happening with it. Any idea where to go from here? should i get a new power supply and see if it fixes things, or is there another thing i can try to see whats going on with my pc?

    ty in advance for any help you can give me ^_^

    ~MP

    P.S. all the fans seem to be running well, as does everything else.
     
  5. plodr

    plodr Major Geek Super Extraordinaire

    Are you sure? Keep a side panel off and see if all the fans run all the time.
    A shutdown usually means over heating. So if yours shut down again, something is ausing it to overheat - I suspect maybe a fan cuts out, the temp rises and then the computer shuts off to protect itself.
     
  6. Mongoose

    Mongoose Private E-2

    It seems to me that you could easily find out if the psu is the problem by unplugging the power from some of your peripheral components that you can survive without (fans, pci cards, maybe even cd roms) and then see how your computer runs.
     
  7. MoonPegasus

    MoonPegasus Private E-2

    well, it seems my computer is posessed when i start thinking its safe to put it back in its cubby hole. ive watched all the fans, they seem to be working fine (that was a fun 1/2 hour, lol) everything seems to be hunky dory until i put it back into the slot of my desk that holds it, then i get about 3-4 hours before it goes kaput, i have to unplug and re-plug it in and then it will work anywhere from a few more min to a few more hours, it doesnt seem to have a set amount of time it will go on before it dies. I'm going to try replacing the power supply and see if that fixes anything. (its a US power supply using a UK power cord, because i brought my computer over to the states from the UK) if this doesnt fix it, then what is my next step? replacing the motherboard? ill post back in a few days with the result.

    ty all for your help so far!

    ~MP
     
  8. joelsz

    joelsz First Sergeant

    Are you saying it gives you trouble only when it goes "back in its cubby hole"?
    Is there sufficient air flow in this "cubby hole"?
    All the cooling fans in the world won't do any good if they're blocked from the air.
     
    Last edited: Apr 16, 2008
  9. MoonPegasus

    MoonPegasus Private E-2

    its a pretty big cubby hole, theres at least 2-3 inches open on each side and 3-4 inches between the back of the computer and the wall. its been in there for almost a year, its just the last month or so i've been having troubles with it.
     
  10. Mongoose

    Mongoose Private E-2

    *gasp* I'd never think of running my computer in a "cubby hole." How does the air feel in there after a while of running it? I should think it would feel warm. I'd try running your pc outside the cubby hole with plenty of fresh air to breathe for a while and see how it does. Also, you should really get a temperature monitor program like Fred suggested, if you haven't already.
     
  11. MoonPegasus

    MoonPegasus Private E-2

    ok, strangely enough taking my computer out of its little cubby home seems to have fixed the shutting down without warning problem, but now it seems something else is going on. All of a sudden my computer is giving itself new parts that it doesnt have.. Its started to stop at the boot up page and saying "Floppy disk failure" and when i go into setup it keeps making itself think it has a 3.5 floppy drive when it doesnt, and never has. Is it ok to go into the setup and put "None" under the Floppy drive A slot? or could i have some kind of virus thats just trying to annoy the crap out of me by making my computer think its got more stuff in it then it really does. I cant really think of any other reason that it would suddenly think it has a floppy drive. thanks in advance if you guys can shed some light on this strangeness....


    P.S. the other day my comp crashed and said something about a CMOS checksum error (or something like that), could that have anything to do with this?
     
  12. Fred_G

    Fred_G Heat packin' geek

    Get some canned air and clean out the heatsinks. The CMOS Checksum error is most likely a dead CMOS battery. It is a coin sized battery usually in the lower right side of the motherboard.

    It wont hurt to disable devices in the BIOS, whether they exist or not. :-D But without the battery working, it may not remember the settings you change.

    E
     
  13. MoonPegasus

    MoonPegasus Private E-2

    well after a few weeks of working fine since i took it out of its little cubby hole, its started again. ive tried taking the sides off and cleaning it out as much as possible with canned air, but its once again doing it, but with more vigor... so far today it has shut down 3 times, and im at my wits end. any ideas? most likely power supply or motherboard? :(
     
  14. plodr

    plodr Major Geek Super Extraordinaire

    Well in terms of troubleshooting with the least headaches for you, replacing a ps is easier than replacing the mobo. I always go for the easy way first, so I'd probably buy another power supply. If it still does it, at least you have a spare ps to test when a computer starts acting up.
     
  15. MoonPegasus

    MoonPegasus Private E-2

    well, things seemed to be tons better since i put some thermal stuff b/w my heat sink and my processor, but now its started thinking it has an A drive out of nowhere again and shutting down randomly once more. im at my witts end here :S should i just cut my losses and re-install windows? could this be some kind of virus my scans havnt picked up? i use avg and ad aware once a week or so, and 90% of the time it comes up clean.

    any new ideas? ; ;
     
  16. Fred_G

    Fred_G Heat packin' geek

  17. MoonPegasus

    MoonPegasus Private E-2

    i cant get the ram test to work ; ; but so far in 20 mins its shutdown 3 times. i get this error:

    Award Bootblock BIOS V 1.0
    copywrite 200 award software, inc

    BIOS ROM CHECKSUM ERROR

    Detecting floppy drive A media....
    Drive A error, System hault.

    pls forgive spelling errors, baby is trying to help me type, lol

    p.s. havnt replaced battery, but will try to replace it and the power supply this weekend :S
     

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