PSU voltage question

Hey geeks! I know this subject matter has come up a few times, and I read the threads but nothing seemed relative to my predicament. Here goes..

Recently, my PC has been having trouble starting up after being shut off for more than a few hours. I usually leave it on 24/7 just seeding torrents and stuff, and have no problems with hardware stability while gaming and such. I never have crashes, etc.. So, when I turn it on, it goes into this loop where everything will start to spin up, then it'll shut off and turn on again, over and over. After doing this for about 10 minutes or so, I can turn off the power switch, then turn it back on, and it'll boot up fine. It's crazy, and I've never seen such a problem in all my years working on PCs. I immediately suspected the PSU, and installed SpeedFan to check out my voltages. Here's the crazy part. My +12 rail is only showing an output of 0.70 - 0.90v. This same reading appears in both Everest and SpeedFan. My BIOS will not show voltage numbers, but it says "OK" next to the +12v. Now, I've never ever seen a +12 reading so low as 0.70v.. technically, I don't think anything should even be working with such a low number, let alone running stable while gaming. Also, the -12v rail is reading around -16.8 or so, and the -5v is reading -4.85..

Has anyone ever seen voltage numbers so far off? I should replace the PSU I'm guessing, but I just wanted to know how anything even works with such low voltage output. :confused

Thanks in advance for any input and suggestions. Cheers.

 

Only computers built to be Servers were ever designed to run continuously. And that is with special Server Operating Software.

Windows XP was certainly NOT. Do yourself a favor and shut down your PC at least once a day. Even if for a short time.
Then run "Disk Cleanup" often.

Now, your problem sounds very much like a failing PSU, not having the power to start all your drives, fans and charge your motherboard.

I'd replace the PSU Immediately, before some real harm is done.

Get a new PSU of GREATER wattage than your old one.
You didn't say what brand or wattage your old PSU is, but I'd replace it with one of at least 25% greater capability.

That should take care of your problem.

Good Luck,
The Shadow :cool

 

Had that problem on a PC at work and it was the PSU

As for leaving your PC on all the time. There is nothing wrong as long as the room temp doesn't get too hot. I have XP Pro on 1 PC and Home on the other, at my house and they probably have only been turned off 3 or 4 times in the last year. Neither one is a server and I haven't had any problems with them. The one I'm on now has been turned on 95% of the time, since I built it in 2003. I only turn it off if I'm going out of town.