Random shut offs

Unearth · 04-27-2008, 07:26 PM

So today I was using the my brother's computer and it would randomly.. like shut off? Well, the screen would turn off but the hard drive was supposedly "on" (Although there wasn't any of the usual sounds that the hard drive makes when it's running) but even when I tried turning the screen off it'd shut off again because it's not on. (Like you know when you turn the screen off and it says that the HD is off and it turns off again?) Well, that happened. We ran the anti-virus and Ad-Aware but it didn't find anything. Sometimes it doesn't shut off for a couple of minutes but sometimes as soon as it logs on, it shut offs. Like when I was trying to do a system restore, it'd shut off. Does this sound like a hardware problem or a virus? It seemed like it'd shut off whenever we'd try to like.. do something with the computer like restore it or go on the internet. What should I do?

Thanks in advance!

johnhook · 04-27-2008, 07:37 PM

Unearth,

What is the make/model of this PC? Is it a laptop? If so, are you running on AC power or battery?

The symptoms you describe seem like a power management issue. Windows has built-in power management features designed to conserve power by shutting down devices when they're not being used or after a period of inactivity. This is primarily useful on laptops running on battery power. Unfortunately, these power management features don't always work very well depending on the hardware/drivers your using.

The random nature of this issue concerns me - so I'm not ruling out malware or some other underlying problem.

Please reply with the info requested and hopefully I can better assist you with this issue.

- John

Unearth · 04-28-2008, 02:21 AM

It's a desktop. An older HP Pavillion. It's about 4-5 years old and this is the first time we've encountered this problem.

johnhook · 04-28-2008, 03:00 AM

Unearth,

Go behind the back of your PC and see if the fan on the back is running. Considering the age of this PC, it's not unlikely that the power supply fan or CPU fan has stopped spinning. Overheating could be the cause of your problem. I would also recommend opening up the case of your PC and checking to see if the fan mounted on the CPU is working. In addition, the PC is likely full of dust and dirt if you haven't cleaned it out before. If you're unfamiliar with opening up your PC - reply with the exact HP Pavillion model and I can find documentation to guide you through removing the case.

All of that said - your problem might also be due to some virus or malware. I would still check out the things I discussed above - but I'd also post your original message to:

http://www.techsupportforum.com/secu...this-log-help/

The tech folks who manage this forum can assist you in running malware/virus detection software in case the problem is due to a virus and not hardware failure or overheating.

- John

Unearth · 04-30-2008, 10:30 AM

Well, before the fan was functioning. It'd just stay on. I opened it up yesterday and cleaned all the dust and whatnot but now when I go to turn it on, only the power button turns on but nothing happens. My brother said he managed once to turn it on but it shut off again. Now it's back to only the power button's light turning on but nothing happening. Any advice on where to take it from here?

dai · 04-30-2008, 11:34 AM

try another power supply in it

Unearth · 05-01-2008, 05:05 PM

What do you mean another power supply? Like plug in another cord?

dai · 05-01-2008, 05:10 PM

no
change the one that's in it to another one of higher wattage

Unearth · 05-02-2008, 12:30 PM

I tried that and it didn't work. Do you think perhaps something got unplugged when we opened it to clean it out? I mean, before that at least it'd turn on. Now it doesn't even do that. (Well, it did once but the same thing happened [where it'd turn off] and it hasn't started up again).

dai · 05-02-2008, 09:23 PM

check all the connections reseat all the cards

johnhook · 05-02-2008, 09:55 PM

Unearth,

You said that your PC is an older HP Pavilion. Please reply with the MODEL of your HP Pavilion.

You can go directly to:

http://www.hp.com/#Support

Put in your model Number (i.e. Pavilion 9100) and go to the specific support site for your HP model.

Based your recent posts, as other here, I'm inclined to think there is some type of hardware failure with your PC - i.e. motherboard or power supply.

However, if the PC went from randomly shutting off to completely NOT working, it's possible that when you opened it up and cleaned it, you inadvertently disconnected some connector/cable or jarred a card or component loose from the motherboard. If THAT were the case, re-connecting all of the connectors should get it back to the state it was it.

If you attempted to replace the power supply - what power supply did you replace it with and how did you reconnect the new power supply - this too could be the source of your problem if the power supply wasn't correctly replaced.

What I'm saying is that there are MANY possible causes to this problem based on your specific hardware and what has been changed or replaced since it was "kinda" working to the point where it is no longer even powering on.

Please reply with more info and myself or someone else here should be able to assist.

- John

Unearth · 05-09-2008, 06:11 PM

I gave up on trying to fix it. Thanks for trying to help, though. I just took it to a repair shop. One last question, though. On my other desktop computer the fan stays on for a long amount of time. Is that bad? Or does that mean I should clean the inside of my PC? Like the fan and stuff.

dai · 05-09-2008, 06:20 PM

on some computers the fans stay on ntil the computer has cooled down

Unearth · 05-09-2008, 07:37 PM

Well, I noticed that it stays on for really long periods of time and before, when I got it over a year ago it didn't stay on this long. So it's nothing to really worry about?

dai · 05-10-2008, 01:45 AM

get a can of air and blow the dust out of the computer

johnhook · 05-11-2008, 09:57 PM

Unearth,

If you're referring to a "desktop" PC, not a laptop or notebook, on most desktop PCs, the FANs remain ON until you completely shutdown the PC. If you're leaving the PC ON and the fan is still running - this is a GOOD THING!

There are other situations where this might not be the case. For example, if your PC is in Hibernation or Resume MODE, the fans might power off until you wake-up the PC.

Without knowing the make/model of your PC and the power-settings in Windows and BIOS settings for power management that have been configured, it's really hard to say if the fan remaining ON is normal behavior or not.

Reply with more details and either myself or someone else here can probably help you understand WHY the fan is staying on. If the PC is working well otherwise - I wouldn't worry about it.

- John

04-27-2008, 07:26 PM	#1 (permalink)
Unearth Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 55 OS: XP	Random shut offs So today I was using the my brother's computer and it would randomly.. like shut off? Well, the screen would turn off but the hard drive was supposedly "on" (Although there wasn't any of the usual sounds that the hard drive makes when it's running) but even when I tried turning the screen off it'd shut off again because it's not on. (Like you know when you turn the screen off and it says that the HD is off and it turns off again?) Well, that happened. We ran the anti-virus and Ad-Aware but it didn't find anything. Sometimes it doesn't shut off for a couple of minutes but sometimes as soon as it logs on, it shut offs. Like when I was trying to do a system restore, it'd shut off. Does this sound like a hardware problem or a virus? It seemed like it'd shut off whenever we'd try to like.. do something with the computer like restore it or go on the internet. What should I do? Thanks in advance!

04-27-2008, 07:37 PM	#2 (permalink)
johnhook Tech Hardware Team Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 670 OS: MS SBS 2003 SP2	Re: Random shut offs Unearth, What is the make/model of this PC? Is it a laptop? If so, are you running on AC power or battery? The symptoms you describe seem like a power management issue. Windows has built-in power management features designed to conserve power by shutting down devices when they're not being used or after a period of inactivity. This is primarily useful on laptops running on battery power. Unfortunately, these power management features don't always work very well depending on the hardware/drivers your using. The random nature of this issue concerns me - so I'm not ruling out malware or some other underlying problem. Please reply with the info requested and hopefully I can better assist you with this issue. - John __________________

04-28-2008, 02:21 AM	#3 (permalink)
Unearth Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 55 OS: XP	Re: Random shut offs It's a desktop. An older HP Pavillion. It's about 4-5 years old and this is the first time we've encountered this problem.

04-28-2008, 03:00 AM	#4 (permalink)
johnhook Tech Hardware Team Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 670 OS: MS SBS 2003 SP2	Re: Random shut offs Unearth, Go behind the back of your PC and see if the fan on the back is running. Considering the age of this PC, it's not unlikely that the power supply fan or CPU fan has stopped spinning. Overheating could be the cause of your problem. I would also recommend opening up the case of your PC and checking to see if the fan mounted on the CPU is working. In addition, the PC is likely full of dust and dirt if you haven't cleaned it out before. If you're unfamiliar with opening up your PC - reply with the exact HP Pavillion model and I can find documentation to guide you through removing the case. All of that said - your problem might also be due to some virus or malware. I would still check out the things I discussed above - but I'd also post your original message to: http://www.techsupportforum.com/secu...this-log-help/ The tech folks who manage this forum can assist you in running malware/virus detection software in case the problem is due to a virus and not hardware failure or overheating. - John __________________

04-30-2008, 10:30 AM	#5 (permalink)
Unearth Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 55 OS: XP	Re: Random shut offs Well, before the fan was functioning. It'd just stay on. I opened it up yesterday and cleaned all the dust and whatnot but now when I go to turn it on, only the power button turns on but nothing happens. My brother said he managed once to turn it on but it shut off again. Now it's back to only the power button's light turning on but nothing happening. Any advice on where to take it from here?

04-30-2008, 11:34 AM	#6 (permalink)
dai Manager, Hardware Forums Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: west australia Posts: 35,865 OS: vista 32x ultimate retail	Re: Random shut offs try another power supply in it __________________

05-01-2008, 05:05 PM	#7 (permalink)
Unearth Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 55 OS: XP	Re: Random shut offs What do you mean another power supply? Like plug in another cord?

05-01-2008, 05:10 PM	#8 (permalink)
dai Manager, Hardware Forums Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: west australia Posts: 35,865 OS: vista 32x ultimate retail	Re: Random shut offs no change the one that's in it to another one of higher wattage __________________

05-02-2008, 12:30 PM	#9 (permalink)
Unearth Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 55 OS: XP	Re: Random shut offs I tried that and it didn't work. Do you think perhaps something got unplugged when we opened it to clean it out? I mean, before that at least it'd turn on. Now it doesn't even do that. (Well, it did once but the same thing happened [where it'd turn off] and it hasn't started up again).

05-02-2008, 09:23 PM	#10 (permalink)
dai Manager, Hardware Forums Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: west australia Posts: 35,865 OS: vista 32x ultimate retail	Re: Random shut offs check all the connections reseat all the cards __________________

05-02-2008, 09:55 PM	#11 (permalink)
johnhook Tech Hardware Team Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 670 OS: MS SBS 2003 SP2	Re: Random shut offs Unearth, You said that your PC is an older HP Pavilion. Please reply with the MODEL of your HP Pavilion. You can go directly to: http://www.hp.com/#Support Put in your model Number (i.e. Pavilion 9100) and go to the specific support site for your HP model. Based your recent posts, as other here, I'm inclined to think there is some type of hardware failure with your PC - i.e. motherboard or power supply. However, if the PC went from randomly shutting off to completely NOT working, it's possible that when you opened it up and cleaned it, you inadvertently disconnected some connector/cable or jarred a card or component loose from the motherboard. If THAT were the case, re-connecting all of the connectors should get it back to the state it was it. If you attempted to replace the power supply - what power supply did you replace it with and how did you reconnect the new power supply - this too could be the source of your problem if the power supply wasn't correctly replaced. What I'm saying is that there are MANY possible causes to this problem based on your specific hardware and what has been changed or replaced since it was "kinda" working to the point where it is no longer even powering on. Please reply with more info and myself or someone else here should be able to assist. - John __________________

05-09-2008, 06:11 PM	#12 (permalink)
Unearth Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 55 OS: XP	Re: Random shut offs I gave up on trying to fix it. Thanks for trying to help, though. I just took it to a repair shop. One last question, though. On my other desktop computer the fan stays on for a long amount of time. Is that bad? Or does that mean I should clean the inside of my PC? Like the fan and stuff.

05-09-2008, 06:20 PM	#13 (permalink)
dai Manager, Hardware Forums Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: west australia Posts: 35,865 OS: vista 32x ultimate retail	Re: Random shut offs on some computers the fans stay on ntil the computer has cooled down __________________

05-09-2008, 07:37 PM	#14 (permalink)
Unearth Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 55 OS: XP	Re: Random shut offs Well, I noticed that it stays on for really long periods of time and before, when I got it over a year ago it didn't stay on this long. So it's nothing to really worry about?

05-10-2008, 01:45 AM	#15 (permalink)
dai Manager, Hardware Forums Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: west australia Posts: 35,865 OS: vista 32x ultimate retail	Re: Random shut offs get a can of air and blow the dust out of the computer __________________

05-11-2008, 09:57 PM	#16 (permalink)
johnhook Tech Hardware Team Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 670 OS: MS SBS 2003 SP2	Re: Random shut offs Unearth, If you're referring to a "desktop" PC, not a laptop or notebook, on most desktop PCs, the FANs remain ON until you completely shutdown the PC. If you're leaving the PC ON and the fan is still running - this is a GOOD THING! There are other situations where this might not be the case. For example, if your PC is in Hibernation or Resume MODE, the fans might power off until you wake-up the PC. Without knowing the make/model of your PC and the power-settings in Windows and BIOS settings for power management that have been configured, it's really hard to say if the fan remaining ON is normal behavior or not. Reply with more details and either myself or someone else here can probably help you understand WHY the fan is staying on. If the PC is working well otherwise - I wouldn't worry about it. - John __________________