[SOLVED] Laptop turning off suddenly

lowlite · 06-17-2008, 06:49 PM

Ok, my laptop has been acting weird for a while. First i noticed that the battery life was shortening greatly, and i meant that after like a month or so it eventually started going from 100% to 5% in a matter of seconds. Then my cable (AC adapter or however it's called) started failing, so i bought a generic one. With the generic cable i was fine for around 2 months. By this time the battery was practically non-existent, if i unplugged the cable it would turn off instantly as if you would unplug a Desktop.

Well now, after a while of working fine under the generic cable, my laptop suddenly started turning itself off, just like it would if i unplugged it. This happens randomly too, I've had it on for like 5 hours and have it happen then, or i can turn it on for 2-5 mins and have it turn off right away. Now I'm thinking this could be some voltage changes on my house, as in, suddenly there's not enough power to keep it on and with no battery to support, it turns off. This is strange though, since i have no problems with any other electronic device on my house, not even my desktop (which would draw more power) has this problem. Although i do know that my house is prone to voltage changes.

Now what i don't know is: would a new battery solve the problem? is it my cable the one not working? or is it my house's voltage changes the ones causing trouble (I do have everything connected to a surge protector though)?

Any help or advice is appreciated and thanks in advance.

**TriggerFinger** · 06-18-2008, 08:10 AM

about the battery, it is always good to have a spare. so if it is me, i would get one regardless.

does this happen whether on battery or AC adapter or both? i suggest you run the laptop stripped down to RAM, LCD and motherboard. since your issue is intermittent, this may take several attempts.

lowlite · 06-18-2008, 02:13 PM

Well, my laptop does not have a battery at all at the moment. The battery just stopped working so my laptop will not even turn on when it is not plugged in. So yes this can only happen when it is plugged in to the AC adapter.

And what should i do if i run my laptop with just the RAM, motherboard and LCD?

Lastly, thanks for your help.

**TriggerFinger** · 06-18-2008, 06:22 PM

disregard my previous post...

try using a working RAM. once you get a good boot to Windows, use SpeedFan to check the temps. observe at what temp does it shutdown. i am assuming this is overheat related but since this is intermittent it may take a lot of patience.

lowlite · 06-18-2008, 10:03 PM

It is quite strange then I doubt it is related to overheating since every time it does turn off, there's no sign of heat anywhere on the surface of the machine.

I guess i can buy a new battery and see if that does the trick, when my laptop turns off, i can immediately turn it on again afterwards, so a battery that can last for at least a minute or so should be able to rule out any problems related with the power supply.

If it is related to overheating then i guess cleaning the vents (not that they're dirty right now but still) and getting one of those cooling pads should do it?

Please correct me if i'm wrong though, as i'm not an expert in the subject...

And i will check that SpeedFan thing out too, it might take me a bit of time though since i've had my laptop on today for more than 2 hours now, i don't know if it will give me trouble again today.

Thanks for the help so far.

lowlite · 06-19-2008, 03:13 AM

Ok, here's what i've got so far. The temperature of the core is around 45-47C at the moment that it shuts down, the temp of the HD0 is at around 34-36C. Does this mean anything?

**TriggerFinger** · 06-19-2008, 10:10 AM

ok this may sound far fatched but try using a linux live CD (i.e. Knoppix or PCLinuxOS). observe if shutdown still occurs.

lowlite · 06-25-2008, 12:48 PM

Thank you for your help triggerfinger, and I apologize for the late reply but i have solved my problem.

See i took the laptop along with the AC adapter for a check-up once more, there they found out that the tip of my generic AC adapter was a bit loose, and that was causing the inconsistent supply of power. Talk about a simple thing creating a huge problem eh?

Well, once again, you have my thanks. I will now leave you to attend to other people ;)

06-17-2008, 06:49 PM	#1 (permalink)
lowlite Registered User Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 34 OS: Windows XP service pack 2	[SOLVED] Laptop turning off suddenly Ok, my laptop has been acting weird for a while. First i noticed that the battery life was shortening greatly, and i meant that after like a month or so it eventually started going from 100% to 5% in a matter of seconds. Then my cable (AC adapter or however it's called) started failing, so i bought a generic one. With the generic cable i was fine for around 2 months. By this time the battery was practically non-existent, if i unplugged the cable it would turn off instantly as if you would unplug a Desktop. Well now, after a while of working fine under the generic cable, my laptop suddenly started turning itself off, just like it would if i unplugged it. This happens randomly too, I've had it on for like 5 hours and have it happen then, or i can turn it on for 2-5 mins and have it turn off right away. Now I'm thinking this could be some voltage changes on my house, as in, suddenly there's not enough power to keep it on and with no battery to support, it turns off. This is strange though, since i have no problems with any other electronic device on my house, not even my desktop (which would draw more power) has this problem. Although i do know that my house is prone to voltage changes. Now what i don't know is: would a new battery solve the problem? is it my cable the one not working? or is it my house's voltage changes the ones causing trouble (I do have everything connected to a surge protector though)? Any help or advice is appreciated and thanks in advance.

06-18-2008, 08:10 AM	#2 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,802 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: Laptop turning off suddenly about the battery, it is always good to have a spare. so if it is me, i would get one regardless. does this happen whether on battery or AC adapter or both? i suggest you run the laptop stripped down to RAM, LCD and motherboard. since your issue is intermittent, this may take several attempts. __________________ DBAN - Memtest86+ - BartPE - Linux LiveCD - ImgBurn - HDD Diags - Disk Copy HOW TO BURN AN ISO FILE

06-18-2008, 02:13 PM	#3 (permalink)
lowlite Registered User Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 34 OS: Windows XP service pack 2	Re: Laptop turning off suddenly Well, my laptop does not have a battery at all at the moment. The battery just stopped working so my laptop will not even turn on when it is not plugged in. So yes this can only happen when it is plugged in to the AC adapter. And what should i do if i run my laptop with just the RAM, motherboard and LCD? Lastly, thanks for your help.

06-18-2008, 06:22 PM	#4 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,802 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: Laptop turning off suddenly disregard my previous post... try using a working RAM. once you get a good boot to Windows, use SpeedFan to check the temps. observe at what temp does it shutdown. i am assuming this is overheat related but since this is intermittent it may take a lot of patience. __________________ DBAN - Memtest86+ - BartPE - Linux LiveCD - ImgBurn - HDD Diags - Disk Copy HOW TO BURN AN ISO FILE

06-18-2008, 10:03 PM	#5 (permalink)
lowlite Registered User Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 34 OS: Windows XP service pack 2	Re: Laptop turning off suddenly It is quite strange then I doubt it is related to overheating since every time it does turn off, there's no sign of heat anywhere on the surface of the machine. I guess i can buy a new battery and see if that does the trick, when my laptop turns off, i can immediately turn it on again afterwards, so a battery that can last for at least a minute or so should be able to rule out any problems related with the power supply. If it is related to overheating then i guess cleaning the vents (not that they're dirty right now but still) and getting one of those cooling pads should do it? Please correct me if i'm wrong though, as i'm not an expert in the subject... And i will check that SpeedFan thing out too, it might take me a bit of time though since i've had my laptop on today for more than 2 hours now, i don't know if it will give me trouble again today. Thanks for the help so far.

06-19-2008, 03:13 AM	#6 (permalink)
lowlite Registered User Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 34 OS: Windows XP service pack 2	Re: Laptop turning off suddenly Ok, here's what i've got so far. The temperature of the core is around 45-47C at the moment that it shuts down, the temp of the HD0 is at around 34-36C. Does this mean anything?

06-19-2008, 10:10 AM	#7 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,802 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: Laptop turning off suddenly ok this may sound far fatched but try using a linux live CD (i.e. Knoppix or PCLinuxOS). observe if shutdown still occurs. __________________ DBAN - Memtest86+ - BartPE - Linux LiveCD - ImgBurn - HDD Diags - Disk Copy HOW TO BURN AN ISO FILE

06-25-2008, 12:48 PM	#8 (permalink)
lowlite Registered User Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 34 OS: Windows XP service pack 2	Re: Laptop turning off suddenly Thank you for your help triggerfinger, and I apologize for the late reply but i have solved my problem. See i took the laptop along with the AC adapter for a check-up once more, there they found out that the tip of my generic AC adapter was a bit loose, and that was causing the inconsistent supply of power. Talk about a simple thing creating a huge problem eh? Well, once again, you have my thanks. I will now leave you to attend to other people ;)