Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on!

Masterofwar14 · 08-25-2009, 05:29 AM

Hello there, I currently have a Dell XPS with windows Vista (I can't get exact specs, but you should know that from the title). I'm not sure this is the right forum to post this but from the problem's symptoms I suspect its either a power supply or RAM issue, but I want to make sure before I go buy one or the other and it not be the problem, so lets get started with the problem shall we?

This is the 2nd time this problem has struck my computer, the first time it went on for a while but fixed itself

Note: My dell warranty ran out a few months ago, so no help there

In the middle of the night while I was sleeping peacefully around 5 am. My computer, which I always turn off completely at night, started turning on! It woke me up because of the loud fan. Not only did it turn on, it turned off less than 5 second later, so nothing even shows on the screen. It continues to restart rapidly over and over by itself until I pull out the power cord from the wall, and does the same as soon as I plug it back in.

I actually was able to get it to work for a little while longer and got to the boot menu. After reading another forum I was going to hit the option 'Disable restart upon system failure' or something like that so I could see what the problem is and try to fix it. But while I was trying to find it :( it turns off and restarts again!

I would really appreciate any help and I'll be here constantly checking for replies until 11:00 am EST. I'll be gone from then to about 5 pm EST and then I'll be checking again.

deano184 · 08-25-2009, 05:44 AM

Hi this is a difficult one but there are a few things we could try.

Is your PC connected to a network switch / router? if so try disconnecting the network cable to see if this solves your problem. The issue may be related to ' 'Wake-on-LAN'.

If this solves the problem then I would suggest disabling 'Wake-On-LAN'.

If this does not solve your problem then I would suggest disconnecting all your USB devices, i.e. printers, hard drives etc. If this solves the problem re-connect them one by one until the problem returns. You can then tackle the device which is causing the problem.

Hope this is useful.

Kind Regards,

Dean Spencer

Masterofwar14 · 08-25-2009, 05:53 AM

I appreciate you trying to help, but the booting up randomly thing isn't the main problem, it wont stay on for more than 5 seconds, I tried taking out my xbox 360 control, wireless adapter, everything other than the essentials. It didn't change anything.

New info on the problem: When I leave the power out for a while and then put it back in, the first time it starts up (automatically of course) it stays on for about 1 minute, but then turns off and does the same old restarting constantly and turning off immediatly

I've seen posts about it being a virus, but those people didn't have my exact problem so I'm not sure about that

Masterofwar14 · 08-25-2009, 06:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Masterofwar14

I appreciate you trying to help, but the booting up randomly thing isn't the main problem, it wont stay on for more than 5 seconds, I tried taking out my xbox 360 control, wireless adapter, everything other than the essentials. It didn't change anything.

New info on the problem: When I leave the power out for a while and then put it back in, the first time it starts up (automatically of course) it stays on for about 1 minute, but then turns off and does the same old restarting constantly and turning off immediatly

I've seen posts about it being a virus, but those people didn't have my exact problem so I'm not sure about that

After thinking about this (my) previous post, I tried starting up after a while with the tower open, I was using a flashlight to see if it was an overheating problem do to the fan shutting off, but thats not the case, also in this one bootup attempt, I was able to get to a system restore thing, but I'm not sure that it finished the restore because while I was watching the fan, once again it abruptly turned off and of course began to restart constantly and turn off.

Phædrus2401 · 08-25-2009, 08:25 AM

It could be your power supply, maybe. What is the system's full specs?
Motherboard (if known)
CPU
RAM
Power supply (brand, model, wattage, should be on the side of it, it's the boxy component where the power cord plugs in)
Graphics card

Try taking the power supply from another computer and see if it works better with that.

Masterofwar14 · 08-25-2009, 08:37 AM

Well I'm about to go to my class so I wont be on again till afternoon. I was taking advice from a friend and took out my ram sticks, to see if that was the problem, wasn't so I put them back in, and for some reason I was able to get to my desktop, was on there for maybe 5 minutes, and then all windows closed... I was like Huh? and then it did a normal shutdown by itself, and then tried to turn itself back on and couldn't start up... this really makes me think its a virus or windows problem but not sure, I'll happily accept any feedback

Phædrus2401 · 08-25-2009, 09:09 AM

A virus cannot cause the problem you're describing. It sounds like it's restarting before it even gets to POST. That means it's hardware problem, not a virus.

Masterofwar14 · 08-25-2009, 06:21 PM

I think I fixed the problem... only time can tell now. What I did was buy a new system battery (the one on the motherboard) after asking a computer engineering teacher at my college. Then I was having the same problem, then I started searching again, and found something about checking BIOS errors, the errors for this morning said 'CMOS Battery Failure, CMOS Checksum error, and CMOS Time not set' so I looked up Checksum Error in google on my laptop (google it if you don't know what it is!). So I went to BIOS again and restored to factory defaults, and thats how I got to this point, this is the longest its been on without shutting down on me, so *crosses fingers*

Thank you to everyone that tried to help, its the thought that counts :D

Masterofwar14 · 08-25-2009, 06:41 PM

*sigh* its still rebooting by itself, I'm tired of messing with it tonight, this has just been an overall bad day. Please submit any feedback :/

Phædrus2401 · 08-25-2009, 09:23 PM

If restoring the BIOS helped the problem then it's probably a motherboard problem. I haven't seen a case of corrupted BIOS before, however. It may be the flash memory the BIOS is stored on is physically damaged. First try updating the BIOS to the newest version. You should be able to find this on google as long as the motherboard isn't more than 8-10 years old and you know the exact model number. Then read this: http://www.devhardware.com/c/a/Hardw...ash-Your-BIOS/

Masterofwar14 · 08-26-2009, 07:18 AM

I'm pretty sure its a power button problem, seeing as this is a dell computer, and it would explain why it turned on by itself, and why it does an actual shutdown instead of just suddenly turning off. I'm going to call a technician sometime and see if they can get it fixed, because I'd have to take apart about half of my computer just to get to the power button from the inside to check, and even if I did I wouldn't know what to do lol

Masterofwar14 · 08-26-2009, 08:16 PM

Update: I took my tower to a local technician earlier today, he hasn't actually worked on it yet, but when I described the problem, he figures its the power button and he says its an easy fix if so, his reason for thinking this was from pure experience because a woman who recently brought the same kind of cpu in had the same problem, and that was how he fixed it. But for future reference, dells have a history of problems w/ the spring on the power button coming loose.
Thanks everyone

**Tyree** · 08-27-2009, 10:14 AM

Hopefully the technician is correct but I'm thinking Team Mate Phædrus2401 was correct when he suggested the PSU.

08-25-2009, 05:29 AM	#1 (permalink)
Masterofwar14 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 11 OS: Windows Vista	Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! Hello there, I currently have a Dell XPS with windows Vista (I can't get exact specs, but you should know that from the title). I'm not sure this is the right forum to post this but from the problem's symptoms I suspect its either a power supply or RAM issue, but I want to make sure before I go buy one or the other and it not be the problem, so lets get started with the problem shall we? This is the 2nd time this problem has struck my computer, the first time it went on for a while but fixed itself Note: My dell warranty ran out a few months ago, so no help there In the middle of the night while I was sleeping peacefully around 5 am. My computer, which I always turn off completely at night, started turning on! It woke me up because of the loud fan. Not only did it turn on, it turned off less than 5 second later, so nothing even shows on the screen. It continues to restart rapidly over and over by itself until I pull out the power cord from the wall, and does the same as soon as I plug it back in. I actually was able to get it to work for a little while longer and got to the boot menu. After reading another forum I was going to hit the option 'Disable restart upon system failure' or something like that so I could see what the problem is and try to fix it. But while I was trying to find it :( it turns off and restarts again! I would really appreciate any help and I'll be here constantly checking for replies until 11:00 am EST. I'll be gone from then to about 5 pm EST and then I'll be checking again.

08-25-2009, 05:44 AM	#2 (permalink)
deano184 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 2 OS: Vista	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! Hi this is a difficult one but there are a few things we could try. Is your PC connected to a network switch / router? if so try disconnecting the network cable to see if this solves your problem. The issue may be related to ' 'Wake-on-LAN'. If this solves the problem then I would suggest disabling 'Wake-On-LAN'. If this does not solve your problem then I would suggest disconnecting all your USB devices, i.e. printers, hard drives etc. If this solves the problem re-connect them one by one until the problem returns. You can then tackle the device which is causing the problem. Hope this is useful. Kind Regards, Dean Spencer Last edited by simpswr; 08-25-2009 at 05:57 PM. Reason: remove link

08-25-2009, 05:53 AM	#3 (permalink)
Masterofwar14 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 11 OS: Windows Vista	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! I appreciate you trying to help, but the booting up randomly thing isn't the main problem, it wont stay on for more than 5 seconds, I tried taking out my xbox 360 control, wireless adapter, everything other than the essentials. It didn't change anything. New info on the problem: When I leave the power out for a while and then put it back in, the first time it starts up (automatically of course) it stays on for about 1 minute, but then turns off and does the same old restarting constantly and turning off immediatly I've seen posts about it being a virus, but those people didn't have my exact problem so I'm not sure about that

08-25-2009, 08:25 AM	#5 (permalink)
Phædrus2401 Hardware Tech Team Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Orleans Posts: 3,870 OS: Vista Ultimate x64 SP1 + Ubuntu 9.04 My System	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! It could be your power supply, maybe. What is the system's full specs? Motherboard (if known) CPU RAM Power supply (brand, model, wattage, should be on the side of it, it's the boxy component where the power cord plugs in) Graphics card Try taking the power supply from another computer and see if it works better with that. __________________ Good PSU brands: Corsair, SeaSonic, CWT, PC Power and Cooling, Thermaltake Toughpower, CoolerMaster Real Power Pro On 80+ Certification - PSU Information and Selection - Power Supply Myths You don't get what you don't pay for.

08-25-2009, 08:37 AM	#6 (permalink)
Masterofwar14 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 11 OS: Windows Vista	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! Well I'm about to go to my class so I wont be on again till afternoon. I was taking advice from a friend and took out my ram sticks, to see if that was the problem, wasn't so I put them back in, and for some reason I was able to get to my desktop, was on there for maybe 5 minutes, and then all windows closed... I was like Huh? and then it did a normal shutdown by itself, and then tried to turn itself back on and couldn't start up... this really makes me think its a virus or windows problem but not sure, I'll happily accept any feedback

08-25-2009, 09:09 AM	#7 (permalink)
Phædrus2401 Hardware Tech Team Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Orleans Posts: 3,870 OS: Vista Ultimate x64 SP1 + Ubuntu 9.04 My System	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! A virus cannot cause the problem you're describing. It sounds like it's restarting before it even gets to POST. That means it's hardware problem, not a virus. __________________ Good PSU brands: Corsair, SeaSonic, CWT, PC Power and Cooling, Thermaltake Toughpower, CoolerMaster Real Power Pro On 80+ Certification - PSU Information and Selection - Power Supply Myths You don't get what you don't pay for.

08-25-2009, 06:21 PM	#8 (permalink)
Masterofwar14 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 11 OS: Windows Vista	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! I think I fixed the problem... only time can tell now. What I did was buy a new system battery (the one on the motherboard) after asking a computer engineering teacher at my college. Then I was having the same problem, then I started searching again, and found something about checking BIOS errors, the errors for this morning said 'CMOS Battery Failure, CMOS Checksum error, and CMOS Time not set' so I looked up Checksum Error in google on my laptop (google it if you don't know what it is!). So I went to BIOS again and restored to factory defaults, and thats how I got to this point, this is the longest its been on without shutting down on me, so crosses fingers Thank you to everyone that tried to help, its the thought that counts :D

08-25-2009, 06:41 PM	#9 (permalink)
Masterofwar14 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 11 OS: Windows Vista	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! sigh its still rebooting by itself, I'm tired of messing with it tonight, this has just been an overall bad day. Please submit any feedback :/

08-25-2009, 09:23 PM	#10 (permalink)
Phædrus2401 Hardware Tech Team Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Orleans Posts: 3,870 OS: Vista Ultimate x64 SP1 + Ubuntu 9.04 My System	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! If restoring the BIOS helped the problem then it's probably a motherboard problem. I haven't seen a case of corrupted BIOS before, however. It may be the flash memory the BIOS is stored on is physically damaged. First try updating the BIOS to the newest version. You should be able to find this on google as long as the motherboard isn't more than 8-10 years old and you know the exact model number. Then read this: http://www.devhardware.com/c/a/Hardw...ash-Your-BIOS/ __________________ Good PSU brands: Corsair, SeaSonic, CWT, PC Power and Cooling, Thermaltake Toughpower, CoolerMaster Real Power Pro On 80+ Certification - PSU Information and Selection - Power Supply Myths You don't get what you don't pay for.

08-26-2009, 07:18 AM	#11 (permalink)
Masterofwar14 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 11 OS: Windows Vista	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! I'm pretty sure its a power button problem, seeing as this is a dell computer, and it would explain why it turned on by itself, and why it does an actual shutdown instead of just suddenly turning off. I'm going to call a technician sometime and see if they can get it fixed, because I'd have to take apart about half of my computer just to get to the power button from the inside to check, and even if I did I wouldn't know what to do lol

08-26-2009, 08:16 PM	#12 (permalink)
Masterofwar14 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 11 OS: Windows Vista	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! Update: I took my tower to a local technician earlier today, he hasn't actually worked on it yet, but when I described the problem, he figures its the power button and he says its an easy fix if so, his reason for thinking this was from pure experience because a woman who recently brought the same kind of cpu in had the same problem, and that was how he fixed it. But for future reference, dells have a history of problems w/ the spring on the power button coming loose. Thanks everyone

08-27-2009, 10:14 AM	#13 (permalink)
Tyree Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: May 2009 Location: Illinois Posts: 5,810 OS: XP Pro-7RC-Mandriva My System	Re: Huge problem: Computer constantly restarts.. when its not even on! Hopefully the technician is correct but I'm thinking Team Mate Phædrus2401 was correct when he suggested the PSU. __________________ Posting your PC specs will help us to help you quicker and more efficiently.