Sign in with
Sign up | Sign in
Your question

Computer turns on by itself after power loss.

Tags:
  • Loss
  • Power Supplies
  • RAM
  • Power
  • Computers
  • Reboot
  • Components
  • GPUs
  • CPUs
Last response: in Components
Share
October 9, 2014 11:54:55 AM

So lately my computer has been shutting down at random moments and then after a few seconds it will turn on by itself. I've unticked Restart after Power Loss in power options, I did it in advanced power options before boot and I've even turned it off in the BIOS but the computer still turns on after the shutdown.

I've tested the RAM with no errors and I've tested the CPU, GPU with stress tests and no errors. I updated the bios but nothing will stop this random shutdown and power on. Temperatures are fine and speccy says the power supply is giving correct rail voltages.

Please help, this has been going on for a few months and I am at my wits end.

More about : computer turns power loss

a b ) Power supply
October 9, 2014 3:15:34 PM

It's possible the PSU is overheating due to dust buildup. Clean it out with some compressed air and / or a vacuum.

Have you installed any components recently? If a PSU is functioning near, at or over its maximum wattage it can shut down randomly.
m
0
l
October 10, 2014 7:41:47 AM

Thelps said:
It's possible the PSU is overheating due to dust buildup. Clean it out with some compressed air and / or a vacuum.

Have you installed any components recently? If a PSU is functioning near, at or over its maximum wattage it can shut down randomly.


The build is pretty much brand new. It's about 2 months old, and I have the XFX 650W Bronze Edition PSU. Could this be a problem this early on?
m
0
l
Related resources
a b ) Power supply
October 10, 2014 10:37:32 AM

Needhelp2112 said:
Thelps said:
It's possible the PSU is overheating due to dust buildup. Clean it out with some compressed air and / or a vacuum.

Have you installed any components recently? If a PSU is functioning near, at or over its maximum wattage it can shut down randomly.


The build is pretty much brand new. It's about 2 months old, and I have the XFX 650W Bronze Edition PSU. Could this be a problem this early on?


Please post your System Hardware Specifications.
m
0
l
a b à CPUs
October 10, 2014 10:52:19 AM

How much RAM, and what are the specs? Hard to say without knowing more, but this sounds like exactly the kind of problem that can come when RAM is misbehaving.

If it's restarting on its own even after you changed all those settings, I don't think it's actually "losing power," just suffering some other hangup that causes it to shut itself off. With the temps and power seemingly OK, memory is the next place I'd look.
m
0
l
a b ) Power supply
October 10, 2014 11:11:38 AM

capt_taco said:
How much RAM, and what are the specs? Hard to say without knowing more, but this sounds like exactly the kind of problem that can come when RAM is misbehaving.

If it's restarting on its own even after you changed all those settings, I don't think it's actually "losing power," just suffering some other hangup that causes it to shut itself off. With the temps and power seemingly OK, memory is the next place I'd look.


Usually bad RAM module sectors result in a BSOD but there could be something to what Taco says. I'm no expert on RAM.
m
0
l
a b à CPUs
October 10, 2014 3:42:42 PM

Thelps said:
Usually bad RAM module sectors result in a BSOD but there could be something to what Taco says. I'm no expert on RAM.


Not an "expert" either, but having lived through my share of RAM problems, I've seen it with a BSOD sometimes, and just as often I've seen a machine just lock up seemingly at random, with either a frozen screen or a black screen. Sometimes they won't even boot.

I think you're right that if you hit an actual bad sector of RAM, it's likely to produce the BSOD. But if the RAM is just unstable (due to wobbly timings, voltage, or overclocking), the result can be whatever, whenever. You used to see that A LOT when people used RAM that was above the standard spec voltage, and the motherboard's "auto" setting couldn't cope (especially with four sticks). Moreover, in those situations the RAM may well even pass diagnostics with flying colors and still give you hangups all day. It is enough to drive you mad if you're trying to figure it out for the first time.
m
0
l
October 11, 2014 2:45:46 AM

capt_taco said:
Thelps said:
Usually bad RAM module sectors result in a BSOD but there could be something to what Taco says. I'm no expert on RAM.


Not an "expert" either, but having lived through my share of RAM problems, I've seen it with a BSOD sometimes, and just as often I've seen a machine just lock up seemingly at random, with either a frozen screen or a black screen. Sometimes they won't even boot.

I think you're right that if you hit an actual bad sector of RAM, it's likely to produce the BSOD. But if the RAM is just unstable (due to wobbly timings, voltage, or overclocking), the result can be whatever, whenever. You used to see that A LOT when people used RAM that was above the standard spec voltage, and the motherboard's "auto" setting couldn't cope (especially with four sticks). Moreover, in those situations the RAM may well even pass diagnostics with flying colors and still give you hangups all day. It is enough to drive you mad if you're trying to figure it out for the first time.


Well I've ran Memtest for about 8 passes with no problems. I will try to run the system with 1 stick of ram.

So far I've figured out the power button and reset button work because even with both those disconnected the shut downs still occur. I really really dont want it to be the motherboard because it sucks getting RMAs on those.

SPECS:

XFX 650W PSU
GTX 770
Asus z87 Plus
G-Skill ares 1600mhz - 8GB 2 sticks (4GB each)
i5 4670k @ 3.4ghz
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
m
0
l
a b à CPUs
October 11, 2014 3:00:35 AM

What happens if you go in the BIOS and increase the RAM voltage? Not much, just .02V-.04V+

That's not a permanent fix, but can sometimes get you by for a while, if the RAM or the RAM slot is the problem.

Motherboard slots going bad do happen, but they are rare. First try checking out all possible options (based on your symptoms) first with the RAM, then with the PSU. If you have - or can borrow - RAM or the PSU from another computer, that can be used to rule out, o rule in, those components.

By the way, what did you use to test the PSU voltage? A multimeter, or just software?
m
0
l
October 11, 2014 3:02:56 AM

capt_taco said:
What happens if you go in the BIOS and increase the RAM voltage? Not much, just .02V-.04V+

That's not a permanent fix, but can sometimes get you by for a while, if the RAM or the RAM slot is the problem.

Motherboard slots going bad do happen, but they are rare. First try checking out all possible options (based on your symptoms) first with the RAM, then with the PSU. If you have - or can borrow - RAM or the PSU from another computer, that can be used to rule out, o rule in, those components.



By the way, what did you use to test the PSU voltage? A multimeter, or just software?


I used a software because I am not too comfortable with using a multimeter neither do I have one. I also tried using the XML settings for the RAM but the problem still happened... I am not too familiar with changing ram voltages, could you link me to something that will help?

I have got RAM i can use from another computer I think, but not a PSU as my old computer only has a 500W PSU and it doesn't have a brand. I'm not really willing to risk something like that with my current system
m
0
l
October 11, 2014 4:01:50 AM

capt_taco said:
What happens if you go in the BIOS and increase the RAM voltage? Not much, just .02V-.04V+

That's not a permanent fix, but can sometimes get you by for a while, if the RAM or the RAM slot is the problem.

Motherboard slots going bad do happen, but they are rare. First try checking out all possible options (based on your symptoms) first with the RAM, then with the PSU. If you have - or can borrow - RAM or the PSU from another computer, that can be used to rule out, o rule in, those components.

By the way, what did you use to test the PSU voltage? A multimeter, or just software?


I am now running the computer with one stick of ram, will come back with results.
m
0
l
a b à CPUs
October 17, 2014 2:46:52 PM

Hmm ... after reading your other messages in the past few days where you tried adjusting the RAM settings manually, I think it's less likely the memory is the problem. Can't rule it out completely, but I'd say back to the PSU and motherboard are the places to concentrate. This is the time when if you have access to any spare components or can borrow some from another machine, it would really help.

If you can, it'd be good to test first a different set of RAM and then a different power supply (in that order because of installation difficulty) and see if either helps. And at this point I would say it's in your best interest to get a multimeter, or get someone who knows how to help you test the PSU. Here are a couple of informative pages from this site on the basics of troubleshooting a PSU:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/power-supply-protec...
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/power-supply-protec...

It would be rare for a new PSU of that quality to be experiencing issues that soon, but they're not all perfect. The symptoms really do sound like either unstable memory or power problems (both of which can be caused by a secondary problem with the motherboard if that's what's doing it). Would've guessed memory since that's more common, but hopefully we'll all get to the bottom of this soon.
m
0
l
!