yet another newb question

[makaveli03]

how do i found out how many amps are being drawn on my 12v line? do i have to look up specs for each individual component? do i have to (somehow) measure them myself? My computer reboots itself every so often. temps are fine 36-42c on athlon xp 2600+ tbred b not overclocked. mb 21-31c asus a7v333-x. i have an antec sl400 which allows max of 18A on 12v+. the comp is 4 years old. ive had rebooting problems for a while. thought it was my video card drivers because it seems to be only when graphic intesive apps are in use, but wanted to rule out the power supply as a possible cause.

xp 2600+ tbred b
a7v333-x
768mb pc2100 ram
40gb maxtor P.O.S. hd that loves to make a whiny high pitch noise all day
ati radeon 9000 pro
antec soho somethin case
antec sl400 400w psu

any help is always appreciated

 

[Rhinofart]

First off I would make sure that the Auto-Reboot on system failure is turned off in windows, just to rule out any software problem that could be causing it. That way, it it's a windows or driver problem you will more then likely get the BSOD in which you can find out exactly what is going on with your system.

Window Key + Pause Break, then goto Advanced, Startup / Recovery and make sure the check mark in Automaticaly Restart is not there.

If you PC still reboots with no BSOD you can then turn your attention to the hardware aspect of things. If you have or know someone who has a UPS with Power Conditioning (IE APC UPS Pro 300 and above or something equivalent) you can then rule out power coming into your computer as the culprit, and concentrate on the internals.

Then you can test other parts of your system unhooking them as needed. Basicly a trial by fire type of troubleshooting untill you hopefully find out that one little obscure pos that is causing your problem.

My brother in law had a similar problem that he struggled with for months, and finally asked me what I thought. Half hour later I found that the Molex plug on his HD had a cold solder joint and was shorting out causing a reboot. Try to rule everything out systematicaly starting with software, external influences, then internals.

HTH.