I am posting this with a slight sense of unease, this PC of mine decided to turn itself off a half hour ago while I am browsing the web.
For the next few minutes I tried unsuccessfully trying to boot back in, but the machine would keep shutting off after displaying briefly the BIOS screen. Finally I removed the fan and reseated the processor. BIOS said "New CPU etc" and then allowed me to continue.
Now I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop, i.e., My eyes would now occasionally wander to the open chassis to spy on the CPU fan rotation for the inevitable shutoff. is this the sign that certain parts are failing? Is the power supply suspect here?
My PC has the specs of a 2004 machine: P4 3.0, 1GB RAM, ASUS P4P800.
I checked the power supply box and it says SilentOP (385w), although I'm not sure if the name will ring any bells for you.
This case has a pair of fans but they're both pointed towards the hard drive bays. I can rule out the CPU fan malfunctioning. Either way, the case is open and I always have a desk fan blowing directly at it.
So,.. it's still running without experiencing another such event (it happened 4 hours ago). I was only feeling a little worried.
You've taken a logical first step, now do this too..
Go to Start, Run, Control Panel, System, Advanced, Settings, uncheck Auto Restart.
Now if it's a Windows issue at least you'll see it. Note what the BSOD tells you.
I know theres a log file, someone know where it is?
DC
You've opened the case up and have a fan blowing on it - good. Have you taken it outside and hit it with canned air? Check for dust build up in the cpu cooler fins, the power supply intake and fan openings, fan blades, dust on motherboard and pci cards.
Symptoms of a failing powersupply I've seen are disappearing devices - cd/dvd drives that aren't seen after a boot and USB ports that stop working.
Nice ideas. Thanks for the suggestions. I had assumed it was heat all along, but haven't got to the cleaning the fans and air vents as of yet.
I will report back on this thread if something new comes up.
Hi cpetaling,
I would strongly suggest you do the cleaning of fans and heatsink without delay on both your CPU and the fan in your PSU. If the PSU is the culprit they can go out and take the mobo and components with them. Not trying to upset you but "An ounce of prevention is worth ten pounds of cure".
ultraclassic
right there. i'm doing some minimal brushing on the CPU fan and heatsink (not much to clean though) as I write, will get to the power supply later today.
Any links you can share with regards to proper cleaning?
I don't have any favorites. I used to use one on PCmag but I don't go there much any more. This will do Cnet's How to clean your PC You can google how to clean pc for a few more.
No dust in cpu cooler? Odd. Did you look down into the bottom of the fins?
