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Random re-boot of PC

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David_007   02-26-2009 at 08:45:35 PM

Had a virus called Vundo.P. PC kept rebooting randomly or perpetually. Virus was eventually removed not by Norton but by Stopzilla. Problem still persists. Have reformated hard drive added Norton antivirus, partitioned hardrive for storage purposes with Norton Partition Magic and all was fine. Turned PC off and back on next day but PC has gone back to random re-boots again. The PC is a home build and except for the power supply and hardrive all other components were purchased new last year and all has been fine up to recently. I am using Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 3. The cooling fan on the processor is working and clear of dust etc. Grateful for any ideas as to where to look as I'm scatching my head with this one. Many thanks.

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Silver Home Brew badge shortstuff_mt   02-26-2009 at 08:58:21 PM
- 0 +

What are the complete system specs? I'd have to say random reboots are usually either the PSU or RAM.


Message edited by shortstuff_mt on 02-26-2009 at 08:58:32 PM
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David_007   02-26-2009 at 10:43:53 PM
- 0 +

Many thanks for the reply;

MB: ASUS P5KPL
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E4600 @ 2.4Ghz
RAM: Kingston Hyper X DDR2, KHX6400D2LL/1G Voltage 2.0v
Graphics: NVidia GeForce 8500 GT
HDD: Maxtor 6L200S0 SATA 1 200G
PSU: Jeantech JNP-400P 400watt

The Brand of RAM Chips are in accordance with the manual supplied with the MBoard. I originally had OCZ but had to return these as found they were incompatable.

Message quoted 1 times
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exec721   02-26-2009 at 11:09:11 PM
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David_007 wrote :

Many thanks for the reply;

MB: ASUS P5KPL
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E4600 @ 2.4Ghz
RAM: Kingston Hyper X DDR2, KHX6400D2LL/1G Voltage 2.0v
Graphics: NVidia GeForce 8500 GT
HDD: Maxtor 6L200S0 SATA 1 200G
PSU: Jeantech JNP-400P 400watt

The Brand of RAM Chips are in accordance with the manual supplied with the MBoard. I originally had OCZ but had to return these as found they were incompatable.




If you've reformatted already then you're most likely dealing with a hardware issue. Based on previous experience, your ram has probably gone south. Like shortstuff said, it could also be your power supply. You can get a power supply tester at a local computer shop and test the power supply. You can also run a program like Memtest86 to find out if your ram has gone bad. Have you checked the mini dump files yet? They have always been my savior when it comes to random reboots. If you're not sure how to read them, check out this link: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315263. The dump check utility should tell you what file or component is causing the crashes.

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Silver Home Brew badge shortstuff_mt   02-26-2009 at 11:12:17 PM
- 1 +

"PSU: Jeantech JNP-400P 400watt " - That probably explains the problems. Low end PSU's cause all sorts of issues. I'd replace it with a quality unit before it blows up and takes your system with it.

CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS Certified Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139008 $59.99 - $10 MIR + 20% promo code "Feb20", ends 2/28

Have you run memtest86+ for a few hours to test for RAM errors? What are your idle and load CPU temps? This could also be caused by overheating due to an improperly installed HSF.

Message quoted 2 times
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David_007   02-26-2009 at 11:35:31 PM
- 0 +

shortstuff_mt wrote :

"PSU: Jeantech JNP-400P 400watt " - That probably explains the problems. Low end PSU's cause all sorts of issues. I'd replace it with a quality unit before it blows up and takes your system with it.

CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS Certified Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139008 $59.99 - $10 MIR + 20% promo code "Feb20", ends 2/28

Have you run memtest86+ for a few hours to test for RAM errors? What are your idle and load CPU temps? This could also be caused by overheating due to an improperly installed HSF.



Thanks for the info, will have a look on Ebuyer for the above PSU.
Have used a program called Checkit Diagnostics by Smith Micro which is supplied with Symantecs, Norton System Works 2009 and none of the tests performed on all of the hardware showed any problems. The RAM Test takes 3 minutes and passed all tests carried out.

I think the next step will be to replace the PSU as you have suggested.

Many thanks

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Silver Home Brew badge shortstuff_mt   02-27-2009 at 07:50:04 AM
- 0 +

I wouldn't trust a RAM test that takes 3 minutes. I've seen systems pass memtest86+ for 5 hours then start giving errors.

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Bronze Home Brew badge jsc   02-27-2009 at 10:13:18 AM
- 0 +

Oh, yes. If you suspect RAM problems, run memtest for at least 24 hours. And get a beter PSU.

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David_007   03-07-2009 at 10:00:21 PM
- 0 +

shortstuff_mt wrote :

"PSU: Jeantech JNP-400P 400watt " - That probably explains the problems. Low end PSU's cause all sorts of issues. I'd replace it with a quality unit before it blows up and takes your system with it.

CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS Certified Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139008 $59.99 - $10 MIR + 20% promo code "Feb20", ends 2/28

Have you run memtest86+ for a few hours to test for RAM errors? What are your idle and load CPU temps? This could also be caused by overheating due to an improperly installed HSF.




Ran Memtestfor 10 hours nothing found so changed Mother Board another power supply 500w, Ram and hard drive but still have same problem. system tries to re-boot but stuck before ram bleep and then will reboot. Think it might be vidoe card and will have to try that.

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