Computer is rebooting without warning after installing a new GPU

[TaoistPooh]

Hello, everyone! I recently installed an ATI Radeon Sapphire 7750 HD graphics card on my Dell Inspiron 560. I purchased this card because I though I wouldn't need to upgrade the power supply, but my computer has started to act strangely. Yesterday it rebooted without warning once, and now it has done it three times within a short time span today. The peculiar thing is that I wasn't doing anything particularly intensive to the graphics when it shut down; I was managing a few folders and searching on the internet. I played Arma 2 yesterday for a while without error and I really don't see how this could be related to the power supply because of these things. The stock PSU is 300 watts in my computer.

Based on what I have said, would you think it is a PSU problem or something else? All help if very much appreciated.

Computer specifications:
Dell Inspiron 560
Dell Inspiron Pentium Dual Core Processor e5800, 3.0ghz
300w stock PSU
Windows 7 32 bit
Radeon Sapphire 7750 GPU

 

[Sunius]

I'm pretty sure it's not PSU problem. There's easy way for you to check it though. Download Prime 95 and Furmark:

http://files.extremeoverclocking.com/file.php?f=103
http://www.ozone3d.net/benchmarks/fur/

Run Prime95 In-place large FFTs stress test and Furmark burn-in test. If it doesn't shut down in 5 minutes, it is most definitely not power supply issue.

 

[TaoistPooh]

Okay, so my computer just rebooted itself again before I got a chance to download the file. It seems to be happening when I try to go into the Operation Arrowhead folder on my computer. I've been trying to install the Day Z mod, but haven't had any luck to this point. Is it possible that a folder could cause my computer to reboot somehow, or is it just coincidence?

I'll download those two now and see how it goes

 

[Sunius]

I don't really know, I don't think it's possible if you opened just a folder, not a file inside it.

 

[TaoistPooh]

The Prime95 download said it was not compatible, and my antivirus closes Furmark every time I try to open it. I did a quick google search and it seems as though certain file types can cause a computer to crash without opening them. I'm going to try to see what I can do to fix it.

 

[Sunius]

You didn't download Prime 95 64-bit version, did you? That's strange your anti virus acts like that, Furmark is definitely not malware.

 

[smorizio]

it not the total wattages you have to worry about it how much wattages and amps are allowed on the 12+ line.
look at the 12+ on the ps... if it says 18amps then you do 12*18 = 216w. if your cpu id 120w and your video card max voltage is 120w that 240w or over the 216w so when you load the video card it pull more power then the power supply cam supply and your system will reboot. (most people would have put a 430w cosair in with the new video card).

 

[djscribbles]

I'm pretty sure the 7750 (non-OC) is powered by the PCIE slot, which would limit it to 75W, a quick search shows that CPU is a 65W model, which is pretty small in both cases.
As long as your 12V rail can supply 12Amps (preferably 15A for a little breathing room though), you should be fine; you can usually find the 12V current supplied on a sticker on the PSU somewhere.

I would expect the power supply is sufficient, but it's a good idea to check.

It would be worth ensuring that your old GPU drivers are uninstalled, and reinstalling the latest AMD ones, as this can sometimes cause trouble.

You could also try checking out the suspicious directory in a command prompt, and look for any suspicious files; I would be shocked if it's something in the folder, but you never know.

 

[TaoistPooh]

Hey, guys
Thanks for the replies! I have enough power on the rails. The problem it seems had to do with a shortcut that I created to the folder 'common.' All of the reboots happened while using that folder. After deleting it I have not had any issue with rebooting.

 

[Sunius]

I'm glad you've solved it!