desktop related problems.

[Viscra Maelstrom]

so i've been sort of hinting about it, and i've talked to my brother about getting help with this, but i feel i should be a bit more outspoken about this here.

since some time now, i've had some technical problems with my desktop. nothing really surfaced and came up as predominantly before, but now it's happened enough that i'd like to get some answers about it.

the problems i've had recently is of my desktop randomly shutting off then immediately rebooting. apparently the error logs refer to these as event 41's, that the computer has errenously shut off for some reason. i am not sure what the cause is exactly. it might be something hardware related maybe, since i've been meaning to check the possible heat-issue the CPU's been having, but i haven't really done so since it's been too nervous for me to actually work on it.

there doesn't seem to be a clear pattern to the shut-downs. most of them just happened like that, the other two ones were in the middle of a game that hasn't caused problems for me before (GZDoom), and the other one happened immediately after restoring all the tabs on my browser, SRWare Iron.

could it be software-related? could there be something related to the hardware? i have the thing turned off now, and i am going to get personal help with this at some point, but it'd be nice to hear some insight on this anyway.

[Graf Zahl]

Or could it be related that we have no idea what your "Desktop" actually is...?

[Hellsmith1]

i've been meaning to check the possible heat-issue the CPU's been having, but i haven't really done so since it's been too nervous for me to actually work on it.

That could be your problem right there is your not checking to make sure that your cooling fan is working properly and it doesn't matter how old or new it is that has to be checked.

How much do you use your computer? Because if you use your desktop every day and you don't give it a break.

It will automatically shut down itself because its in a cool down mode and if you right away turn it back on again and don't give it a rest it will repeat itself and you could damage it over time and that little fan is trying its best to cool it down but if it over use it and it over heats thats whats going happen.

[kevans91]

I guess the obvious question could be, do you have power issues? Residential power is...very unclean. Do you notice frequent fluctuations in nearby lighting or other devices? These small fluctuations could potentially shorten the lifespan of your power supply.

As for checking out heating stuff, just go for it. As long as you're not cleaning things off with tap water and willy nilly touching everything whilst rubbing your feet on the carpet and hair on the cat, you're not very likely to actually damage anything. Also, don't force things off- that's rarely helpful.

If this is actually a laptop masquerading as a desktop, ignore all of the above and sob gently over the keyboard. =)

[ShadowTiger]

You can fix heat issues on a laptop. It's just a bunch harder. :-/ And not always guaranteed to work.

Let's see. A brief checklist for a desktop. All of this occurs when the power plug is out, just in case.

1) Remove as much dust as you can.

• Put a stick or a paperclip in the fan blades so they don't spin.
• Be sure not to blow dust into anything that you can't get it out of as easily, like the Power Supply Unit. You don't want to be opening that thing.

2) Make sure all cabled are plugged in securely and tightly. On my first custom-built computer, I felt uncomfortable really plugging the 24-pin connector into the motherboard. It was so tight. I didn't want to snap anything. So I just kinda inched it in a bit, and when it turned on just fine, I breathed a sigh of success. Then a month later it started turning off at random. Then it stopped turning on at all! The 24-pin connector had wriggled its way out of the socket juuuust enough to make only sporadic contact. So make sure all the cables are in there nice and tight. At least slightly tighter than you're not afraid to plug them in.

3) Cleaning out a heat sink should be a skill everyone knows how to do. It can be nerve-wracking initially, but it's really nothing super-complicated. Just make sure that you know how it connects to the processor. Study it well beforehand so you know how to put it all back together. Some of them have really weird connections to tighten it down. Brush the thing out with a scrub brush or a wire brush when it's clean away from the unit.

4) Make sure your thermal paste isn't solidified. Over time, it can turn solid and chunky, rather than pasty. Heck, sometimes it comes with just a solid rectangle resembling a foam sheet, like one of those double-stick adhesive sheets. Everyone ought to have an emergency tube of thermal paste in their computer toolkit.

5) Similarly, everyone should have a Power Supply Tester available. Very useful. I've used mine more times than I feel I should have ever needed to. So do test the PSU just in case.

[Hellsmith1]

@ShadowTiger that is all correct but your forgetting 4 important things before you start cleaning or doing the inside work of the desktop.

1. Make sure you unplug all connections to your desktop that includes; The keyboard, mouse, speakers, plus the main power cord to your tower and any extras. Double check to make sure that there's no more juice going into the on & off power button. Cause it will drain the rest of juice going through those lines inside the desktop tower.

2. Make sure that you don't work on carpet or anything that can cause static electrically.

3. Make sure that you have an grounding cable that clips to the side of the metal cabinet and other end clip it to the end of your shirt to make yourself and the computer grounded.

4.Do not use any type of magnetic tools. Only use an hand held strew drive.

Make sure you do these 4 important steps 1st before you do any work inside your desktop If its needed.

[Dancso]

2. Make sure that you don't work on carpet or anything that can cause static electrically.

3. Make sure that you have an grounding cable that clips to the side of the metal cabinet and other end clip it to the end of your shirt to make yourself and the computer grounded.

4.Do not use any type of magnetic tools. Only use an hand held strew drive.

2. Also, sweaters. Depends on the fabric, though.

3. Overkill. Unless you're super paranoid, there's no need for a grounding cable. Just touch some metal (ie the case of your PC) before handling your electrical components.

4. A magnetic screwdriver can be a huge help actually, and it's not strong enough to cause any issues. HDDs are the weak links in this, but even then the tiny magnetism of a screwdriver is nothing compared to the beast that's inside an HDD, so you are probably fine either way.

-

Judging by the OP's description it does seem like a case of overheating. The probablility of it being a software issue is highly unlikely, I'm afraid. To check your system temperatures, I recommend using HWMonitor.

For both CPU and graphics card you're golden up to around 80 degrees celsius (though many people are not comfortable getting that high), beyond that the system would probably not shut itself down until it gets into the 95+ area, I do believe modern intel CPUs shut themselves off at 105C for instance.

As for checking your PSU, you should take a look at the voltage statistics in the BIOS. The usual margin of error would be ~5%, if any of the voltages differ more than that compared to their "namesake", you might indeed have a power problem. (Note: software readouts on voltages, like through HWMonitor, are not reliable, do not be shocked if it shows something like 3.4V on your 5V readout)

[XCVG]

Likely power supply, heat, or RAM, but it could be something else. I had random freezes that I eventually traced back to a bad video card.

Download Speccy and run it. It should tell you what your temperatures are, and if you screenshot it then it'll give us a better idea of what you're using.

Diagnosing power supply and heat can be accomplished by stress testing and watching the temperatures. This isn't 100% reliable though- sometimes a computer will grind through a stress test with no issues even though it crashes randomly.

RAM can be tested with Memtest86. You will need to install this to a USB drive and boot from it.

It doesn't sound like a software issue, but it could be. What OS are you running? General advice applies: Make sure you're up to date, drivers are correct and updated, no malicious programs or viruses.

[Viscra Maelstrom]

so i'm resurrecting this thread to bring some light on my backup laptop i'm currently using. i haven't had any luck getting help with my desktop yet.

i've had the thing shut down on me twice when running ZDoom. just flat-out shut off like so. i guess it could be a heat-related issue, but the highest this thing has gone was near 70C, and that was when it had been used for a couple of hours and was streaming videos or running flash games. i think it might be a power-related issue instead. sometimes the power-readings jump down to a small amount, then jumps straight back up again. i dunno if doing that during gaming makes it shut down or not.

i still have warranty on it, so i don't really feel like voiding it on a thousand dollar laptop by disassembling it (not that i could, since there's no removable back-panels...) should i turn it in and get it fixed by ASUS or is the solution simpler than that?

[edward850]

i still have warranty on it, so i don't really feel like voiding it on a thousand dollar laptop by disassembling it (not that i could, since there's no removable back-panels...) should i turn it in and get it fixed by ASUS or is the solution simpler than that?

As it's under warranty, and it's a laptop, absolutely. If you have little-to-no experience servicing computers, laptops are pretty much the last thing you want to try and take apart yourself (you'll never be able to get it back together again, I guarantee it). Be sure to tell them the exact symptoms, as they will have utilities and methods of testing power and heat related issues.

[Viscra Maelstrom]

i guess i have no choice but to turn it then. annoyingly, this is my backup computer, so once i do turn it in i won't have anything else i can use currently, so i feel hesitant to do it right away. do they tend to wipe the memory of the thing when turned in? i wouldn't want to lose all my files if that were to be the case.

[edward850]

They'll tell you if they need to, usually. Ask them to be sure, but be sure to backup what you absolutely need anyway.

Although you should already be doing that.

[Viscra Maelstrom]

oh, i'm not particularly afraid of losing anything. it would be a bit annoying to find out if they've wiped everything without letting me know though.
where would i turn to to send it in, though? i mean, Asus, obviously, but Asus where?

[edward850]

I can't possibly tell you that, being in a completely different country. They'll have a customer support number likely on the provided user manual or warranty information (failing that, on their website) which you should contact.

Edit: I'm also obliged to ask to make sure you are actually using the laptop on a hard surface. I've seen people burn out their laptops by using it on a bed, as they thought the only thing that needed airflow was the fan on the side. The smell of burnt plastic tends to linger.

[Viscra Maelstrom]

it's standing on my desk most of the time. since it shut down in ZDoom once i prepped it up with a book, whatever much that would help. it's sometimes on the living room couch but not for as long periods of time as here, and even then the laptop doesn't sink into the couch so i guess it's fine (and i put it on another book just to be safe.)

i'll have to check my warranty info about this then, and hope i can pry away one of my brother's laptops should i send it in. does it take long to get it back from service? i honestly feel a bit reluctant sending it in because i wouldn't have any other working computer ready for a while. plus, i'd want to see if the cooling pad helps any against those ZDoom crashes or not.