Computer turns off without warning

 

• Tip: This document is for computers that remain off and not computer's that turn back on (restart) or computer's that turns off almost immediately after they are turned on.

Caution: Some of the steps below require you open your computer. While in the computer, be cautious of ESD.

Heat related issue

A computer that turns off without warning is usually caused by a heat related issue. Many computers today are designed to turn off automatically if the computer, processor, or other device gets too hot.

Start by verifying the fan on the power supply is working by examining the back of the computer and seeing if the fan is moving and moving smoothly. For all other fans in the computer, you need to open the computer and make sure the fan are working. While in the computer example the processor fan (heatsink), video card fans, and case fans. If you have heard any abnormal noises coming from your computer recently such as a high squealing, this is also a common indication of a fan failure.

Tip: While inside the computer it may also be a good idea to clean the inside of the computer. Dust, dirt, hair, and other residue in the vents and on the fans can prevent proper air flow and heat the computer.

Tip: If your BIOS monitors the RPM of the fans, enter BIOS and make sure the BIOS does not report any errors. Software utilities such as SpeedFan can also be used to help monitor fans in your computer.

While inside the computer, it's also a good idea to verify the processor heatsink is properly connected by disconnecting and reconnecting the heatsink. If the processor heatsink is not properly attached or does not have a proper amount of thermal compound, the computer will overheat.

Caution: If you do remove the processor heatsink the thermal compound on the processor and heatsink should be cleaned and new thermal compound should be applied. Not reapplying new thermal compound could make issues worse since the bond between the CPU and heatsink would be broken.

• Is there a way to tell how hot my CPU is running?
• What should be the temperature of my processor?

Hardware issue or error

Any failing hardware component in your computer could cause your computer to unexpectedly turn off without warning. If you have recently added any new hardware remove it from the computer to make sure it is not causing the problem.

Tip: Before attempting to remove any hardware, make sure you are not encountering this issue because of hardware conflicts by checking Device Manager for errors.

If you have not recently installed any new hardware into the computer, the next best solution to determining if this is a hardware issue would be remove any hardware on the computer that is not needed. For example, remove your modem, network card, sound card, and any other expansion cards that are not needed for the computer to operate. Run the computer without these cards to see if they are the cause of your issue.

Problem with UPS or surge protector

Make sure any surge protector or Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) is not the cause of your problem by connecting the computer directly to the power plug outlet on your wall. Also, if you have a UPS that connects a USB cable to the computer to manage power saving features, make sure it is also disconnected from the computer.

If this resolves your problem, you may have a defective surge protector or UPS. In the case of the UPS, there may be other issues such as a UPS overload or UPS drivers reporting bad power situations that cause your computer to shutdown or the UPS to switch off. Make sure there are not too many devices connected to your UPS and if you are using any UPS software that it has all the latest updates installed on your computer.

Computer virus

Although not as likely as the above reasons, your computer to be infected with a virus or other malware that is designed to shut down your computer or turn it off. If your computer seems to be turning off when executing a certain program at specific times in the day, it could be infected.

If you believe your computer may be infected with a virus or are uncertain if your computer is infected with a virus, make sure your virus scanner definitions are up-to-date and it may also be a good idea to scan the computer for any other malware.

Issue with operating system

If after following each of the above recommendations your computer still continues to reboot, it is likely that you are experiencing a Microsoft Windows operating system related issue that cannot be explained. To help make sure this is the case, try the steps below.

1. Reboot the computer and enter CMOS setup as the computer is booting.
2. After you have loaded the computer in CMOS setup, let the computer sit.

If the computer does not turn off while letting the computer sit in CMOS, you are likely experiencing an issue with Microsoft Windows or your operating system and it is recommend you erase everything and reinstall Microsoft Windows.

Other failing hardware

If after reinstalling your operating system, or during the installation of your operating system, your computer turns off abnormally, it is very likely that other hardware is failing in the computer. Often this is RAM, CPU, Motherboard, Power Supply, or Video card (in that order).

• Steps on how to test your computer memory for errors.

If you have extra parts or have a friend or co-worker with a similar configuration that is willing to allow you to test their hardware in your computer, try swapping these parts to determine if they are at fault. Otherwise, you need to have the computer serviced.

Windows restarts without warning

• Tip: This document is for computers that are restarting or rebooting by themselves and not computer's that turn off and remain off.

Software issue or error

With the introduction of Windows XP Microsoft designed Windows to automatically reboot each time an error occurs such as a BSoD. Although this may be nice for errors that do not occur often, users who have a re-occurring error may want to identify the error to troubleshoot it. Below are the steps on how this feature can be disabled and enabled in Windows XP, Vista, 7, and 8.

1. From the Desktop right-click on My Computer.
2. Click the Properties option.
3. In the System Properties window click the Advanced tab or the Advanced system settings link.
4. In Advanced click the Settings button under Startup and Recovery.
5. In the Startup and Recovery window uncheck the Automatically restart check box.
6. Click Ok.

Now if the computer generates an error it should not automatically restart and should display an error message, most likely a BSoD.

• How do I fix the Windows blue screen errors?

Hardware issue or error

Caution: Some of the steps below require you open your computer. While in the computer, be cautious of ESD.

Any failing hardware component in your computer could cause your computer to unexpectedly generate an error or reboot without warning. If you have recently attempted to add a new hardware device, remove that device to make sure it is not causing your issues.

Make sure you are not encountering any hardware conflicts by viewing Device Manager for errors.

New drivers can also cause this issue, if you have recently performed any hardware driver updates you may want to try an earlier version of the drivers. Additional information and help with computer drivers can be found on our drivers page.

If you have updated drivers and removed any hardware that could be causing this issue and continue to experience random reboots, it's possible that the memory is bad in the computer.

• How can I test my memory to determine if it is bad?

Finally, hardware devices that are not installed properly in the computer can also cause random reboots. Make sure all the cables and expansion cards are connected properly to the computer. The best way to determine this is to disconnect and reconnect all cables and expansion cards.

Computer virus

Computer viruses such as the blaster virus are written to reboot your computer without warning. Usually these viruses make the computer reboot every 5, 10, 15 or 30 minutes after the computer has booted.

If you believe your computer may be infected with a virus or are uncertain if your computer is infected with a virus make sure your virus scanner definitions are up to date.

• How do I update my antivirus program?

Heat related issue

Many computer today are designed to turn off or automatically reboot if the computer, processor, or other device in your computer gets to hot. If you have heard any abnormal noises coming from your computer recently such as a high squealing this could indicate a fan may be failing in your computer.

First, verify the fan on the power supply is working by examining the back of the computer and seeing if the fan is moving and moving smoothly. For all other fans in the computer you need to either open the computer and verify all fans are working, e.g. processor fan and case fan.

A temperature gun like that shown in the picture can also be used to help gauge how hot components or integrated circuits are running the computer.

Tip: If your BIOS monitors the RPM of the fans enter CMOS Setup and verify it does not report any errors.

Note: If this is a laptop computer, there is still a fan located on one of the sides of the laptop that can be checked. Make sure this fan is blowing or that you can feel hot air coming from the laptop. You may also consider getting a cooler pad if you find your laptop is getting hot often.

• What temperature should my processor be running at?

Issue with operating system

If after following each of the above recommendations your computer still continues to reboot it is likely that you are experiencing a Microsoft Windows operating system related issue that cannot be explained. To help make sure this is the case try the steps below.

1. Reboot the computer and enter CMOS setup as the computer is booting.
2. After you have loaded the computer in CMOS setup let the computer sit.

If the computer does not reboot while letting the computer sit in CMOS it is likely that you are in fact experiencing an issue with Microsoft Windows and it is recommend that if you have followed all of the above recommendations that you reinstall Microsoft Windows.

Regaining computer hard drive space

 

Below is a full listing of steps on how you can regain or free up computer hard drive space on your computer. Click on one of the links below to jump to the steps for the operating system running on your computer.

Windows 98, ME, 2000, XP, Vista, and 7 users
Microsoft Windows 95 users
MS-DOS and Windows 3.x users

Windows 98, ME, 2000, XP, Vista, and 7 users

Run the Disk Cleanup option

1. Open My Computer.
2. Right-click on the hard drive that you want to regain hard drive space. For example, right-click on the C: drive.
3. Click Properties.
4. Within the General tab, click the "Disk Cleanup" button located next to the pie chart.
5. Once in the Disk Cleanup window check each of the boxes (except "compress old files") that are taking disk space and click Ok and then Yes if you want to proceed.

Compress?

When performing a Disk Cleanup you have the option to compress your hard drive. We strongly recommend users do not compress their hard drive or compress their old files.

Uninstall old programs or games no longer used

• Uninstalling Windows software.

Disable System Restore

Windows XP, Vista, and 7 users can also reduce the default space utilized by Windows System Restore and may be able to gain several gigabytes of hard drive space. See the steps below in customizing this feature.

1. Click Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, and open System Restore.
2. Within the System Restore window, click System Restore Settings.
3. Within the System Restore tab, you can either check the Turn off System Restore on all drives to completely disable this feature, or click the Settings button and decrease the space usage, which is what we would recommend.

Additional suggestion for Windows 2000 and Windows XP users:

Window 2000 and Windows XP keeps all the necessary files needed to uninstall any of the updates ever installed on your computer. This could be dozens of updates that can take up several hundred and sometimes over a gig of space on your hard drive.

• What are the $NtUninstallKBxxxxxx$ folders in Windows?

Move the swap file

If you have more than one hard drive in the computer and the C: drive is the drive running out of space consider moving the swap file to another drive.

Disable hibernation

If you turn your computer off instead of using hibernation mode you can disable this feature to free up lots of space.

• How do I disable hibernation mode in Windows?

Microsoft Windows 95 users

Users can regain computer hard drive space by performing any or all of the steps below.

Clean up temporary files

1. Click Start and then Search or Find
2. In the "File type" text field type: *.tmp and verify the computer is looking at the C: drive or the drive that contains your operating system.
3. Search for files and delete each of the temporary files.

Delete chk files

Perform the same steps above, except search for *.chk and delete all of the found files.

Uninstall old programs or games no longer used

• Uninstalling Windows software.

MS-DOS and Windows 3.x users

Users can regain computer hard drive space by performing any or all of the steps below.

1. From the MS-DOS prompt, type del *.tmp /s and del *.chk /s to delete any temporary files on the hard drive.
2. Delete any software programs or games you are no longer using.