PC reboots randomly.

MikeybobMikeybob Middle o' Farmer Land
edited July 2006 in Hardware
Hi again guys,

We've been having a bit of trouble with this PC for some time. The computer has been rebooting, amongst other problems, for some time. I've installed a new HDD and a fresh install of Windows, but after a while the same problem has cropped up. Could it be a hardware problem?

Thanks in advance.

Comments

  • Sledgehammer70Sledgehammer70 California Icrontian
    edited July 2006
    Sounds liek something is is getting pretty hot... or it is a siftware/hardware issue...

    Lets take this form step 1. First off when you upgrades your PC did you clean it out? "get those pesky dust bunnies?" did you check to make sure all the fans were running inside? CPU and or GPU heat issues cause random reboots all the time.

    What are your PC specs?

    CPU?
    GPU?
    Ram?
    Motherboard?

    any info you can get :
  • MikeybobMikeybob Middle o' Farmer Land
    edited July 2006
    Sledgehammer70 wrote:
    Sounds liek something is is getting pretty hot... or it is a siftware/hardware issue...

    Lets take this form step 1. First off when you upgrades your PC did you clean it out? "get those pesky dust bunnies?" did you check to make sure all the fans were running inside? CPU and or GPU heat issues cause random reboots all the time.

    What are your PC specs?

    CPU?
    GPU?
    Ram?
    Motherboard?

    any info you can get :

    The PC was bought as a package, so the HD is the only upgrade, everything else is stock. It's running: -

    ASRock K7S41
    Sempron 2400
    200Mb DDR
    1 x 40Gb and 1 x 80gb Western Digital HDs, both IDE.
    Onboard GPU
    Onboard Sound

    I didn't notice a large amount of dust. There were some specs, but nothing serious.
  • muddocktormuddocktor
    edited July 2006
    2 things immediately come to mind when someone runs into a random reboot problem.

    1. They might have a stick of ram that is going bad. I've actually run into this myself. Go to the front page here and there are some links to various utilities. Download a program called Memtest86 and make either a bootable CD or floppy (if you still have a floppy drive). Then boot up with the disk you made and let memtest86 test your ram. If it makes 3 complete passes without errors, then your problem lies elsewhere.

    2. Your power supply (psu) might be marginal for your setup. What brand and power output is the power supply that is installed in this machine? I've also seen instability such as yours caused by a weak psu before also. And the brand has a lot to do with quality power too. A lot of no-name generic psu's show a high power rating but actually are very weak.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited July 2006
    Mudd, my troubleshooting steps to yours are similar, but my first step is to ask the computer owner, "When was the last time you checked the inside of the computer for dust and lint buildup?"

    Second step is memory or power supply, depending on the age of the machine.

    Mikey, please check all computer vents and fans for dust and lint and clean it out. Also check the heatsinks (little radiator-type boxes) underneath the fans. They must be clean as well. If they are dirty and you clean them, then see if that fixes the problem. Dust and lint can cause critical components of a computer to overheat. After this, then Muddoktor's advice is spot-on.
  • MAGICMAGIC Doot Doot Furniture City, Michigan Icrontian
    edited July 2006
    ya reboots in my experience are a heat, or memory problem.

    make sure the heatsink is seated properly, check temps in teh bios if you can.
    then try using one stick of ram or get some bargin ram and try swapping.
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