Computer Doesn't Turn On 1

[cartermarr]

Last night I was playing a game when the computer suddenly shut down. It wouldn't start again but when I unplugged the power cable and plugged it back in, the fans would start turning and the light on the power button turned on. This would last for about a 1/4 of a second and then it would turn off again.

I thought maybe the computer had overheated (they CAN do that right??) so I left it for 15 minutes and tried again with the same results. This morning (about 8 hours later), my parents tried hitting the power button and nothing happened. About 4 hours after that hitting the power button several times got it to start. There's no way it could take it 12 hours to cool down so does anyone have any ideas what might have caused this??

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[moonguppie]

Heat is definitly a big issue. Can you confirm that all of your fans are working? Did you notice a burnt smell?

How old is your machine? What are the specs for the machine? Have you made any modifications like overclocking? What other pieces of information about the machine and situation can you offer?

A little knowledge is dangerous.

 

[Avoura]

I would suggest running the PC with the case side off. When it is on, observe the fans and see if they are working. Shine a torch into the PC if necessary. Sometimes the fans on the CPU fail. Or it could be that there is too much dust on the fan/heatsink on the CPU which needs to be cleaned off. If any of these are a problem, switch off the PC and unplug from the mains. Remove the fan (replace with a new one if that was dead) and clean out the dust from it and from the heatsink. Dust always builds up there no matter how clean your home is.

 

[G0AOZ]

Try changing the PSU. Symptoms suggest it can no longer provide the necessary power, either through component fatigue or maybe being run too close to maximum output. Make sure it is at least the same Wattage rating or preferably higher. Maybe you had a power surge during the last time it was being used...

ROGER - G0AOZ.

 

[cdogg]

Sounds like a damaged power supply or motherboard, but since it finally turned on, who knows.

Next time that happens and you unplug the power cable, hold the power button down for 10-15 seconds, which helps drain the capacitors robbing the motherboard of any remaining power. Then plug the cable back in and try again.

If it is intermittent like that, I would have to lean the heaviest on the power supply being the cause.

~cdogg
"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." - Albert Einstein
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[Drewsoftware]

I agree. Sounds like a power supply issue. Fortunately, that's fairly easy to check; power supplies are easy and relatively low-cost to replace. At the worst, you'll find out it's something else and you'll have an extra power supply laying around for emergencies.


---***--- Drew Software deals in Personality Management software designed to reduce employee turnover by matching people to the right jobs and improving workplace communications.

http://Drewsoftware.com

 

[cartermarr]

Well I don't think the computer was overheating seeing as it's been running non-stop for almost a week now. I don't think we're going to be putting any money into this machine as it's at least 5 years old so I think we'll just let it live out the rest of it's days in peace. Thanks for the responses guys.