Unintended shutdown

[meg911]

Big question: My PC recently started to auto shutdown half way through the boot-up or some time into running properly. Immediate restart may or may not work, after some time off it usually boots up again (incl. the scandisk etc.)

Has anybody ever observed something like this - is there some sort of virus going round (last scan probably a couple of weeks ago), could this be a simple 'hardware' problem (defect power switch), any other ideas? Fast advice would be appreciated, need the bl... thing to get some translations done. Thanks a lot.

 

[mudskipper]

If an immediate restart does not work, what is it doing? Just a blank screen? No power? Keeps restarting? Could you provide more detail?

It doesn't sound like a virus to me--I would suspect hardware. Could be just about anything (RAM, Power Supply, MB, etc etc). Could even be a hair trigger power or reset button making random contact.

More info could be very usefull here. Mudskipper
___________________________________________________________________________________

Groucho said it best- "A four year-old child could understand this! Quick! Run out and find me a four year-old child: I can't make heads nor tails out of this!"

 

[meg911]

Pressing the start button immediately results in a couple of funny cracks from the speaker, nothing more. If you wait a couple more seconds, it will start properly, however, may shut off again after the self-check, or at the Windows ME start display or upon having start-up almost completed or any other time.

 

[crisc]

Sounds like a PS to me.

 

[mudskipper]

Yeah, I agree. I would try the power supply first. Mudskipper
___________________________________________________________________________________

Groucho said it best- "A four year-old child could understand this! Quick! Run out and find me a four year-old child: I can't make heads nor tails out of this!"

 

[attila64ro]

Almost the same thing happened, a HP PII-400 was randomly resetting itself, maybe several times a day, and maybe several times consequently, the behaviour became more often and often. First step was : backup user data->format HDD->Reinstall Win95->restore user data. No joy, PC kept rebooting when was too "tired". Changed PS, RAM, CPU from a working PC, same model, and no improvement. It seems it's the MB tricking me. There is always an explanation!
But maybe we don't know it.
The truth is out there!

 

[Snakeyeskm]

Have you tried clearing your RTCRam (resetting Bios).Depending on your system specs this could be due to incorrect Ram or FSB settings in your bios.

 

[helenian]

Hi, anyone have any experience of Windows XP not liking a printer and scanner being linked(via paralell cable). My printer paralell goes into scanner and then scanner paralell cable into my tower unit. But whenever i go to use the scanner, the whole pc dies, as if the reset button has been pressed, windows then restarts. Its a brand new pc, but apart from this prob the pc is fine. I heard that XP doesn't like ports being shared between 2 things such as scanner and printer...is this correct. At the moment i have to disconnect scanner when not using it to be able to use the printer correctly.

Is there anything i can do to prevent this. I have downloaded the correct XP drivers for both scanner and printer. Its a UMAX 1220p scanner and Epson Colour 880. If worst comes to worst i can just connect printer and buy a USB scanner i guess, but just wondered if there was anything i could do...?

Ian.

 

[smah]

Please stay with your own thread. Discussions get too confusing if people jump in the middle with different problems.

thread779-469872

 

[meg911]

Thank you all for your help. It was in fact a power supply problem. The unit was about to die on me. It has been replaced.

Thanks again.

 

[copam]

helenian
Try uninstalling both drivers and then install the printer first without the scanner attached and test to make sure that it works by running the communication test frome the parinter software,then install the scanner without the printer attached. Reboot while connecting both cables and try it.

Good luck
copam