Win XP Suddenly Shutting Down

[sleddriver]

This just started about a week ago. It did it once. I restarted and all was OK. I had FF open with about 15 tabs doing research. Confuser had been on for days. I thought it was a FF crash.

No more for 3 or 4 days, then it started happening frequently. Night before last it wouldn't stay on any longer than 6 min. So I just turned it off at the PS.

Yesterday am it went from bad to worse, multiple reboots then it started about 5 secs after power on. The HD's would just spin, then quit, spin again, then quit. I finally turned off the PS and installed a new one (Thermaltake TR2 430W).

Last night I was typing out a msg here and it quit again! Rebooted, typed my msg again and it quit again! I didn't turn off the PS, so it rebooted itself?? after I thought it was off and this am I found a POST screen waiting for me to press F1 to continue... not sure how long it had been on.

Anyway, want to move on here before it quits again....what's changed...new MS updates for XP, latest FF security update, added 1G RAM about 3-4 weeks ago, (MSE has been running for months now, hasn't detected anything).

I attempted to go back to a restore point about a week ago, but XP wouldn't allow it. Gave no reason. Read some of the log files in the management console, but didn't see anything to indicate a problem (Doesn't XP log errors or events that would cause this somewhere?).

It is XP OS shutting down every time, asks if I want to save anything open, it saves, then quits.

Any ideas? Not sure how to proceed as I've never experienced this before.

Thanks,

 

[javacontour]

New memory failing? Revert back to previous memory config.

Download a linux distribution or other live cd to run memtest to see if the system shuts down with other O/S running?

It's a matter of isolation. Is it hardware or software. Running a "new" O/S either a live version off CD or a fresh install on a different hard drive can help you determine it.

But I'd start with reverting to the pre-memory upgrade hardware configuration, and if it's still giving trouble, then a new O/S.

 

[barlowc]

Originally Posted By: javacontour
Download a linux distribution or other live cd to run memtest to see if the system shuts down with other O/S running?

+1 If it works fine, then it's a software issue. If problems persist, then it's likely a hardware issue.

 

[beanoil]

I'd say the new ram is flaky. Pull it and see if it settles down.

 

[Eddie]

Is the cooling fan running-over heat possible?

 

[sleddriver]

When I installed a new HD before Christmas, I blew out the dust on the fan & inside the case. So I knew it was relatively clean. However I checked again and found the 4" fan was turning low-medium speed and saw some cat hair on the blades.

So I shut down, and to remove the fan, the CPU HS has to come out first. I discovered the HS grease or pad (whatever Dell uses) was dry, & hardened. I wondered if it was even making full contact anymore. Fortunately, I had a tube of silicone HS grease. I cleaned all the old stuff off and lubed her up. Cleaned the fan, put it all back together, and fired her up. We'll see.

BTW, I searched to see if the bios had any temp/fan speed info. No joy. Not sure if any monitoring SW would work then.

The machine stayed lit all day yesterday, without a single sudden shut down. Weird. I didn't use it much though (no movies, no multiple aps open, no processor intensive processes going on either). This machine is only about 5 yrs old. The HS 'pad' was toast.

I did create a Linux LiveCD and boot with it. Interesting. I'll have to play around with it.

Re: RAM. What program should I use to test it?

Thanks for all the replies.

 

[barlowc]

Originally Posted By: sleddriver
Re: RAM. What program should I use to test it?

http://www.memtest86.com/

 

[sleddriver]

thanks, I'll check it out.

Also forgot to mention in my previous post. Out of curiosity, I pulled the lid on the failing Antec True 480w PS and found 3 bulged elec. caps buried inside a huge nest of wiring. An inch away was a major heatsink. Plus four of these caps had been gooped together, thus reducing their ability to dissipate heat. This unit was ~ 5 yrs old.

 

[brianl703]

Sometimes Windows Updates screws up and starts rebooting the machine constantly to try to install an update.

In the particular case I dealt with recently, there was an update for Net Framework 1.1 that it kept trying to install, but the update failed because Net Framework wasn't installed on the machine. It would reboot itself at least once an hour.

I fixed this problem by installing Net Framework and then the update installed. Going to windowsupdate.microsoft.com and installing the updates made the pending update show on the tray.

You might try turning off the option to automatically install updates and see if that stops the rebooting.

One thing is certain: If XP is actually going through a proper shutdown cycle, it's not a hardware problem. Unless you have some weird intermittent power switch issue.