[need tech help] PC restarts every hour or so

[GnaReffotsirk]

This has gone on for years now. Every so often probably every month or twice a month, this issue comes up.

Suddenly the PC just restarts, then does it again every hour or so. Sometimes every 30-40 minutes.

I've read through other forums, and watched videos. They say it's heating problem. Some say its a memory issue. Some powersupply.

The only way that I've been able to fix this in the past was to do a Restore Operation. Now, it doesn't work anymore.

Have you guys ever encountered this problem before? And if so, what was the cause of this occurring in your case, and how did you fix it permanently?

This has corrupted HDDs, and have destroyed hours of work. I need you help to narrow this down and eventually solve it.




additional details:

There's no BSOD, or anything like that. It just restarts (or reboots) like someone just pressed the restart button on the case.

[TheEconomist]

A sudden restart is about as helpful in diagnosing a problem in a PC as a runny nose is in a human body. Sorry

[GnaReffotsirk]

It's most likely a software issue, since hardware issues have been ruled out, if you are referring to my case.

I assume you've never encountered this problem before? A restart that happens every hour or so, and repeats.

edit: I really want to nail this down, and get rid of it once and for all. Your experience in such issues or related might help me catch the culprit.

[Eligor]

I know next to nothing about computers, but couldn't it just be a problem with the Restart Button itself? Plastic/wire fatigue or something such? I'm just bringing this up because you haven't mentioned this as a possibility, and I vaguely recall encountering or maybe just hearing about a case like that.

[Peanutbutter]

It's most likely a software issue, since hardware issues have been ruled out, if you are referring to my case.

I assume you've never encountered this problem before? A restart that happens every hour or so, and repeats.

edit: I really want to nail this down, and get rid of it once and for all. Your experience in such issues or related might help me catch the culprit.

I've had a similar problem twice.

The first time, a defect motherboard/powersupply was the cause.

The second time, was because my powersupply collected a surprising amount of dust.
Have you tried vacuuming the entire PC? I know that you suspect the software to be the problem, but still.

In general, it's really hard to diagnose a problem like this, as TF pointed out above.

I suggest doing a clean system reinstall, and taking it from there. Maybe try borrowing a friends HDD with an installed OS and see if the problem persists.

Even though you say that you've ruled out hardware issues ,if it still happens, it is most likely an issue with the power supply or the motherboard. Though if this has gone on for years, the whole thingwould've probably gone boom some time ago

I would also recommend checking you hardware's temperatures just in case. Speedfan is an awesome program for that :

http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php

[sandwich_bird]

I've been having that issue for a while. I changed my case (to fix the possible heating issue) and I also changed my PSU. It doesn't do it anymore.

I highly doubt it has anything to do with your software. But, like Peanut said, the easiest way to rule that out is simply to do a fresh install and see if the problem occur again.

[TheEconomist]

Unless you have 100GB's of prized porn possessions, just do a reformat and then work through your hardware until the problem is fixed.

It's probably heat, but you never know.

[GnaReffotsirk]

It's not just porn, but a whole slew of valuable info. Like, more porn?

Anyway, thanks guys for your input. Will clean again, but I just did it 2 days ago! I've replaced the PSU and new RAM a month ago, hoped things would change and boom. Motherboard though is the prime suspect now.

In another forum, one said it could be related to electricity problem, like, lowered voltage or some device might be interfering. This might also be one factor, since at times my AVR just goes wild with all the fluctuations.


Doing a system restore 3x, then Spybot has fixed it. This is the weirdest thing ever.

[TheEconomist]

In another forum, one said it could be related to electricity problem, like, lowered voltage or some device might be interfering.

What makes this such a challenge is that it could be just about anything. I'm usually pretty decent at tech help but, sadly, there's just not much I can do with this one.

Also, if you've already cleaned your PC then there's no need to do it again.