I have already reformatted and reinstalled windows yet it continues to do this. I think its a hardware issue but I am not sure. It did it a month ago for a day then has been fine ever since, then it was ok for a day or two after the reformat. When it does shut off it just restarts like normal (after I press the power button), no prompt to go into safe mode or anything like that.
What could it be/how do I fix this? I really dont want to buy a new computer, this one serves me just fine for now (although I would like to be able to run proE and the like, autocad crashed my video card last year)
also, on a probably unrelated note, the touch pad will randomly ‘click’ and move my mouse messing up whatever I type. This seemed to start about the same time as the restarting problems though.
Check the event log for any errors around when the computer shuts off.
Is the computer overheating? Blow some compressed air at the fan.
Does this happen when you are using a certain program?
Latest Drivers installed including the BIOS?
Check for Malware/Viruses? www.malwarebytes.org
I am running malwarebytes now, doing a full scan as I had just reformatted so anything left over would be buried, no?
what am I looking for with the event viewer? Will this tell if its shutting down bc of over heating? Should I take it apart to clean the fan?
How do ensure I have the latest drivers? I just had my install disc that came with it. I have done all of the windows updates though. I had to run it 3 or 4 times to catch everything, I kept running it until it said there were no new updates. I have sp2 as well.
(so far malwarebytes has been running for 28 mins and the comp is still going…)
well it just shut off in the middle of the malwarebytes scan. it was about 11k objects in and didnt find anything. I had suspected it to be windows live mail but I didnt have that open. Performing a quick scan now.
Where should I look in the event logger to see why it shut down?
Don’t vacuum it! Blow the canned air through the ducts. It breaks up the dust and should do the trick if it’s just dust.
Another issue I’ve seen on laptops is the heat pipe’s fluid eventually evaporates or looses conductivity. Not sure on your exact laptop/heatsink configuration but if/when this happens you have to swap the heat pipe/heatsink.
Its most likely not the result of any spyware or virus of any kind… It would be silly to make something that randomly shuts your computer down.
It is fairly likely its due to the computer being unstable. Could bad ram, overheating, bad power supply on the mobo, or some other assorted motherboard issues…
What I would do, is get a bright flashlight and try to look and see if there is a good buildup of dust. If there is, clean it the best you can. It may involve taking the keyboard off, or some panels if possible. Then, id monitor the CPU temps using http://www.alcpu.com/CoreTemp/ (assuming its a Core2Duo). If its near 80-100ºC, somethings not working right and its probably shutting down to save itself. If its running cool and clean, the next real step is to just format and reinstall windows. This should ensure its not a software issue… Still doing it? Its fucked, get a new one.
For Xmas I’d get a cooling pad…not one of the cheapo walmart ones either. It’s most likely an overheating problem. If you feel comfortable enough taking the keyboard off, you can probably check the fan better.
Definitely sounding like overheating if it shut down in the middle of a malewarebytes scan on a fresh install. That scan is working the hard drive and processor a bit and eventually the computer reaches the thermal shutdown point.
In the event viewer you want to look for anything with a red critical error right before the time the system shut down. I don’t think you’ll find much though because it sounds like the bios is hitting critical temp and just shutting the system off.
+1 on the can of compressed air into any vents you can find. Taking the keyboard off an Inspiron is really simple to so I’d do that and see what you find for dirt/dust once you get under the keyboard.
If you really want to ensure the CPU cooler is working right take it off as per the instructions I posted, carefully clean all the crusty old thermal paste off, then reinstall it with some good thermal paste (like artic silver).
Arctic Silver 5 High-Density Silver Thermal Compound (3.5g) is what you want…you only will need a small amount so that tube should last you a couple applications.
I brought it to the tech guys at school and he opened up that panel. it didnt look bad at all in there. He seems to think the fan isnt turning on at all. Is there a way to manually turn the fan on to verify?
Splurge and get the $5 canned air. Try it. Nothing to lose except a possible dust bunny.
Several times I’ve paid $5 for the air and billed quite a bit more than that because it solved overheating issues.
