Why does my computer shut itself down?

J. R. McClung · From: Oklahoma, USA

Help!!!

Lately, my wife has been using FINALE' music-writing software to publish her arrangments for harp. When she uses the playback feature to review a tune she has entered, the computer suddenly powers off. Whoa!

I thought this might be unique to FINALE' until recently when I tried to load MICROSOFT FLIGHT SIMULATOR 2004. M.F.S. 04 will load far into the 4th disc when I get the same thing....a sudden shutdown. Mad

We get no warning. Everything goes along just fine until suddenly the computer simply shuts down.

We use WINDOWS XP HOME, with a 1.8ghz processor, 256DDR, etc., so the computer has well in excess of the requirements for either program. Confused

All help appreciated.
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Forget "world peace". Visualize using your turn signals.

John Roche · From: England

Could be overheating,
Is it going through the shut down process or is it just turning off? If it's just turning off it may be a power supply problem.

Jack Stoner · From: Kansas City, MO

If it has an Intel CPU, they have a built in thermal limiter that will shut off the PC if it is overheated. Check the CPU heatsink and fan. Heatsinks can get clogged with dust and this will cut down on cooling capability. Also check the power supply fan and if the case has an additional fan check it. Clean out any air circulation holes and in general make sure the PC is in a location that will allow it to get adequate air flow.

As a side note, Windows XP with only 256MB of RAM is not really enough. 256 is "real world" bare minimum. A better minimum is 512MB. Early Windows XP PC's were sold with 256MB of ram but later systems were sold with a minimum of 512 as the manufacturers found 256 wasn't really enough. Windows XP, although using memory more efficiently and assinging memory different than older Operating Systems is a "Memory Hog".

Gaming is, for many PC's, a worse case scenario and the video overheating can be an issue too.

Wiz Feinberg · From: Mid-Michigan, USA

I agree with the replies posted before mine, but would like to go into more detail for you. If these shutdowns are accompanied by a blue screen of death this would indicate a driver conflict, possibly due to a bad update to a sound or video driver. However, if the same thing happens across diverse situations, like installing a program or just using a program that used to work fine, I would suspect that the cause is one of the below.

Overheating of the CPU, caused by a clogged heatsink, failing CPU fan, or heatsink becoming loose on top of CPU from broken clamps or thumb plugs coming loose in mounting holes. Open the right side of the case (looking from the back) to access the guts. Have a hand vacuum with a snout ready to remove dust and hairs. Vacuum out the dirt, being careful not to damage internal small parts, like capacitors. Use a focusable mini-Maglight to inspect the heatsink for mounting integrity to the motherboard. If you can wiggle or lift any corner that means the heatsink cannot do its job properly and needs to be reseated. This may require a technician's services and fresh application of thermal heatsink compound.
Failing power supply cooling fan. Inspect fans and listen for sounds of grinding or whining bearings. A stopped fan, while the power is on, causes overheating. Fans are usually replacable from computer parts sources and shows.
A plug-in card that has worked itself loose in its socket. Look for loose or missing screws that secure any plug-in cards, on the back of the PC and in motherboard slots towards the rear. If you can wiggle a card, it is too loose.
RAM loose in socket. Press down firmly on RAM modules to ensure they are fully seated.
Failing RAM module. A technician can detect this and replace the RAM with new modules. This would be a good time to increase to 1 GB of RAM.
Failing hard drive. Overheating and time cause hard drive bearings and electronics to wear out. If the main drive develops an out-of-round main bearing, when it heats up to a certain point it will seize.
Motherboard chips coming loose, or developing cold solder joints. You best bet is to take it to a shop for inspection.
Leaking electrolytic coupling capacitors on motherboard. Using your flashlight inspect each little capacitor that looks like a small can; roughly 1/2"D x 1/2"H. If you see bulging tops and fluid leaking out, the failing capacitors are probably the cause of your shutdowns. This is usually the end of life for that motherboard. The manufacturer used counterfeit capacitors unknowingly. The motherboard would need replacing, if that model can even be found anymore. Sometimes a really good technician can replace the leaking capacitors, but it gets costly.
Corruption of critical system files. If none of the above appear to be applicable, plain old system file corruption might be the culprit. You can verify the integrity of system files thusly. Find your Windows XP CD, making sure it contains the service pack level on your computer. Insert it into your main CD drive. Dismiss the setup window that opens. Go to Start > Run and copy/paste, or type this command in and press Enter: SFC /SCANNOW Note, that Windows may pop up a box asking for the source of the Windows files. Use the browse button to show it the drive letter that the CD is in and let it proceed. Do this as often as required, until the System File Checker finishes.
Interlinked data in adjacent sectors, or bad sectors on the C drive can cause reboots. Go to My Computer > C drive icon and Right-click on it. Select Properties, then the TOOLS tab. Under "Error Checking" click on "Check Now." Place a checkmark in both options in the pop-up box, then click OK. An alert will pop up telling you that Windows cannot lock the disk because it is in use. It will ask if you want to schedule a disk check to run on the next reboot. Tell it Yes, dismiss the alert, close all programs and reboot. Do not touch any keys during the reboot. Chkdsk will run for some time and attempt to recover data from bad or interlinked sectors. The computer will reboot automatically after Chkdsk has completed its task.
Severe fragmentation: defragment the drive. Close all open programs, files and applications. Delete temporary files, using the built-in Disk Cleanup utility. Click on Start > Run and type in: cleanmgr and press enter. A box will pop up and spend a minute or two calculating how much space it can free up. When it is done review the options that are checked, check any that aren't already checked that show a measureable files size and let it proceed. It may offer to "compress old files." I personally don't bother with this, but some people do, to save space on an overloaded hard drive. After the disk cleanup box finishes it will just disappear. When it does, go to Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > left-click on Defragmenter to launch it. If you only have a C drive just click on the Defragment button to begin the process. If you have two or more drives, click on the C drive to highlight it, then click on Defragment.
Last, but not least, a nasty virus or other malware can cause sudden shutdowns, if it is badly written and conflicting with other code. Your anti-virus program may be under attack and instead of terminating the attacker it is bailing on you and shutting down the workstation. Just a thought. Have you scanned for viruses, spyware, rootkits, backdoors, and spambots?

I hope this helps.
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Twitter: @Wizcrafts
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J. R. McClung · From: Oklahoma, USA

Thanks for all the helpful replies.

No, there's no "blue screen of death".

No, it does not go through it's proper shut-down sequence.

It just powers off.....as though someone "pulled the plug".

I will pop the cover, give it a good cleaning and inspection, and upgrade the RAM, just as soon as I get a whole afternoon or evening at home.
_________________
Forget "world peace". Visualize using your turn signals.

Wiz Feinberg · From: Mid-Michigan, USA

Gary Baker · From: Charlotte, North Carolina

I agree on the "overheating" as I had the same thing a while back.

One way to test is take the side cover off to expose the "innards" and place a LARGE fan pointed into the PC.

Run the programs that are giving you trouble. If they continue to run (as mine did) you need a new heat sink and fan. This is best done by an expert as you are messing with the IC Chip and that's the biggest part of the cost of your PC.

Good Luck, Bo Baker

Bent Romnes · From: London,Ontario, Canada

JR,
I agree with Gary Baker and the others that it overheating could be the culprit. However, it is a job you can do yourself. What you have to buy beforehand is a small tube of the goop that you seat the heatsink in, on top of the chip. When you take things apart, and put them back together, wear surgical gloves to avoid getting oil from your skin on the parts.
Take the heat sink off and vacuum it to get all the crud out of the fins.
Use a soft scraper...like an ice cream stick to clean off the old goop. Apply new goop and seat the heat sink in it and fasten.

Jack Stoner · From: Kansas City, MO

The "goop" is the heatsink compound. And "Arctic Ice" brand is considered the best.

Some CPU/Heatsink assemblies will have a pad instead of the (usually) white heatsink compount. If it has a pad it will have to be removed before applying new heatsink compound.

Wiz Feinberg · From: Mid-Michigan, USA

I bought a "kit" from Arctic, consisting of two bottles of remover/cleaner and one tube of silver heatsink compound. You apply a few drops of compound remover to both the heatsink and CPU case, wait a minute, then rub off the residue with a paper towel. Then you apply a few drops from the 2nd bottle and using a clean paper towel - polish the core of the heatsink and CPU. Finally, apply a couple of drops of Arctic Silver to the CPU, mate the heatsink, twist it left and right, then clamp it down.

I would recommend thoroughly cleaning all dust from the heatsink fins and the fan.
_________________
"Wiz" Feinberg, Moderator SGF Computers Forum
Security Consultant
Twitter: @Wizcrafts
Main web pages: Wiztunes Steel Guitar website | Wiz's Security Blog | My Webmaster Services | Wiz's Security Blog

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