13 replies to this topic

[Jizzylax]

Just wondering if anyone knows why my computer keeps rebooting before it POSTs. I went to shut down my computer one night, and it rebooted to Windows. I thought okay, maybe I hit restart instead of shut down. It rebooted again. So I'm like okay, what the hell. It was booting into Windows at that point. One of the times it restarted the BIOS screwed my settings up for the FSB speed so I had to change them. Then I finally had to turn it off through the switch on the PSU. Next morning I turn it on and it doesn't POST, it just continuously reboots after about 2 or 3 seconds. Any ideas? I've removed all hardware (hard drives, dvd drives, etc). The only thing plugged in is the graphics card, and obviously the CPU and memory and necessities. I always go right to the power supply as the culprit, but I just bought this PSU in June or July. Thanks for any ideas.

[quantumAlpha]

sounds like a PSU problem... or aliens...

grab the multimeter and measure the rails while its trying to start. plug it straight into the wall, see if it helps (too many things plugged into the outlet?)

have you changed heatsinks/fans recently? i have an old laptop which did just this until i reseated the heatsink on it with new thermal grease (who would have thought!)

can you break POST and get into BIOS or nothing at all?

[tysercom]

 quantumAlpha, on Jan 7 2007, 15:10, said:

have you changed heatsinks/fans recently? i have an old laptop which did just this until i reseated the heatsink on it with new thermal grease (who would have thought!)

I had that problem before, but i thought it was dust, so i took out everything and cleaned it. Well, it was dirty anyways.

[Singh400]

I've got a really old laptop that does this. Usually when it gets too hot. Might wanna give it a good clean & point a fan at it maybe?

[Xenokira]

Definately try a PSU, even if its a crappy one just to test out your machine with. It wouldn't hurt to try clearing the BIOS too.

[Jizzylax]

Well if it is another PSU, then that's two my computer/wall outlet/surge protector has fried in 6 months. So if that's the case, then I have a bigger problem.

Fan-wise .... yeah when checking out my computer I noticed one of the fans was not spinning at all. Now, my computer isn't overclocked and doesn't get hot at all. And I usually clean my case out pretty regularly so it wasn't dusty. The bearings must have just gone out. So the fan wasn't spinning, but the exhaust fan was. Took the fan out that wasn't spinning, tried it, same thing. I'll see if I can reset my BIOS. It can really only be one of these things because they are the only components hooked up.

PSU
CPU
Memory - not memory, tested
Motherboard
Graphics Card

edit: oh and here's something weird too. Typically, after plugging the PSU in and turning on the PSU switch, you have to push the power button on the front of the computer, right? Well all of the sudden since this happened, my computer turns on as soon as I hit the PSU switch.

Edited by Jizzylax, 07 January 2007 - 06:53 PM.

[quantumAlpha]

not too hot can be an extreme range for a CPU

perhaps the switch is broken? do you have a hardware reset switch? BIOS often controls the front power switches, if BIOS is messed up, then it may not have remembered that you need to press that first. many computers have a "return to last power state" feature after a power failure (aka. turning off the PSU)

[Jizzylax]

I can't POST, no overheating.

I tried taking out the video card/memory entirely ... shouldn't I get warning beeps or something if I remove one or both of these?

CPU fan, chassis fan spins up. Front power LEDs light up. I can't believe it is the PSU again. Two Antec PSUs in 6 months? No way.

Motherboard maybe?

[Jizzylax]

So I said screw it and bought a new computer. Haha!

A little tight on money right now, so it's not what I would have gone for if I had a few hundred dollars more, but it will do. I don't game too much, it should handle Vista, and I'm planning on adding more RAM when I get the cash. Plus, the motherboard has room for a processor upgrade. Here are the specs:


1) Antec 761345-75027-1 120mm Tricolor LED Case Fan
2) AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ Windsor 2.0GHz Socket AM2 Processor Model ADA3800CUBOX
3) BFG Tech BFGR76256GTOCE GeForce 7600GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card
4) CORSAIR XMS2 1GB (2 x 512MB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X1024A-6400
5) ASUS M2N-E Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 Ultra MCP ATX AMD Motherboard
6) Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
7) Antec LifeStyle SONATA II Piano Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 450Watt SmartPower 2.0 ATX 12V V2.0 Power Supply

Total Cost: $695

I'm still trying to figure out what is wrong with my old computer because I might give it to my parents if I can get it working again. At any rate, the above is an improvement on my old Athlon XP 2600+, 512MB RAM, 80GB hard drive, and GeForce 6800GT.

edit: Oh yeah, and before anyone gets on me for the PSU, I am looking to buy another one. I know that Antec PSU sucks. Any specific model suggestions for $100 or less?

edit 2: anyone want to express opinions on seasonic?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16817151023

Or possibly this Tagan, when it gets in stock?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16817101516

Or this single 12v rail Tagan, which is in stock
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16817811014

Not quite sure if I should get dual 12v rails or what? I don't really know much about it. Little help there?

Edited by Jizzylax, 08 January 2007 - 07:20 PM.

[dkreifus]

I'm very happy with my Thermaltake... very nice and quiet. reliable.

I just upgraded from a Athlon XP 2000+ to a AMD 3800+ X2 as well. I can't wait to finish moving my data and start using it.

[Jizzylax]

It arrived last night, and I got it together around 11pm!

Man this thing flies compared to my old computer. I can't wait to test out some stuff. Too bad my internet has been crap for the past two days. Damn roadrunner. Makes downloading drivers and crap a pain.

Oh well. This thing is sweet.

[enriqjames]

Restart the computer when it itself is experiencing serious problems with Windows. This is a frustrating problem, a serious loss of productivity and computer performance. The result of random restart your computer to save the file without loss and waste of valuable time.

[nells james]

Computer viruses are sometimes designed to automatically start when booting the system. Computer restarts itself, due to the virus infection. To solve this problem to boot the system in Safe Mode, press the F8 key, and then it started, and select "safe mode with networking" option. After this the anti-virus scanning.

Edited by nells james, 27 August 2011 - 02:36 PM.